Greenery is much sought-after in today’s workplaces and within the hospitality industry, not only because it enhances a space visually, but it also has positive effects on health & wellbeing. There are numerous studies about boosting mental wellbeing, increasing productivity & creativity and for those in the Hospitality industry a new report indicates that having more greenery in reception areas can increase the amount of time spent in these areas, translating to more revenue generated for your business (Human Spaces Biophilic Design In Hospitality report). There are several benefits to choosing a moss wall in your workspace, including the fact that they are completely maintenance-free. Working within facilities management, business & hospitality sectors, we can offer bespoke moss walls with your company logo or corporate colours and we can help you achieve the look you’re after, even in the smallest of spaces. Moss Walls are in high-demand, and we’ve asked our resident moss wall experts some questions to help explain what they are, how to look after them and more. Q: What is the difference between a moss wall and a living wall? A: Living Walls are made up from live plants planted in modular compartments and require regular maintenance, with an irrigation system is built into the wall. Moss Walls are made from moss that has been preserved, so it won’t grow anymore, and it won’t decompose. Q: How is the moss preserved? A: This is like asking a chef for a recipe! The moss is usually preserved with glycerine. The moss is then washed though using food grade type colourants, so not to be harmful in anyway, and to ensure the colour stays vibrant. Q: Do moss walls require water & light? A: No, Moss Walls can go anywhere internally and no water or light is required. This is one of the benefits of choosing a moss wall. Q: What level of maintenance is required for a moss wall? A: No maintenance at all is required for Moss Walls other than a spot of dusting every now and then. (we recommend a feather duster) Q: How long does a moss wall last? A: Moss walls are long lasting installations and will need the least care and repair if they are in lower traffic areas where they won’t get touched or bumped into. Q: What are my choices for a moss wall? Are there different types and colours of moss? A: The moss we use is available in 16 different colours, and we can create client logos or other patterns in the walls if desired (as seen in the photo above). Q: Where can it be installed, is it suited to some environments more than others? A: Moss can be installed in any interior location, for aesthetic enhancement and/or for sound absorption. They are not recommended for exterior use Q: What are the benefits of a moss wall? A: Moss walls can help with noise reduction, they require minimal maintenance, they add greenery and a biophilic design element, help increase productivity & creativity, adds a feel-good factor to those in the space, promotes calmness and wellness and much more. Do you have other questions not listed here? If so, let us know so that we can answer them for you. Request your FREE quote for a moss wall today: https://www.planteriagroup.com/free-quote/
The Best Plants for Your Office Environment
In our office, if you want to take a break, there is no better way to re-charge your batteries and stretch your legs than with a couple of laps around our greenhouse. Filled with lush plants in every hue – from the broad glossy leaves of a Croton Petra, dappled with gold and red, to the soft fronds of bright green palms – there are so many varieties in every imaginable shape and size.
Run by Martin Collins and Robert Gilder, our greenhouse covers approximately 5,500 square feet and gives us the perfect conditions for housing our carefully managed stock.
When we visit a new client, we discuss their ideas, colour preferences and corporate branding. We then suggest the best varieties of plant to enhance their interior décor; working with the lighting conditions and heat levels of a building is paramount. Particularly sunny offices will need very different plants to dark offices, and we need to ensure both kinds will thrive. When we are happy that we’ve got it just right, we will order our plants in from specialist growers to arrive in time for installation.
Having our fantastic greenhouse means we have plenty of space and the perfect environment to plant-up our new installations, in-house rather an on-site. With this approach the Plants are already beginning to become established in their planters or containers before they are delivered to the client. It’s also safer and more stable for the plants to be transported in this manner.
Our plant technicians will continue to care for our clients’ plants, even after they have been installed; their tasks may involve cleaning, feeding, cutting-back and sometimes replacing plants. In this case, a technician will use their smart phone to alert the service team and order a new plant. The plant is then placed in the technician’s own individual bay in our greenhouse, ready for the next visit to the client.
