Vivify Your Apartment With Vegetation: Grow Your Own Fresh Air

Allergy problems? This post’s for you. Like the idea of clean air in your apartment? This one’s for you too. 

This is our last post in our apartment plant series, so we thought we’d end with something less flowery and more factual. There’s a science behind the greenery with which you grace your apartment.

Introducing: Kamal Meattle. Most famous for his 2009 talk at the Technology, Entertainment, Design annual conference entitled, “How to Grow Your Own Fresh Air,” Meattle is an Indian environmental activist, researcher and CEO of Paharpur Business Centre & Software Technology Incubator Park in New Delhi. With its air-filtering plants and sustainable architecture, this is a true model for green business. 

Kamal Meattle’s allergic reactions to New Delhi’s polluted air became acute enough in 1992 for him to take scientific action. He discovered three common houseplants that, when placed in strategic locations, significantly enhance indoor air quality and your body’s functioning. 

THE STERILE TRIO

1. Areca Palm [Chrysalidocarpus lutescens]

• The Living Room Plant
• Job: Converts CO₂ to clean O₂ during the day.
• Quantity: 4 shoulder-height plants per person in apartment.*

2. Mother-In-Law’s Tongue [Sansevieria trifasciata]

• The Bedroom Plant
• Job: Converts CO₂ to clean O₂ at night.
• Quantity: 6 to 8 waist-high plants per person in apartment.*

3. Money Plant [Epipremnum aureum]

• The Specialist Plant
• Job: Removes formaldehyde and other volatile chemicals from the air.
• [No quantity recommendation]

*You’ll still get clean air effects even if you don’t follow Meattle’s strict quantity recommendations.

If maintained properly, Meattle claims that you could live inside a capped bottle with these three plants and you would have all the fresh air you need. And he clearly knows what he’s talking about, considering he based his findings on years of NASA studies, other scientific research and 15 years of his own testing. Plus, studies have shown that he has the healthiest office building in India -- if you spend just 10 hours in his building, your blood oxygen levels increase by 1%!

And if you’re really interested in this “grow your own fresh air” concept, check out this book written by Dr. B.C. Wolverton, who did the research for NASA’s plant studies: How to Grow Fresh Air: 50 House Plants that Purify Your Home or Office.

Alright, now it’s time to turn your apartment into a farm for fresh air and start growing those clean oxygen atoms!

Next week, we will continue the “clean” content and tell you which cleaning products do not go together. Check back soon or subscribe for nontoxic knowledge!

Vivify Your Apartment With Vegetation: The Plants For Your Pad

Welcome back to the Berger Blog. We’re going to assume you’re here because you can’t wait to read about which plants are best for apartments, so we’ll get right to it!

Here are the top 4 plants for apartment life: 

1. Asplenium nidus, aka “Bird’s Nest Fern”

This fern is one of the easiest to maintain because it’s slow growing and, despite its tropical origins in Southeast Asia and Australia, it can live in drier air than most ferns. Treat it kindly and it’ll live for many years. Keep it out of direct sunlight, which can scorch the fronds; and to appease its rainforest roots, keep it moist and away from drafts. They’re not heavy feeders, preferring a weak liquid fertilizer weekly or biweekly during growing season, April to October. But water deeply and weekly, and mist often! 

2. Chamaedorea elegans, aka “Parlor Palm”

Also also known as “Table Palm” or Neanthe bella, this is a small palm with low light requirements. It’s slow growing and can adapt to basically any office or apartment lifestyle. Water regularly, but make sure the topsoil is dry before each watering, and mist its leaves when the weather gets warm. Indoor palms don’t like a lot of fertilizer -- feed monthly in spring and summer and every two or three months in fall and winter with an all-purpose liquid fertilizer. Have a furry friend in your apartment? Perfect! “Bella” is non-toxic to pets. 

3. Split-leaf philodendron, aka Monstera deliciosa or “Swiss Cheese Plant”

You’ve got to love a plant with those names. It tolerates dry air and semi-shade better than most plants. Water weekly, but as with the Parlor Palm, make sure the topsoil is dry first. Fertilize during the growing season, which spans from late February to October, with diluted liquid fertilizer -- ½ teaspoon of fertilizer per gallon of water. It can grow up to 10 feet tall, hence the name “Monstera,” so it should be repotted every two years… or sooner if it outgrows its pot.

WARNING: The Swiss Cheese Plant is not for pet owners, and is toxic if ingested! 

