If you have ever shopped at a big-box store, then you’ve probably come across a questionable sales practice or two. One shopper at Home Depot stumbled on a concerning sales display while browsing through the garden center.
The shopper saw a number of succulent plants that appeared to have been painted over. They then took to the r/Houseplants subreddit to vent their frustrations and seek advice on what to do about the situation.
Photo Credit: Reddit
In the picture provided, the true green color of the plant can be seen when zoomed in closely. Although it’s not clear if the paint was permanent, it was enough to make the shopper shake their head in disappointment.
“This makes me want to cry. Such beautiful plants being spray painted so they can look cooler to sell better. Literally double the price of the regular ones,” the original poster wrote. “Anyone know how to clean it off of them? I might get some and clean them up.”
Unfortunately, Home Depot isn’t the only retail store that has been caught altering the appearance of succulents. A Lowe’s location was busted by another Redditor covering the plants with artificial colors to help them stand out to customers.
No matter the type of paint used, covering plants with it can cause significant damage and greatly impact their health. Paint can suffocate the leaves by blocking pores. This can hinder photosynthesis by blocking sunlight. Paints can also harm plants with toxic chemicals and solvents, potentially leading to an early death for the plant.
Although it was clear that a number of users in the comment section were bothered by the actions of Home Depot, they advised the original poster not to attempt to save the plants.
“Don’t buy them, and actively discourage others from doing so,” suggested one commenter. “If you buy painted plants, the store and the grower notes that as a purchase, and will continue to paint them as the painted plants are moving off the shelves.”
“It’s absolutely gross. Complete disrespect for life,” noted another user.
“I don’t even know why they do it. It looks so tacky even before you consider that they will likely die and there are plenty of natural colored succulents that actually have the bright reds and purples and blues,” wrote a third commenter.
Although green is the most common color of most succulents, their final colors actually depend on the species, and it is often intensified by environmental factors such as sunlight, temperature, and access to moisture. These factors can trigger the production of different pigments, giving the plants a wide variety of colors.
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