One of the biggest benefits of our greenhouse is the variety of office plants that we’re able to keep in stock. Our wide selection of plants ensures that we can respond quickly to problems, guaranteeing that our clients always have perfect plants in their offices and receptions.
Here’s a small selection of the office plants we keep in our greenhouse:
Ficus Benjamina – commonly known as weeping fig, benjamin fig or Ficus tree
Howea Forsteriana – commonly known as Kentia palm
Dracaena Janet Craig – commonly known as dragon tree
Dracaena Marginata – commonly known as Madagascar dragon tree
Yucca – specifically perennial shrubs and trees, often confused with root vegetables by the same name
Agloenema – commonly known as Chinese evergreens
Sanseviera – Common names include mother-in-law’s tongue, devil’s tongue, jinn’s tongue, bow string hemp, snake plant and snake tongue
Guzmania – commonly known as tufted airplant
Plus a wide variety of indoor orchids
Along with our greenhouse at our Henham HQ, we also have polytunnels for storing exterior planting, such as the popular Buxus and seasonal bedding plants, plus a floristry workshop which is approximately 2000 square feet and specialist cold-stores to ensure optimal storage for fresh flowers.
So, as you can see, we’re fully equipped to store and maintain the very best plants for your office environment. If you’d like us to create some beautiful interior planting for you, give us a call to find out more about our office plant service. We love what we do and would love to help you.
Tags: Biophilic design, Workplace
Lunch and Learn
Want to have a fully engaged workforce that understands your whole business? Lunch and Learn sessions are a perfect place to start. Create a culture of continual learning and ideas sharing, and help different teams socialise and get to know each other better. Lunch and Learns foster growth, team building and presentation skills within the business, whilst making the most of your employees time at work. The Lunch and Learn concept is one that the most successful businesses implement, and here we tell you more about the benefits, how to run your own and some mistakes to avoid.
What Is a Lunch and Learn
A lunch and learn is the coming together of two fantastic concepts and this is usually represented by some kind of presentation or activity happening during the lunch hour. This presentation is usually provided by one of your employees or is sometimes given by an outside speaker. The depth of the presentation will depend on the typical length of your lunches, but you could always consider a longer lunchtime on those days for a more leisurely or in-depth experience. A lunch and learn should be easy for all to attend, hold them in-house if you can, in your board room or wherever you can comfortably gather your staff and where they can see and hear the speaker clearly. Ideally with access to a screen to view the presentation. Offer lunch, this is a big draw for many staff. A finger buffet or sandwich platter or something more exciting. This gives staff a chance to get away from their desks and have a change of scenery. Many people work through lunch or skip it entirely and this is not good for their health or their productivity levels. So setting new practices like a lunch and learn will break up the day and help to reinvigorate your employees.
Key Benefits
A lunch and learn allows your staff to develop a wider knowledge of your business or industry. It can be used to develop thinking around new technologies available in your sector, or hear from suppliers about new products and how they could add value to your offering. The lunch and learn is also a great opportunity to grow in-depth knowledge of your internal functions, bringing together disparate teams and forming bonds between workers which will encourage your employees to appreciate the business as a whole, as opposed to only ever seeing their own small part. CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and is the term used to describe the learning activities professionals engage in to develop and enhance their abilities. It enables learning to become conscious and proactive, rather than passive and reactive. There are over 1000 Institutes and Professional bodies across the UK and the number is growing, many of your staff may already be members of some of these. Engaging in Continuing Professional Development ensures that both academic and practical qualifications do not become out-dated or obsolete; allowing individuals to continually ‘upskill’ or ‘re-skill’ themselves, regardless of occupation, age or educational level. Typically, continued professional development can take many forms includingonline courses, reading white papers, attending seminars and industry-specific presentations. With this in mind, you can find out what your own staff requirements are and help them by delivering suitable lunchtime learning sessions. Here are some more specific advantages gained by conducting lunch and learns:
Connect with Quieter Teams
It’s a fact of any business – some teams are simply quieter than others. This might be because their line of work is more likely to attract introverts, or it could be that the employees just aren’t so high profile. Having a member from the quiet team present at a lunch and learn can illuminate their team’s work habits and purpose. Dissolving the air of mystery that inevitably shrouds some employees is an important part of creating a cohesive workforce that respects and understands every individual. 
