These Are the Top 10 Healthy Houseplants

October 15, 2024Employee LoginComment

Check out this great article from Thursd! about house plants and shop in store with us to get your own for your home or office!

Indoor plants you should look for when you want a better indoor environment and better health.

As a plant lover, you've probably heard of a famous NASA study about healthy houseplants that was conducted back in 1989. This Clean Air Study was aimed at investigating how to clean the air inside a space capsule. However, the side result was knowledge about how plants clean the air and which plants are best. And clean air finally has the world's special attention...

So, which plants help best here? Below you'll find the top 10 healthiest houseplants that every plant and flower enthusiast or florist should have in his or her shop, that every living room and every office should have for a better indoor environment and better health.

Plants Purify the Air and Give Us Oxygen

Studies have shown that plants release oxygen and moisture to their environment through photosynthesis (converting sunlight into energy) and cell respiration. Increased humidity leads to improved respiration in humans. The NASA Clean Air Study conducted at the end of the last century also shows that plants are effective in purifying the air of toxic substances.

By absorbing and breaking down harmful substances, plants create a healthier indoor climate. The study suggested that efficient air cleaning is accomplished with at least one plant per 100 square feet (9.3 m2) of space, but was conducted under sealed space station conditions, and research conducted since has shown mixed results in the home or office.

The Top 10 Healthy Houseplants

There have been many top lists based on the NASA Clean Air Study. The list is based on the overall air cleaning characteristics, which are cleaning the air from six toxics: benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene, toluene, and ammonia. The top four plants clean the air of all six toxics, others less, but still very effective against most air spoilers.

1. Chrysanthemum Morifolium, a.k.a. Florist's Chrysanthemum

The first healthy houseplant is a very common one; Chrysanthemums, or “mums". They come in a variety of beautiful colors. Plants that are also bloomers will keep the room lively. Chrysanthemum morifolium is one of the most popular plants available for providing long-lasting flowers to enjoy indoors or on porches and patios. And to make it even better, it is a healthy flowering houseplant.

2. Spathiphyllum, a.k.a. Peace Lily

Peace lilies are one of the most popular varieties of houseplants. They're easy to maintain, and they can make a lovely addition to your home. By properly caring for your peace lilies, you'll have beautiful houseplants for years to come. This one fits also really well in the shade, see also this article: The Best Houseplants for Growing in the Shade or a Dark Room.

3. Rhapis Excelsa, a.k.a. Lady Palm

The lady palm (Rhapis excelsa) is #3 on the list of the top 10 healthy houseplants. It's a small fan palm that can do exceedingly well indoors under the right conditions. It grows from multiple stems, each topped with upright fronds. The fronds are split into fan-like segments, as might be used by ladies in olden times.

Sometimes known as the bamboo palm or miniature fan palm, lady palms are the best-suited of all the fan palms for indoor cultivation. Most of the others, such as the imposing Washingtonia or the European fan palm, quickly grow too large for the average room.

4. Chamaedorea Elegans, a.k.a. Parlor Palm

The Chamaedorea Elegans — or Parlour palm — is a member of the Arecaceae family hailing from forested regions of Central America — Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico. Keep in mind that this plant naturally grows as an understory plant in forests. It has a good shade tolerance and is happy with filtered light or dappled sunlight.

5. Anthurium Andraeanum

The anthurium genus contains hundreds of tropical plant species, often admired as houseplants for their bright, nearly year-round flowers. Anthurium is native to the tropical rainforests of Central and South America. Despite sensitivity to temperature and humidity, anthurium plants are relatively hardy and easy to care for when kept indoors.

6. Gerbera Jamesonii, a.k.a. Barberton Daisy

Gerbera daisies are plants with bright, large, and colorful flowers with a large central eye. They are a great addition to any garden or home. They come in a variety of colors including purple, pink, cream, and red.

