I prefer buying houseplants at grocery stores like Trader Joe's and Kroger rather than at a nursery. The prices at the grocery store are much lower than those at a nursery. Since I'm already at the grocery store, I might as well pick up a plant or two.
by hcubed3
25 Comments
Lots of people in this hobby overspend on plants because they have a shopping addiction and they encourage others to buy plants without considering how that can be a problem for some people.
People should embrace the technical names and science-related components of botany because it’s cool and interesting. Central vacuoles that hold water make the plant turgid; xylem draws the water from the roots; phloem takes the sugars produced by photosynthesis to other tissues; light plus CO2 and H2O yield C6H12O6, which is glucose, and that can be turned into all other necessary material; cellular respiration is essentially the opposite; nitrogen-fixing fungi and bacteria help plants; fungi undergo plasmogamy and karyogamy for sexual reproduction… there’s so much cool shit and it seems people actively avoid it all
My top 3:
(1) Cuttings should be free, (2) people in plant collecting social media circles frequently grow their collections too quickly for them to thrive, and (3) plants like being left alone much more than they like how frequently people on this subreddit and other subreddits fuss with them and change their conditions.
I think the cure for the last two is gaining more years of experience as a houseplant owner and hobbyist, and moving away from collecting plants for clout and internet points.
It’s more rewarding to buy small/baby plants and grow them. (Rather than buying big plants and claiming you “grew” them.)
“Rare” aroids are overrated and people spend way too much money on them
I don’t buy plants or soil mixes. For the last 30 years I’ve just chop/propped, split, traded and rescued plants. Last 25 years I stopped buying soil mixes and just use backyard compost for all my plants. Never fertilize and never use grow lights or humidifiers. I have well over 100 plants. My plant room is set at 55 degrees all winter, but they go outside in spring. I get down voted for much of this. Especially by the Alocasia people.
I despise fiddle leaf figs. No justification or explanation, I just don’t like them.
Alright, I’ll chime in. If I hear one more name for a variegated monstera, if I see one more “panda Thai midnight sparkles constellation – RARE” I’m gonna lose it. There’s so many names for plants that are really just all the same plant, but now that the Thai cons are common, everyone’s scrambling to pretend like they have something special and get their moneys worth. I get it, but let’s call it what it really is.
You can grow an olive tree indoors. Just because you killed yours doesn’t mean no one should try growing one. Mine is alive and well thank you very much.
I buy plants based on what’s easiest to maintain because I know that means a longer life for them.
Terracotta works for every plant. I keep snake plants, pothos, palms, crotons, marantas, philodendrons, dracaenas, and everything else, in terracotta.
I know people say certain plants need plastic or glazed pots to hold moisture, but I’ve found terracotta keeps the soil healthier overall. It helps prevent overwatering, encourages better airflow to the roots, and even makes it easier to tell when the soil’s dry.
It means watering a bit more often but I think it’s a fair trade for how much better my plants roots look. I’d rather water twice a week than deal with soggy soil and fungus gnats.
A lot of plant people are elitist as fuck.
People get way too wrapped up in social media when it comes to plants. Buying a plant purely cause it’s trendy or freaking out cause they have one yellow spot on the oldest leaf of their otherwise perfectly healthy plant because instagram plants are always perfect.
I don’t think you should try to kill plants, obviously, but I think the pride or ego around having never killed a plant is a little silly. It’s trial and error, particularly at the beginning, and I think you can be an extremely skilled plant person with some plant deaths under your belt.
Don’t feel bad for killing or throwing away plants that just don’t thrive in your home.
A lot of expensive variegated plants just look like a bird shit all over their leaves.
The purple lights that some people have look super unattractive. I get that some people insist they work better, but the whole reason I have plants is so that I can *look* at them and enjoy them.
It’s ok to throw it out once it’s beyond your abilities to resuscitate. Let it go!
if you have so many plants that watering them all begins to feel like a chore and makes you stop enjoying having plants, then decrease the number of plants you have until it’s enjoyable again.
And tell friends to stop buying you plants as gifts, as you’re at capacity already.
The price you paid for a plant has no reflection on your ability as a gardener, and I don’t really want to hear about the $2000 you spent at a plant convention (as a hobbyist) or the $400 rare plant you found. I’d only pay that for a Sims money tree.
A greenhouse here had a huge PPP years ago, they couldn’t get rid of it for $25. Suddenly, people were willing to pay anything for the same plant. Stop falling for the marketing games.
I don’t like that things are labeled by experience level. Some of my “easiest” plants have caused me a headache and ultimately heartache because I can’t keep them alive. I think it’s more about luck sometimes than anything. And finding what works best for you in your home regarding lights and watering, etc.
It’s okay to throw away cuttings after pruning! Seriously, it’s not a big deal. You don’t have to find a home for every single one.
**You do not need a plant on every surface.** My mom cannot see a table or shelf or dresser without putting a plant on it. It makes the surface less usable and more messy. Water overflows, leaves shed, and I can’t maneuver the countertops as easily!
1. There’s a fine line between collecting and hoarding, and the line stems from how one cares for them. Plus, some of these jungles give me the skeevies.
2. I’ve had more strain from caring for Pothos, which I love, than Hoyas. Some of these easy-care plants are not so easy.
3. Paying more than $35 for a plant will never be the train on which I ride.
Succulents aren’t easy beginner plants