All for One and One for All
Although explaining the purpose of quiet teams is especially important, giving everyone the chance to explain their line of work can be illuminating. Lunch and learns are opportunities for different teams to advertise the skills they have learned to one another, which can encourage employees to develop a more thorough understanding of the business and to work more closely on projects, especially useful in larger matrix structured organisations. This also encourages internal development and agility, for staff to move to new roles within your company.
Setting Up Your Lunch
The key to a good lunch and learn is organisation. You need to know what, where, who and when, as well as having a clear plan of what you want to achieve with each presentation, including an overarching goal. These business-wide aims will include making more friendships between co-workers of different teams and connecting workers. You can achieve these aims by crafting an exciting and thoughtfully organised lunch and learn programme through the following tips and tricks. 
Catering Staff or Local Lunch
You can’t host a lunch and learn without the lunch, so firstly you need to decide where you will be dining. Go for a simple option of food that can be eaten without too much mess, noise or smell. Make sure it’s tasty and you’ll have staff coming back for more. Whether you go local or for catering will depend on the size of your establishment, cost and the needs of your staff. Don’t forget to cater for all needs, check on dietary requirements in advance. The lunch is often the biggest attraction at these events, but you also need to consider organisation and communication.
Organised Times, Organised Staff
You need to be consistent with when your lunches are organised if you want your staff to appreciate them. Consistency will ensure that your staff recognise when a lunch and learn is upcoming so that they can organise themselves and their schedules around it. For example, those staff members who use three out of five of their lunches each week completing personal activities – going to the gym, running errands, meeting with friends – will hopefully remember to keep lunch and learns free, if it happens on a regular date.
Communication and Encouragement
Not everyone will appreciate lunch and learns at first. Indeed, some will undoubtedly view this exercise as a corporate scam created to squeeze more working hours into the day. You need to avoid this by making lunch and learns an activity that staff actively want to be a part of, not something they are forced to attend. You want your staff to leave these meetings extolling the virtues of a good lunch and learn, talking about the good food they had, the things they have learned and the people they spoke with. You might need to give some encouragement at first, but if you’re hosting them right, then the staff should be encouraging each other. 
Things to Avoid
There are some problems that Lunch and Learn hosts can run into, which can sometimes only be seen with hindsight. We’ve listed them so that you can skip the experimental period and get it right from your very first attempt:
Employee Resistance
Some workers view their lunch break as one of the most important parts of the working day. It’s a time to unwind, relax, and let go of any morning troubles so they can approach the afternoon with a fresh outlook. It is important therefore not to force attendance to these events because it could lead to tension in your workforce. Sell in the benefits and make the topics interesting and varied. Once your staff see that this is a regular event and hear positive feedback they will be keen to take part.
Dull Presentations
A boring presentation will impress no one. Remember that these occasions are happening on workers’ free time, so put fun before facts. You can spice things up by inviting a speaker from another organisation to present, or simply by ensuring that topics are both varied and useful. 
At Planteria we are passionate about what we do and why we do it. To add value to the companies we work with, we offer a presentation to enrich your understanding of biophilic design and planting in the workplace. Get in touch to arrange for us to come and talk to your team. With the growing realisation of the importance that plants and biophilia play in the workplace and their effect on wellbeing, creativity and productivity they have become an essential element in any commercial environment. We work with you to blend our knowledge and design flair to specify the right kind of plants to thrive in a particular space. These presentations are popular with Design and Fit Out companies, Architects and also with Property Management companies and at Tenant Meetings. Read more about what makes us different. Lunch and learns aren’t the only option available to you if you are looking to improve relationships between staff; we also recommend improving office environments with office plants, planning social activities outside of work and offering staff perks.
