Eco-friendly design is expanding throughout the world and with good reason. Not only do plants and flowers in the office help with employee mental health, but it’s also physically healthier.

Plants produce oxygen and being surrounded by fresh air, aesthetically pleasing living things, it’s going to make the office that much more attractive. But what about the exterior?

We often forget that the outside of our offices needs to look inviting. It would be sad if the office looks dull and grey from the outside, but inviting, vibrant and colorful on the inside.

Do them both justice and help your employees at the same time with these tips.

The Exterior of Your Eco-Friendly Office

Opening up the balcony

If you have a terrace office whereby you have access to a balcony or perhaps an open-top area, then creating a plant edge or row would be great. This can be opened up to your employees for their lunch breaks or somewhere they can cool down and blow off some stress.

However, to keep things safe, you first need some kind of edge protection such as that on https://rapidhs.com.au/ where they have industrial strength protection barriers. They can be fitted together to make one clean seamless row of protection. Place this edge protection around the balcony or terrace to keep employees safe from falling.

The plants you choose just be a mix of tall and small, so you have privacy and also a good decoration. Placing tall plants at the back of the terrace or balcony seating could protect people sitting from gusts of wind.

Corner plants

It’s better to have tall corner plants than smaller plants. Why? Well, they act like pillars or columns that naturally give your exterior structure. Not to mention, they can be sources of places to gather. This spreads people out and allows for natural space to form where you can walk in and out of zones. But what kind of corner plants work best?

• Money tree. It looks exotic, but it’s able to cope with rainy, cold, windy weather too.
• Kentia palm. This plant will be the talk of the office, because it looks like an exotic plant, like a plant you would find in southern Australia or the Mexican tropical forest.
• King Sago. These palm trees are softer and thicker than the kentia palm but they are just as beautiful. 

In soil or pebbles?

You may be thinking, how should you present these plants? You can leave them in their soil pots or you could place them in vases filled with pebbles. It’s better to place them in pebbles because as they are outdoor plants, the soil will dry up and prevent the plant from getting the water they need.

Placing them in intricate and attractive vases made of clay or stone is recommended and white pebbles are the most popular choice of surface filler.

The exterior of your office should look just as eco-friendly as the interior. Here are some ways you can begin to make this change and support your employees at the same time.