House Plants

An exploration of the botanical history and cultural impact of house plants. Our penchant for keeping house plants is an ancient practice dating back to the pharaohs. House Plants explores the stories behind the plants we bring home and how they were transformed from wild plants into members of our households. A billion-dollar global industry, house plants provide an interaction with nature, and contribute to our health, happiness and well-being. They also support their own miniature ecosystems and are part of the home biome. Featuring many superb illustrations, this book explores house plants' botanical history and cultural impact, from song (Gracie Fields’s ‘The Biggest Aspidistra in the World’), literature (George Orwell’s Keep the Aspidistra Flying) and cinema (Audrey II in Little Shop of Horrors) to fashion, technology, painting and contemporary design.