Tags: Workplace
World Pet Day – Put Pets in Your Office?
Biophilia is all about our connection to the natural world, but does that connection extend to our four-legged friends that we might find snoozing between the office plants at work? In celebration of World Pet Day on April 11th, we’re using this space to talk about those pets which are currently bringing peace to office environments across the world. We will be considering whether office pets could be part of the move towards biophilia, how they benefit your workers, and which are best for the office.
Are Office Pets Part of Biophilic Design?
To answer this question, we first need to understand what is meant by biophilic design. We have already written plenty of blogs discussing the topic, such as Biophilic Design in The Workplace – What’s it all about? and Biophilia – What is it and why is it important?, but we’ll sum it up for you again here with a quote from biologist E. O. Wilson:
“Biophilia is an innate and genetically determined affinity of human beings with the natural world.” – The Biophilia Hypothesis, 1984
Biophilic design, therefore, is an environment which works towards satisfying human urges to be amongst natural elements, therefore providing powerful relief during moments of tension and high stress by being amongst plants and wildlife. There have been plenty of studies since The Biophilia Hypothesis which can scientifically support Wilson’s claims such as Dr Knight’s study; lean offices decorated with indoor office plants can increase productivity by 15%.
Following the fact that office flowers and plants have been shown to have useful effects in the office, our next question is whether adding an office pet to your already biophilic office would have any benefits for your staff’s well-being.
Following the fact that office flowers and plants have been shown to have useful effects in the office, our next question is whether adding an office pet to your already biophilic office would have any benefits for your staff’s well-being.
Considering that biophilia is a human connection to the natural world, it would make sense that animals would have similar benefits to plant life in the office since it’s all biophilia. On the other hand, it is easier to find plants that won’t incur allergies amongst your staff, or worse – scare them.
How Can Pets Benefit Your Workers?
Pets can benefit your office in several ways, but one of the most useful is that they act as a social lubricant. Having an office dog or cat is an easy way into conversation and can really benefit those employees who work hard but struggle to hold a conversation with their co-workers. An office pet bridges that gap by functioning as a shared hobby that can be applied across the office.
Pets are also known to reduce stress, a 2001 study found that patients with pets were better able to keep their blood pressure levels low than those without pets. This could be especially useful in an office environment where stressful situations may occur quite frequently. Alternatively, having pets present could mean that your staff will successfully handle greater responsibilities because the office pet will help with any accompanying stress.
Why Are Office Pets Gaining Popularity?
Google’s official code of conduct states that ‘affection for our canine friends is an integral facet of our corporate culture’, and they’re not alone – Amazon’s headquarters have around 2,000 pets registered to appear whenever employees wish to bring their pet to work. Even Forbes have allowed pets into their offices and have reported that ‘the atmosphere is warmer and more sociable’. Smaller companies are likely following their lead, causing a rise in office pets around the world.
Which Pets Are Best for an Office?
It depends on your office; a dog might be well loved by most, but perhaps most of your workforce would prefer a sociable cat. Alternatively, an aquarium requires far less maintenance but also has far fewer of the advantages that four-legged furry creatures can provide. For example, you don’t receive the same comfort from petting a fish, and they are far less likely to be a talking point in the office. Also, your staff will never be inclined to take the fish outside for a refresher (hopefully), which is an activity that could be very beneficial for staff.
Many offices suffer from sick building syndrome, as explained in our blog about poor Indoor Air Quality: Facts & How To Improve. Essentially, illness caused by poor ventilation in your office could be solved by improving your ventilation, introducing indoor plants to reduce dust and particulate matter, and encouraging your staff to take their breaks outside to stock up on a little fresh air which will help them to stay alert.