7. Sansevieria, a.k.a. Snake Plant, a.k.a. Mother-in-Law's Tongue

Sansevieria is a hardy plant with long, broad leaves. Because of their adaptability and tolerance, they’re often used as houseplants. Their broad leaves soak up toxins and carbon dioxide and produce oxygen to help purify the air in the room. Though they are tough, they do need some care to stay healthy. If you choose a healthy plant, set up the right environment, and maintain it properly, your sansevieria will have a long and healthy life. There are many different varieties of sansevieria.

8. Dracaena (Fragrans, Marginata, Deremensis)

There are over 40 types of dracaena species. They are hardy houseplants with a lush, tropical appearance, and strap-shaped leaves. They’re attractive, easy to maintain, and can tolerate low light conditions, which makes them popular indoor plants in homes and offices. Thriving dracaena plants can grow up to 10 feet (3.0 m) tall, but you can easily control their height with a bit of pruning. Be sure to repot your dracaena each spring to give it plenty of growing room.

9. Epipremnum Aureum, a.k.a., Devil's Ivy, a.k.a. Pothos Plant

As in so many lists, also here you can find the Pothos plant. This is a very durable specimen of the Epipremnum genus. Pothos plants are also called devil's ivy, golden pothos, hunter's robe, ivy arum, money plant, silver vine, Solomon Islands ivy, and taro vine, or incorrectly called a Philodendron.

10. Hedera Helix, a.k.a. English Ivy

English ivy is a hardy vine that grows fast in warm climates. Although it is considered an invasive species in some regions, it is a popular choice for ground cover or to grow up a wall, trellis, or other structure. English ivy can be grown indoors or outdoors in the ground or containers and can survive in shade, partial shade, or full sun.

Big Leafs, Big Cleaning

In general, a conclusion can be that the bigger the leaf and the more leaves on the plant, the better the purifying. Bill Wolverton, a former NASA research scientist who conducted that 1989 plant study said: “The amount of leaf surface area influences the rate of air purification.”

10 Tall Flowers That Will Boost the Beauty of Your Garden

October 11, 2024Employee LoginComment

Enjoy this quick read from Thursd.! on all the different tall flowers you can add to your garden!

Make a statement in your ourdoor space with these eye-catching gems.

Tall flowers provide a lot of drama to any landscape, especially in gardens. The best idea for taking your gardens to new heights is to plant them in a focal point, a live backdrop for other plants, or in spaces that could help provide privacy near a patio or bench. These 10 tall flowers will boost the charm of your outdoor spaces.

10 Tall Flowers That’ll Take Your Garden to a New Level

Choose tall flowering plants with colorful plumes that bend in the breeze, and you'll be invited to relax in your garden hammock. On the other hand, if you choose tall flowers with striking 'architectural' angles, you'll create a direct visual stop for the eyes. You must remember that eyes can travel amongst colors and absorb textures, and it's those uprights — those narrow vertical flowers— that slow the eye and make people appreciate the scene. Nevertheless, here are 10 flowering plants to take your garden to level up.

1. Fairy Candle (Cimifuga Racemosa)

In a moonlight garden, Cimicifuga racemosa is unbeatable. The best option would be to scatter beautiful fairy candles over dark locations, where their white spikes, which grow to be 1-2 meters (4 to 6 feet) tall, appear nearly lighted. Their impact is amplified when planted alongside dark-shaded flowers.

As dusk approaches, the darker flowers fade out, and whites like this Cimicifuga seem to literally glow. Now you know why fairy candles are considered among the 10 tall flowers that'll take your garden to new heights.

2. Hollyhock (Alcea Rosea)

Alcea rosea, or 'Hollyhocks', are herbaceous flowering plants that reseed themselves and can produce colonies of plants that return to the garden year after year. They are typically found in cultivated areas and rarely in 'the wild'. Their original habitat is unknown, but the plant is probably a cultigen that started in Turkey. The tall flowering plant prefers full to partial sun, and heavy, rich, organic soil. It tolerates a wide range of soil conditions and some light shade, but will not tolerate wet winter soils.

