Having plants in the home has a very positive effect on people’s psychology during the pandemic lockdown, according to an international study by Greek and foreign researchers.
The research by scientists in Greece (Hellenic Mediterranean University of Crete), Spain (University of Seville), Italy (University of Genoa) and Brazil (Federal Provincial University of Pernambuco), published in the journal Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, included 4,205 people in 46 countries during the first pandemic wave of spring. From the Greek side, Maria Kaltsidis (University of Seville), as well as Panagiotis Nektarios and Giorgos Markakis (from the Hellenic Mediterranean University of Crete) participated.
Three quarters of participants (74%) said that having plants in their home helped them feel better while they were confined and unable to go out freely to open spaces and nature. More than half (56%) said that during this difficult period they would like to have more plants around them, both inside and outside their home. In addition, those who had no plants in their homes were more likely to experience various negative emotions during lockdown, especially young men and women who lived in small and lightless homes.
Half (52%) said they spent more time caring for their plants during the lockdown, while almost two in three (63%) said they would continue to do so after the lockdown. Finally, 40% expressed their intention to have more plants in their home in the future.
