A Newcastle gardening company is hoping to improve the mental health of North East workers using plants.
The Plant Whisperer was founded by Sue Howie who is aiming to brighten up local offices by selling her plants to businesses in the region.
Ms Howie said: “I have grown to appreciate the impact plants have on your mental health. I ring people up now and ask if they have plants in their office. Having plants can bring down sick days and increase productivity and make people happier in work.”
She added: “I can provide planting schemes in the form of suitable plant arrangements ranging from desk plants, to larger groupings which can provide shading and a relaxing calming atmosphere. I will come to your office and advise on the best plants and schemes that will transform your environment.
“I install green walls to make a dramatic visual impact – converting a blank area into a striking and visually appealing green living wall which will ensure your office or grounds will be remembered and make an excellent impression on staff and visitors alike.”
The entrepreneur set up her business in April and has already transformed an area at The Northumberland Club tennis centre into a blooming, living wall. The wall was inspired by the living wall at Wimbledon, which was enjoyed by tennis fans at the recent Championship tournament.
Ross Graham, general manager at The Northumberland Club, said: “I wanted to create an environment whereby visitors could be fully immersed into the surrounding area. The task was to change an otherwise redundant area into a place where we could generate an enhanced entrance with a further improved commercial area where visitors could stay and enjoy a coffee.
“The Plant Whisperer provided a full-on site consultancy including bespoke measurements for fencing to support a fully functional Flower wall.
“The Plant Whisperer provided a full solutions-based approach to maintaining and watering the flower wall which has been a really simple yet effective irrigation set up.”
Ms Howie also believes that living walls could hold the key to reducing pollution in Newcastle.
She said: “Places like Singapore have loads of them in built up areas, as they know what they are doing.”