Keeping an office cat or dog will necessitate staff trips to let the dog or cat out which can provide health benefits for staff, as well as relief for the animal. On the other hand, a trip to the outdoors can seem a bit of chore in the rain – which is when indoor plant alternatives really shine for improving office health. Rain or shine, indoor office plants will always be there to boost creativity, productivity and health in your office – and you won’t need to drag them outside for a bathroom trip in poor winter weather.
To conclude, a lot of offices across the world are finding positives in bringing their pets to work, but if you’re not ready to commit to bringing the animal kingdom into your office – and sorting through the insurance policies that they might interfere with – then you can reap the same benefits that they bring by redesigning your office to incorporate more plant life.
Alternatively, if you’re already enjoying life with an office pet and want to further improve your office to suit staff and animals alike, we’re sure that bringing more plants into your office will bring joy to everyone.
Bring and Share Christmas Food!
Christmas and New Year’s festivities are a must for offices across the country – the chance to create some merriment and festivity in the, normally corporate workspace, with decoration and celebration is important for the wellbeing of many workers, not ignoring the fact that it’s also a lot of fun! A great way to celebrate it is with a bring and share – an event that encourages everyone to contribute together to make some delicious treats for all to enjoy!
Raise Morale and Celebrate with Some Delicious Treats
Not every company wants to host a Christmas party, and this could be for a variety of reasons, but that doesn’t mean that you should forgo celebrations altogether. There is plenty that you can do within working hours to raise staff morale without impinging on their own commitments. Hosting a bring and share is a perfect example of how you can satisfy staff desires to celebrate Christmas or the new year without cutting into their personal time. The event could also be used as a charity fund raiser giving an extra incentive for everyone in the office to get involved, either in baking or sampling the food, on a day set with more of a relaxed atmosphere and a little more socialising.
It’s also a great idea to reward those individuals who are striving to keep the business running over the Christmas period.
Inspiration for a Brilliant Office Bring & Share
Firstly, if you are going to be getting into the Christmas spirit in your office, then we fully recommend investing in a Christmas tree to get everyone in the festive mood.
The Planteria New Business Team will be enjoying a thoroughly Christmassy celebration this year, complete with decorated tree and plenty of food contributions from our colleagues. We’ve collected a selection of our tried and tested favourite Christmassy contributions for a bring and share, to inspire you:
We’re bringing more than just food to the table; we’re also looking forward to engaging in a few Christmas activities, such as wreath making whilst listening to some classic Christmas songs.
Tips for Making Your Own Cheese Scones
Cheese scones are a classic twist on your favourite plate of afternoon tea, and they are incredibly easy to make too! All you need to do is add some cheese to your classic scone recipe, perhaps with a pinch of pepper and salt added to ensure that your scones are a truly savoury sensation. Other recommendations include adding spring onions and chives to the cheesy topping to add a little heat and variation in colour too. If you are concerned about your scones looking a little pale, then choose a darker cheese such as a red Leicester to make them stand out as perfectly scrumptious.
These taste especially exquisite when paired with some roasted or sundried tomatoes, but it can be quite easy to accidentally fill up on these treats before you have had the opportunity to try the rest of the dishes on the table.
If you want a go at replicating some of the Planteria team’s favourite dishes, here are some recipes for you to use as guidance! Good luck!
Ready for Christmas
If you’re thinking about Christmas already, then you should know that you’re on the right track for enjoying a spectacular and super-organised Christmas period. We understand that there is plenty to do and think about, so let us handle your Office Christmas Tree preparations. Order now with our configurator to ensure that you receive the perfect tree this December.
A Planteria Christmas Tree
Christmas Infographic! Corporate Party Planning
Planning the perfect corporate Christmas party can be extremely gratifying, but we also recognise that any business get-together comes with its trials and tribulations. Fortunately, we understand the importance of a professional party and are here to offer our assistance with a beautiful new infographic:
As can be expected, British offices vary in how they celebrate the festive period, so we’ve gathered some facts for you to enjoy here:
86% of organisations will host a Christmas Party!