Important to remember that Alcea rosea has sixty different species, with many reaching heights of up to 2.5 meters (8 feet). Its large, gorgeous flowers frequently open at the same time, forming columns of blossoms that cottage gardeners like. An idea could be to plant Sweet Peas amid your Hollyhocks and the smaller plants will twist around the larger ones as they mature, creating two plants that look like one.

3. Japanese Anemone Honorene Jobert (Anemone Hybrida)

Anemone hybrida, often known as 'windflowers' are herbaceous members of the buttercup family that flourish from late summer to fall. The Honorene Jobert cultivar is renowned for its long-blooming white flowers with yellow centers. If you decide to incorporate them in your garden, you'll get about two months of flowers hovering on a 1 and sometimes even a 1.5-meter tall flowering plant (3-5 feet). When the garden is kind of waning at the end of summer and fall is already beginning, you get this crystal clear white just kind of popping out in the garden. Definitely, an uncomparable white beauty to adorn and make your garden glare and flare!

4. Meadow Rue 'Lavender Mist' (Thalictrum Rochebrunianum)

Meadow Rue, also known as 'Lavender Mist' grows tall and robust stems with airy flowers that float above whatever composition you put it in. This early summer bloomer's foliage adds to its air a lavender haze not translucent but light enough to enable glimpses of its garden companions. Professionals usually catalog this tall flower at 1.5 to 2.5 meters (6-8 feet) but many assure they've seen it grow 3 meters (10 feet) tall. It's a tall delight to have in your garden without a doubt.

5. Pampas Grass (Cortaderia Selloana)

This is, without question, one of the most popular tall flowers not only for gardens but for indoor decoration purposes as well. The best thing about wind-pollinated grasses is they do not require flowers to attract pollinators, instead blooming in fluffy plumes known as inflorescences.

The thing about some of these taller grasses is that they are like watching a belly dancer, they twist and jingle in the wind as they bend and weave. They give the garden movement and extra life. Pampas grasses also serve as good screens and aid in creating a more private garden environment as well. Who's a fan of pampas grass?

6. Red Hot Poker (Kniphofia Uvaria)

The popular name of the showstopping Kniphofia uvaria is derived from its poker-shaped spikes in gradient colors of yellow, orange, and red. There are about sixty species, including Red Hot Poker, which can grow to be 1-1.2 meters tall (3-4 feet). It is recommended by plant and flower garden specialists to plant them against a fence or hedge to show off their cool, spiky blossoms, or parade them around like little soldiers.

7. White Mugwort Guizhou (Artemisia Lactiflora)

If you want to step up your garden game, this is one you need to include. White Mugwort Guizhou, scientifically known as Artemisia lactiflora, is best described as having thousands of tiny late-summer blossoms that form a wispy haze of white at the waist and even chest height.

Its dark foliage heightens the drama even more. White is a color that is sometimes underutilized in the garden in general, but overall it helps unify the entire garden, whether it's a hot color scheme or a cool color scheme.

8. Sweet Coneflower Henry Eiler (Rudbeckia Subtomentosa)

These sweet yellow stunners will make a statement in your garden. Why? Their shape and color are just too adorable not to love them and see them shine every day on your outdoor patio. If flowers were typography, Sweet Coneflowers would be an asterisk—the small star that social media users have adopted to express emphasis. This cultivar attracts attention with its tubular petals and girthy dimensions. Such a pretty addition to any outdoor setting.

9. Gladiolus

Gladiolus is a perennial with tall, one-sided flower spikes that are ornamented with numerous individual flowers called florets. Flower spikes come in stunning colors, including bicolored combinations, and their petals can have simple, wavy, or ruffled edges. Gladiolus' upright, long, pointed leaves earned them the moniker 'sword lilies' and can reach heights of about 1-2 meters (3-6 feet).

Gladiolus is great in the garden for filling gaps and weaving between shrubs and perennials due to its tall, slender flower spikes. It offers height and a vertical element to mixed borders and cottage gardens that are sometimes lacking. A great option to have in your garden if you're looking for tall, yet beautiful flowering plants.