4. Dracaena warneckii, aka “Limelight”

True to its name, the Limelight has a great color -- bright chartreuse green. It’s also excellent for air purification, removing most pollutants from the air, and tolerates drier soil than most tropical plants. Don’t water too often because the leaves will turn brown, and make sure the soil is dry at least two inches down before watering. Mist weekly and feed with a water-soluble fertilizer once or twice a month during the spring and summer. Keep in moderate light, but out of direct sunlight. 

Whether you go for the Swiss Cheese Plant, with its distinctive holey leaves, or the vibrant Limelight, you’re sure to fall in love with the vivification that indoor vegetation provides for your apartment. 

But there’s also a science behind choosing plants for your apartment. Check back soon or subscribe for a tantalizing trio for untainted air.

Vivify Your Apartment With Vegetation: The Grounds For Greenery

Flowers get a lot of hype -- especially in the month of May and particularly this spring, with fashion and interior designers (and stores like Target) splashing our world with vibrant, neon colors. And yes, flowers are beautiful, but you mustn’t forget about the nonflowering plants -- they may not be as colorful, but they’ve got a few blossoming benefits of their own.

This week on the Berger Blog, it’s all about the gymnosperms, seedless vascular plants (like ferns) and bryophytes that can turn your apartment into a healthier, happier and simply greener place. 

There are countless reasons to vivify your apartment with vegetation, but we’ve cut down the list to the top 13 for your streamlined convenience.

THE GROUNDS FOR GREENERY:

1. Plants refresh stale indoor air.

They extract airborne contaminants like VOCs, which can cause headaches and nausea. And in addition to filtering chemicals, they also improve air quality by emitting clean oxygen.

2. Plants clobber colds.

Studies show that indoor plants reduce cold-related illnesses by 30% by increasing humidity levels and decreasing dust.

3. Plants make you smile.

Plants contribute to feelings of wellbeing, tranquility and optimism. Once again, the studies have proof: patients who have a view of a garden in their hospital rooms recover more quickly than those who don’t. 

4. Plants make you smile, even if you’re extra sad.

For those experiencing depression and loneliness, plants are particularly helpful in the happy department. Caring for something, even a plant, gives you senses of worth, purpose and responsibility; this, in turn, enhances mental wellbeing.

5. Plants make your heart happy.

The benefits in points 3 and 4, above, also come with reduced stress and lower blood pressure.

6. Plants fight fatigue.

Elevated levels of carbon dioxide can make you drowsy, and if you paid attention in your fourth grade science class, you know that plants extract CO₂ from the air during photosynthesis.

7. Plants make natural treatments.

Some indoor plants, like aloe, can be applied to the skin for pain relief or to treat dryness. Have a nasty burn on your shoulders from enjoying the sun? Good thing you have that aloe plant waiting for you in your apartment!

8. Plants attack allergies.

Plants can work like natural allergy shots… for themselves. Let us explain. Natural remedy experts say that exposing children to plants early in life can help them build up a tolerance and immunity to that plant’s allergens. But, obviously, you should never expose someone with diagnosed plant allergy to that plant.

9. Plants stifle cigarettes.

A plant can help remove the airborne chemicals from cigarettes, so if you’re a smoker or you live with one, this applies to you. The Peace Lilly is an especially superb cigarette stifler. 

10.     Plants make you smarter.

Okay, they can’t really make you “smarter,” but they do help your brain work better. Studies have shown that people working amongst indoor plants experience improved idea generation and creativity.

11.    Plants fight phlegm.

Eucalyptus, in particular, works wonders for your sinus pressure and nasal congestion. In fact, this phlegm fighter is often found in congestion medicines.

12.    Plants magnify moisture.

In a previous blog post, we offered cost- and space-saving alternatives to the humidifier. Well, here’s another one! Bring some plants into your apartment and you’ve got a few natural humidifiers.

13.    Plants summon the sandman.

While they do extract CO₂, which can make you drowsy, plants can also improve your sleep because of their clean oxygen emission. We did say we were focusing on nonflowering plants, but if you’re interested in this health benefit, invest in a few Gerbera daisies -- these pretty petals give off oxygen at night, so fill a vase with them in your bedroom for a good night’s rest. 

A pretty accurate conclusion of this list would be that indoor plants generally make you happier and healthier. Don’t believe us? Try it out. But first, you’ll need to know which plants are best for apartments. Check back soon or subscribe to find out!

Feng Shui Your Apartment: Make Life Rosy

Happy Friday, everyone! This is our last post in our series on aligning and designing your apartment the feng shui way.

