Uses of Ornamental Plants

An ornamental plant is grown for decoration, rather than food or other by-products. Ornamental plants may be grown in a flowerbed, shaped into a hedge or placed in a sunny apartment window. They are most often intentionally planted for aesthetic appeal, but a plant that occurs naturally and enhances the landscape could also be considered ornamental. While the most apparent use of ornamental plants is for visual effect, they serve a few less obvious purposes.

Add Beauty

Ornamental plants are used in landscapes and throughout the home to beautify the surroundings. A large, tropical plant in a living room provides a pop of color and helps soften harsh lines from furniture and architectural design. Colorful flowering ornamental plants break up the browns and greens that naturally occur outside. A large dogwood tree in the center of the front yard awakens with brilliant pink or white blossoms to flood the yard with color in spring. Exposed concrete block foundations are commonly concealed with hedges of boxwood, privet and other shrubs. Even fruit and vegetable trees and plants are sometimes used ornamentally when the plants lend themselves in some way to improving the visual appeal of the landscape.

Fragrance

Many ornamental plants are chosen because they appeal to the sense of smell, in addition to their visual appeal. Lavender is widely regarded for its pleasing fragrance; although widely harvested for lavender oil, it is commonly planted in home landscapes for its scent while in bloom. Roses are another type of flower well known for their pleasing scent. A walk through a rose garden is sure to entice visitors to lean in for a whiff of the floral bouquet. Some fragrant plants prove beneficial at repelling outdoor pests, such as ants, mosquitoes and flies. Perhaps the most well known is the citronella plant, a type of geranium with a lemon fragrance. The fuzzy blossoms of ageratum plants are prevalent in flowerbeds, but the flowers also produce coumarin, a natural mosquito repellent.

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Attract Wildlife

Ornamental plants provide nutrition and shelter for many wildlife species. While some forms of wildlife wreak havoc on carefully planned landscapes, other species are responsible for pollination and propagation, making this attraction vital to the ecosystem. Choosing native plant species ensures there are ornamental plants in your garden adapted to attract native wildlife. Fruit- and berry-producing plants attract birds and small animals. Ornamental plants that produce berries include hawthorn, crabapple and native plants such as baneberry and Pacific madrone. Entire gardens of ornamentals are often dedicated to attracting butterflies. Plants to include in a butterfly garden are purple coneflower, coast angelica, coast buckwheat and pipevine. Twinberry is a native species that provides food for insects and hummingbirds with its flowers, and its berries are food for other birds.

Clean Air

Without plants we wouldn't have clean air to breathe, because plants create oxygen during photosynthesis. Plants take in carbon dioxide as food and release clean oxygen, acting as natural air filters. This proves especially helpful for indoor environments, where air circulation is limited compared to outdoors. Keeping ornamental houseplants has been shown to improve indoor air quality, even removing tobacco smoke and such volatile organic compounds as formaldehyde, trichloroethylene and benzene. Plants that prove especially effective include spider plant, golden pothos, peace lily, snake plant and several species of philodendron and dracaena. The healthier a plant is, the more effective it is at removing harmful toxins from the air. A National Aeronautics and Space Administration study suggests using up to 18 plants in 6- to 8-inch containers to clean the air in an 1,800-square-foot house.