10. Allium

If the words ' striking' and 'impressive' appeal to you, you should get your hands on some big Allium flowers. Did you know their height reaches between 1-2 meters (3-6 feet)? Not only will these eye-catching flowers look great in your garden, but they'll also attract bees and butterflies. They'll be a generous supply of nectar for all your garden pollinators, with gigantic bloom heads made of multitudes of small lovely purple blossoms.

Fall Into Savings with Rouvalis Flowers & Gardens!

October 9, 2024Sean MurphyComment

Fall Into Savings with Rouvalis Flowers & Gardens!

As the vibrant colors of fall begin to paint the landscape, there’s no better way to celebrate the season than with the beauty of fresh, hand-designed floral arrangements. At Rouvalis Flowers & Gardens, we’re excited to bring the charm of autumn directly to your home with our exclusive floral collection—and for a limited time, you can enjoy 10% off when you shop online!

Whether you're looking to add a touch of elegance to your living space or send a thoughtful gift to someone special, our fall-inspired floral collection has something for everyone. From lush bouquets that capture the warmth of the season to stunning centerpieces perfect for any gathering, each arrangement is crafted to bring the best of fall indoors.

Order now and have gorgeous, seasonal flowers delivered straight to your door! Plus, with the code FALL24, you’ll receive 10% off your entire purchase from our floral collection. It’s the perfect way to welcome the season with a fresh and fragrant touch.

📅 Hurry! This offer is only valid from October 9th to October 14th. Don't miss out—shop our exclusive floral collection online and take advantage of these seasonal savings while they last.

🔗 Shop Now: Visit our website to browse the collection and order today!

Offer applies to floral collection purchases made online only. Use code FALL24 at checkout for 10% off.

Boss's Day is October 16th!

October 9, 2024Employee LoginComment

Boss’s Day, also known as National Boss Day or Bosses Day, is a time for many workers to appreciate their employers.

Give the gift of floral or plants to your boss this Boss’s Day!

Shop in store for great gifts as well!

Beacon Hill & Winchester

Monday-Saturday

10am-6pm

Order your Yom Kippur Flowers Today!

October 7, 2024Sean MurphyComment

Our talented floral designers have crafted the most delicate and beautiful arrangements, perfect for Yom Kippur. As Judaism’s holiest day, Yom Kippur is a time of fasting and deep reflection, beginning at dusk around 6 p.m. EST. If you’re unable to attend the observance in person, you can still send thoughtful religious gifts or flowers to someone observing the holiday. And if you're traveling, you can personally deliver these meaningful gestures.

Sending flowers is a thoughtful way to show support during this solemn time. Below are a few recommendations based on the recipient’s background:

White Orchids – If your recipient practices Judaism and attends a traditional Yom Kippur service, consider sending elegant white orchids. These beautiful flowers will continue to bloom long after the fast ends, offering lasting beauty.
Roses or Tulips – If the recipient is not Jewish but observes a religious service during this period, vibrant roses or tulips can brighten their day and offer a cheerful reminder of your thoughtfulness.
Succulents – For those who may not be religious but still appreciate being thought of, succulents make excellent gifts. These low-maintenance plants thrive in various environments and serve as lasting reminders of your care.

At Rouvalis Flowers, ordering flowers online for Yom Kippur is a thoughtful way to show your loved ones they’re in your thoughts. Whether you’re at home or traveling for the holiday, you can easily place an order from anywhere. One of the best parts of online ordering is the convenience—there’s no need to worry about missing an important date on your calendar. If you’d like, you can even order flowers for yourself and have them delivered right to your home or workplace as a personal touch or to share the beauty with others around you.

Flowers are a wonderful way to express love and appreciation. If you’re staying home for Yom Kippur, sending flowers online is a simple way to connect with those who matter most. No matter where you are, you can easily order flowers for delivery to your loved ones, making sure they feel remembered. You can also treat yourself to a beautiful arrangement without stepping out, allowing the blooms to bring comfort and joy to your own space.

Halloween Decor has hit our shops!