70% of organisations offer flexible hours during the festive period
55% of employers give their staff gifts
60% of employers don’t ask their teams how they want to celebrate!
51% of organisations share end-of-year results
Above facts sourced from Perkbox.
Of the offices that do host Christmas parties…
25% are expecting an all-expenses paid for occasion
14% will have their event subsidised
15% will receive a Christmas bonus
10% will receive a gift
28% thought their employer could do more for the company at Christmas
Above facts sourced from Onrec.
Also, did you know that Birmingham has the highest Christmas party expenditures per employee on average? A total of £37.06 per employee, compared to Exeter’s £8.76 at the bottom of the table, although other studies place London at the height of Christmas spending, so it all depends who you ask.
In the end, though, it all totals to around £1bn spent nationally by businesses celebrating the festive season.
We hope our infographic has helped you to plan an amazing Christmas this year, but don’t forget to order your Office Christmas Tree with us soon!
The Top 5 Plants for Your Office
Everyone who has ever worked in an office knows that plants and flowers add to the atmosphere of a workplace. The buzz of background noise can not only be distracting, but can also increase levels of stress – particularly in open-plan offices where space is at a premium. You can reduce noise problems with plants because they absorb sound, making your office quieter and calmer.
Positioning plants in strategic locations around your office will create natural sound barriers. Even if you’re not buying plants for their sound reduction benefits, their potential to improve staff productivity and well-being means that even the smallest tree could work wonders for your office. This was discovered by a research experiment at Texas A&M University, which explored the link between flowers, plants and workplace productivity during an eight-month study.
Those taking part in the study performed creative problem solving tasks in a workplace with plants and flowers, a setting with sculptures, and an environment with no additional planting or decoration at all.
Participants were found to demonstrate more innovative thinking and generate more ideas and original solutions to problems in the office that included plants and flowers. Men who participated in the study generated 15% more ideas, whilst women generated more creative, flexible solutions to problems when plants and flowers were present.
With this in mind, we thought we’d share with you the top 5 office plants requested by our clients.
1. Sansevieria Fernwood or Sansevieria Mikado
Sansevieria is a genus of about 70 species of flowering plants, native to Africa, Madagascar and southern Asia. Common names include snake plant, mother-in-law’s tongue, devil’s tongue, jinn’s tongue, bow string hemp and snake tongue. These are great air purifiers, making them perfect for offices.
2. Succulents
These plants have thick and fleshy leaves which are used to retain water in the arid climates where they are native. The word “succulent” comes from the Latin word sucus, meaning juice, or sap. They come in a variety of sizes, colours and shades, which can allow for many beautiful combinations.
3. Phalaenopsis Orchid
Also known as moth orchids, phalaenopsis is one of the most popular indoor orchids and is native to southern China, Taiwan, the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and Queensland. These elegant plants make a real impact on an office environment, and are fairly hard to kill – great for a busy office!
4. Ficus Ginseng (bonsai)
Ginseng bonsai are also known as ficus retusa, Banyan fig or ficus ginseng. Bonsai art appeared over a millennium ago in the Chinese Empire and was then known as Penzai. It was later adapted by the Japanese and its popularity spread all across South-East Asia. These are probably the most famous and easily recognised bonsai trees and are easy to care for.
5. Dracaena Lemon & Lime (branched)
Native throughout Africa and also known as ‘Dragon Tree Lemon and Lime’, their brightly coloured leaves are a sight for sore eyes in a dreary office on a Monday morning. These plants can get quite tall; we recommend placing one or two around the corners of your office so that they are visible without taking up too much room.
Think of your interior designs as investments in your staff – you’ll start to see some returns when their productivity increases. Improving the atmosphere of your office has never been easier, there are so many varieties and styles of planting available. So if you like the look of these ever popular favourites, you’re looking for something different, or you have haven’t a clue where to start, contact us to find out more about our office plants for hire and our selection of flowers for offices, we’ll help you pick out the perfect plants for you.
