The plants in your home, your workplace, or the airport you’re passing through boost moods and brighten the surroundings.

Live greenery also helps clean indoor spaces by absorbing harmful toxins in the air.

Tampa International Airport (TPA) gets that and makes sure to have live plants in the terminals at all times.

Not just some plants here and there. But more than 3,500 live plants, including vines, ornamentals, palms, tropical foliage, and seasonal plants. And they’re all looked after by a crew of 3 people who grow many of the plants in an airport greenhouse and care for and maintain all the plants year-round.

During April, and in honor of Earth Day (April 22), Tampa International Airport’s interior landscaping team is showing off their green thumbs and their artistic abilities in the “Living and Breathing Art Exhibit” on Level 3 of TPA’s Main Terminal.

 “We just want people to notice plants more,” said Kristina Zakarkaite of the TPA Interior Landscaping team. “Plants are usually the backdrop for everything else, but when they’re front and center, people take notice.

The exhibit includes several framed “living paintings” made with air plants (see image up top), hardy plants creating mini-ecosystems on pieces of logs, ornamental plants grown using the Japanese art of Kokedama, which features a moss-covered ball of soil wrapped with string or fishing line, and more.

Look for the Tampa International Airport’s “Living and Breathing Art Exhibit” throughout April on Level 3 of the Main Terminal in the walkway between Airside A and C near the escalators to the SkyConnect station.

Love green airports? Tell us about the gardens and the greenery at your favorite airport.

(All photos courtesy Tampa International Airport)