Our first post introduced you to the Bagua map and our second post gave some ideas on how to enhance the Life Journey/Career aspect of your life. This post is about promoting prosperity in your intimate relationships and love life.  

Once again, the first step is to align the entry of your apartment with the bottom of the Bagua map. Observe which area of your apartment aligns with the Love & Marriage/Intimate Relationships.

The element assigned to this area is earth, representing your ability to nurture your most intimate relationships: the relationships with yourself, your lover and mother earth. 

The color of this area of your apartment and aspect of your life is rosy pink and earth tones, especially luscious reds. The color pink is associated with Valentine’s Day and love for a reason. Feng shui masters believe that its gentle and delicate vibrations have a soothing effect on one's behavior, filling the heart with compassion and warmth.

Embellish this area of your apartment with pairs of things -- this represents the very nature of the relationship, whether it’s between you and a friend, you and a lover or you and mother earth herself. When looking for décor, keep the themes of intimacy, fertility, nurturing and stability in mind. Look for accessories that evoke these concepts in your mind (and your heart). 

To boost the nurturing ch’i of this space in your apartment and aspect of your life, work with feng shui crystals. Incorporate the rose quartz crystal in this area, which is believed to carry strong “heart healing” energy vibrations. Consider buying a clear, decorative bowl and filling it with these crystals. They’re inexpensive and are often sold as smooth tumbled stones or, appropriately for this purpose, carved in a heart shape. Some feng shui enthusiasts who are particularly troubled in their love lives even carry rose quartz crystals around in their purses or pockets and place them under their pillows.

And remember, feng shui is all about balance. So when you’re decorating your apartment with pinks and reds, it shouldn’t all be about the soft, feminine energy. Harmonize it with deep earth tones to represent the balanced energy that a healthy relationship between two people requires.

And for all areas of your apartment, cleanse the clutter. Open, healthy space for energy to move and thrive applies to all aspects of your life! Check out our previous blog post for tips on how to “cleanse the clutter” and free up space in your apartment.

Have a fun and feng shui weekend. And please let us know if you notice any positive effects of balancing the ch’i in your apartment – we’re interested to hear your experiences! 

And to continue this theme of enhancing the life-giving energy of your apartment, next week’s series will be about finding the best plants for your apartment. So subscribe or check back soon!

Feng Shui Your Apartment: Embrace Life’s Mystery

Welcome back to the Berger Blog. In our last post, we introduced you to the science and mystical art of feng shui. We also provided you with a link to download the Bagua map, the tool used to map out the types of energy in your living space so you can improve certain aspects of your life by harmonizing the corresponding energies in those areas. 

This post is about enhancing the Life Journey/Career part of your life. Like we said in our last post, the first step is to align the entry of your apartment with the bottom of the map (so that it corresponds with either the Travel/Helpful People, Life Journey/Career or Knowledge/Self-Cultivation area). 

Then, observe which area of your apartment correlates with the Life Journey/Career area. 

The element of this area is water, both moving and still. Water is often used to symbolize cash flow. But it also symbolizes the courage and flexibility to live with a bit of uncertainty when your life path seems ambiguous.

The colors related to this area are dark colors and black. These dark tones represent the mystery and lack of structure or clarity that your life journey often evokes -- when you’re not totally sure where you’ll end up, or even where you want to end up.

To harmonize the ch’i of this area of your apartment, and therefore enhance the flexibility, clarity and success of your life journey and career, embellish it with artwork that features water -- like waterfalls, lakes or fountains. Also, adorn this area with glass and mirrors, dark colors and accessories or fabrics with graceful, curling lines and patterns.

If you really want to dive deep into feng shui, consider buying an indoor tabletop fountain, like the ones sold at SimplyFountains. This will engender an even more auspicious ch’i because, according to feng shui, the healthy flow of clean, clear water supports courage, flexibility and, ultimately, a healthy cash flow in your life.

Does the entryway of your apartment align with this Life Journey/Career area? While your landlord may not appreciate you painting it black, you can enhance this area with black accessories and accents. When used correctly, this color presents less of a “dark/evil” connotation and, instead, emanates a vibe of bottomless beauty and enchanting mystique.

If you’re still with us, feng shui must be piquing your interest! Whether you believe in the mystical elements of this practice or you just believe it provides some good guidelines for appealing interior design, incorporating the art feng shui into your apartment is a great way to really make the space yours -- and most importantly, make it feel good to live there.

