Study of phytoremediation benefits of 86 indoor plants published; Japanese royal fern tops list for formaldehyde removal effectiveness

ScienceDaily (2011-06-24) -- Scientists determined the formaldehyde removal efficiency of a diverse cross-section of 86 indoor plant species. Ferns had the highest formaldehyde removal efficiency of the five classes of plants used in the experiments. Osmunda japonica (Japanese royal fern) was the most effective at removing formaldehyde of the species tested, proving 50 times more effective than the least-efficient species. All plants in the study were classified as excellent, intermediate, and poor based on formaldehyde removal efficiency.