October 2, 2024Employee LoginComment

Shop in store at Beacon Hill & Winchester for Halloween Decor!

Shop in store with us Monday-Saturday

10am-6p

October Birth Flowers!

September 30, 2024Employee LoginComment

Marigold and Cosmos embody a blend of summer warmth and autumn's tranquil chill.

The Beauty of October Birth Month Flower #1: Marigold

October, with its amber and golden shades, finds a radiant companion in its first birth flower - the Marigold. This timeless bloom possesses a charm that captures the essence of autumn like no other.

Its muffled petals and earthy aroma have been cherished across continents and eras, establishing it as a favorite among botanists, gardens, and flower enthusiasts alike.

The Allure of the October Flower of the Month #2: Cosmos

Alongside the fiery Marigolds, the ethereal Cosmos, scientifically termed 'Cosmos bipinnatus, ' graces the month of October.

With its gossamer petals that dance in the breeze, the Cosmos evokes a sense of wonderment and endless daydreaming.

Fresh plants in store!

September 24, 2024Employee LoginComment

All new plants in both Beacon Hill & Winchester locations! Shop in store or online for pick up or delivery!

We have lots of size options in store for all house plants!

Winchester & Beacon Hill

Monday-Saturday

10am-6pm

Enhance Your Home This Holiday Season With Rouvalis Flowers & Gardens

September 20, 2024Sean MurphyComment

The holiday season is fast approaching, and there's no better way to welcome it than by transforming your home into a festive winter wonderland! At Rouvalis Flowers and Gardens, we specialize in high-end holiday décor installations, both indoors and outdoors, bringing elegance and seasonal charm to homes throughout the Greater Boston area.

Exterior Holiday Décor to Impress

Make your home the highlight of the neighborhood with our custom outdoor holiday décor services. We offer:

Container Gardening: From festive evergreens to vibrant seasonal arrangements, we’ll dress up your outdoor planters with fresh, winter-hardy plants that add holiday flair to your entryways and patios.
Garland Displays: Our lush, handcrafted garlands can be elegantly draped along railings, doorways, or fences, adding a touch of natural beauty to your home’s exterior.
Tree Lighting: Let us handle the tricky task of stringing lights on your outdoor trees and shrubs, ensuring a magical glow that will light up the night.

Interior Holiday Décor for Every Style

Bring the warmth and spirit of the season indoors with our personalized holiday decorating services. Whether you're looking for a classic, modern, or rustic holiday look, our team has you covered:

Mantels and Tablescapes: We create stunning mantelpieces and tablescapes that set the perfect mood for your holiday gatherings, using fresh greenery, candles, ornaments, and seasonal elements.
In-Home Tree Decorating: Skip the hassle and let us beautifully decorate your Christmas tree with custom themes, lights, and ornaments, creating a breathtaking centerpiece for your living room.
Fresh-Cut Floral: Nothing says elegance like fresh flowers. We design and deliver custom holiday floral arrangements that will add color and fragrance to your holiday décor, perfect for mantels, dining tables, and more.

Why Choose Rouvalis Flowers and Gardens?

With over 40 years of experience in garden and floral design, our expert team knows how to bring your holiday vision to life. From concept to installation, we work closely with you to create custom décor that reflects your style and enhances the beauty of your home. Our attention to detail, high-quality materials, and commitment to excellence set us apart.

Book Your Holiday Décor Installation Today!

The holiday season is busy enough—let us take care of the decorating so you can focus on enjoying time with friends and family. Contact Rouvalis Flowers and Gardens today to schedule your custom holiday décor installation. Whether it's a full home transformation or simply adding festive touches, we’re here to make your holidays brighter and more beautiful.

Fresh Orchids are in!

September 18, 2024Employee LoginComment

Shop online, in store or give us a call to order beautiful orchids for your home or office this fall! Orchids are the perfect “just because” gift as they are easy care and long-lasting.

Shop in store with us!

Beacon Hill & Winchester

Monday-Saturday: 10am-6pm