Subscribe or check back soon for how to align and design your space to enhance the Love & Marriage/Intimate Relationship aspect of your life! 

Feng Shui Your Apartment: Chart Your Ch’i

Are you sitting down? Good. Make sure you’re in a quiet space. If not, find one -- this will only take a few moments. Ready? Okay, now close your eyes, breathe deeply and rub the palms of your hands together vigorously until you feel some heat. Move them six to eight inches apart, palms still facing each other. Now, move them slowly together and apart without touching. Feel that? That’s your ch’i. 

If you are an avid “Words With Friends” player, you know that ch’i has multiple spellings (ch’i, chi, qi), but they all mean the same thing -- the animating force behind all forms of life. In other words, ch’i is the energy inside the earth, inside of you and inside your living space. 

This week on the Berger Blog, we’re going to teach you how to feng shui your apartment. Feng shui is the science and mystical art of adjusting the ch'i to harmonize your living space and empower you to be your best self.

There are many types and sub-types of feng shui, and it can get pretty complex and intricate. But for the purpose of these blog posts, we’re going to give you a simple and streamlined introduction to feng shui.

The tool used to understand the energy in a space is the feng shui Bagua map. To download a PDF of the Bagua map, click here. This map identifies the most important aspects of your life (health, finances, relationships, etc.) and shows you where these areas correlate in your home or apartment so you can enhance the energy of sectors that need attention. 

If you’re interested in testing out the ancient art of feng shui in your apartment, download the map and look it over. The first step is to align the entry of your apartment with the bottom of the map. Your entryway will align with either the Travel/Helpful People, Life Journey/Career or Knowledge/Self-Cultivation area.

The next step is to check back soon for instruction on how to make enhancements on certain aspects of your life by altering the colors, positioning and elements of your living space and possessions. We’ll continue to feng shui on Wednesday!

From Apartment Awkward To Apartment Ally: Get Fit & Friendly

It’s Friday, finally -- the perfect time to give you our last social suggestion for building relationships with your apartment neighbors. In last week’s posts, we gave you the skinny on exercising without equipment. (How are those fierce flows and rockin’ arm balances treating you?) But you know what’s even better and more effective than exercising without equipment? Doing it with a friend! 

If you’ve ever felt a lack of motivation to get moving -- which, we can safely say, everyone’s experienced -- try kicking it into high gear with the neighbor down the hall. Not only does having someone to hit the gym or go on a run with amp up the motivation, but it helps build your relationship too.

Keep each other on track with your fitness schedules. And don’t be afraid of a little friendly competition! When used in a positive way, this friendly fire can further inspire you to get moving and, most importantly, get you both closer to your goals together.

Neighbors that work out together stay friends forever -- or at least lay down a strong foundation for friendship.

Have fun getting fit and friendly this weekend! Check back on Monday for our next series on refurbishing your apartment the feng shui way!

From Apartment Awkward To Apartment Ally: Gather, Gab & Grill

Welcome back to the Berger Blog. We hope the last two days have been filled with lots of “hellos” and “how ya doin’s” between you and your apartment neighbors. As you may know, this week on the Berger Blog is all about socializing with your fellow renters and turning awkward interactions into engaging exchanges.

After you’ve graced your neighbors with your warm salutations, it’s time to heat things up to the next level … community BBQ! In three previous posts, we dished out healthy hints to become a lean, mean barbequing machine. Well, it’s time to put those hints to good use and share them with your apartment community.

Everyone loves a barbeque, and as we mentioned in our previous posts, there are plenty of vegetarian, gluten-free and even vegan BBQ options to get everyone excited to dig in. Get together with some of the neighbors you already know to establish a time and place to host the cookout. And if you don’t have a group of go-to party planners, ask your landlord if you can post flyers in your apartment building’s lobby about planning a BBQ. Make sure you include some tear-off strips with your contact information so anyone who’s interested in helping you plan can reach you.

Once you’ve established a time and place -- perhaps a community park at 5:00pm? -- it’s time to set up the food situation. Who’s bringing the quinoa salad? Who’s the designated king or queen of the grill? Who’s taking care of utensils, plates, napkins and drinks? Remember, your planning crew doesn’t have to take care of all the buying and cooking! It’s time to post more flyers, this time posting the time and place of the BBQ, stirring up excitement and asking for help with food, drinks and snacks. Some people hate planning, so if they weren’t interested in your first flyer, that doesn’t mean they don’t love to shop, cook and eat!

Keep the excitement going with updated flyers and even personal invitations that you slide under fellow renters’ doors. Make sure the flyers are colorful and attention grabbing. And try to make the invitations creative and unique to your apartment complex -- incorporate something to tie everyone together, lay the foundation for a close community and get people fired up about firing up the grill together. 

Summer’s just around the corner, so start planning for a sizzlin’ and social BBQ season! Check back on Friday or subscribe for our last social suggestion to activate your affinity with apartment allies. 

From Apartment Awkward To Apartment Ally: Just Say “Hello”

How well do you know your apartment neighbors? Are you on a noncommittal “smile-and-nod” level or a more personal nickname basis? Are you going out together for dinner and drinks or are you going out of your way to avoid contact? 

Your relationships with fellow renters play a large part in your apartment living experience. And it’s not just about enhancing your security with a few apartment allies and having a go-to source when you need a favor. Involving yourself with your neighbors simply makes apartment life more enjoyable. So this week on the Berger Blog, we’re going to give you some socializing suggestions to help you initiate things with that neighbor you’ve been meaning to connect with.

It all starts with one simple word: “Hi.” Or, “Hello.” Or perhaps, “Hey, how ya doin’? How ‘bout this weather we’re having? It’s beautiful out!” It doesn’t take a lot to get a conversation going, and it doesn’t really matter which words you use. What matters is that you take the effort to commence communication. Not only does it get a relationship started, but it also shows your neighbor that you care enough to connect and get to know him or her.

Once you break the ice of that first interaction, every exchange after that will get more and more natural … until you’re popping in each other’s apartments to borrow a few eggs or a hair dryer.

So for now, just work on saying “hi.” Those two little letters can go a long way. Check back on Wednesday or subscribe to the Berger Blog to get another sizzlin’ social suggestion to sync up with your neighbors. 

Apartment Exercise: Yoga On YouTube, Fierce & Free

Happy Friday, everyone! Before you kick your weekend into high fat-burning gear, Berger’s got one more “tight-body, tight-space, tight-budget” tip for you.

We’re sure you’ve heard of P90X, the90-day DVD workout program that combines a variety of exercise techniques, like strength training, cardio, yoga, plyometrics and stretching.  This is a great programthat utilizes “muscle confusion” and allows you to work out on your own time in your apartment. But the DVD set costs around $120 and you’re prompted to invest in equipment like a pull up bar, weights and resistance bands.

So if you don’t want to spend the cash on DVDs and equipment, you’re in luck. If you’ve got a laptop or computer and an Internet connection, you’ve got free workouts at your fingertips. 

• YouTube

It’s become so insanely popular for a reason. Besides shockingly amusing videos of leprechaun sightings in Alabama and cats riding turtles, it’s got a lot of quality (and free!) workout routines. 

• Yoga On YouTube

Sadie Nardini -- NYC yoga instructor, wellness expert and creator of Core Strength Vinyasa Flow -- has an excellent YouTube channel. Check it out for free yoga routines that include a six-minute “wake up yoga in bed,” a seven-minute “flying core sun salutation,” a thirty-minute weight loss sequence and an hour-long “hipster floor flow.” She’s even got “cooling yoga poses for chillaxing” if you’re having a low-energy day and a “fierce flow” to ignite your inner fire.

Sadie uses a core-strengthening focus to tone your whole body from the center out. Plus, you learn the science behind the muscles you’re working. While her sequences strengthen your body, her 19 years of study in the yogic arts, energetics, Eastern and Western philosophy, nutrition, anatomy and ninja training will strengthen your mind.

For the guys out there, these are not easy, “girly” workouts or “lay down and just breathe” yoga routines. While Sadie offers a bunch of sequences for beginners, her “rockin’ arm balances,” scorpion pose and peacock pose are extreme… to say the least.

While you’re calming your mind and toning your body with Sadie, keep in mind that yoga (and a healthy diet) is what helped her fight back from an un-definitively diagnosed central nervous system illness that rendered her nearly paralyzed for over two years as a teenager -- an illness her doctors said was likely impossible to recover from. Check out her website for her full story and tons of yoga resources and wellness tips.

Have a fantastic weekend, full of fierce flows and fitness fun! And if anyone’s successful in rockin’ your arm balances, please let us know! That’s a body-buster worth boasting to Berger about.

Subscribe or check back on Monday for our next blog series on ways to meet your neighbors. Who knows, maybe you’ll meet a future fitness friend!