Young people are welcoming a brand new addition to their homes at surprising rates—a house plant.
It’s a boy! It’s a girl! It’s a…plant? The plant industry is booming thanks to Gen Z and Millenials. These indoor plants, popularly coined “plant babies,” have become the main attraction of many homes. According to a study by the National Gardening Association, houseplant sales have increased by 50 percent in the last three years. This is a figure which totals around 850 million dollars.
Kati Vandygriff is an Indiana University (IU) Bloomington graduate who now lives in Franklin, Ind. She has been a plant lover for all of her life.
“My grandpa always took care of plants. He had a house in Florida, and we would visit him a lot,” she remembers.
Kati has been taking care of plants for more than five years. Over this time, her plant collection has grown substantially. It currently includes a snake plant, a cactus, and a palm, among various other tropical house plants. She said these are some of her most low-maintenance ones.
“[Taking care of plants] is a relaxing thing to do, and it’s less work than a pet,” she says. “It’s cheaper too.”
Since the lockdown began in March of last year, over 42 percent of gardeners said they increased gardening due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the same study. Among this 42 percent is a striking 21 percent of Millenials and Gen Z who consider themselves plant parents. Kati is part of this increase.
“I had a few succulents before the pandemic, but now there’s definitely more,” she says.
The pandemic was not only the start of a rise in plant ownership and care, but in plant businesses as well. Leah Pepple started her plant business in Fort Wayne out of one side of a duplex—the other side being her home. She considered starting a plant business for a while, but officially began her journey two years ago.
“The day our shop opened was the day everything closed for COVID,” she says.
While many businesses suffered during the pandemic, Pepple says lots of people bought plants because they had nothing better to do. She mentions that the opening date for her plant shop actually worked to her benefit.
“What was a very abnormal business structure where you order online and pick up your plants became very normal,” she recalls.
The process of becoming a plant business expert, however, was not without struggle. Pepple admits to having a lot of learning to do at first. Some of the ways she educated herself about plants included reading about how to care for plants and matching names of plants to photos. She says it took her a few months to get familiarized.
“You definitely get the hang of it and it becomes less daunting as you learn,” she says. “Now it’s not a big deal at all to me.”
When talking about her opening day, Pepple says her first buyer appeared to be just out of high school. She sees a range of different ages within her customers but has observed that young people frequent her shop the most.
Pepple acknowledges that plants are popular and trendy but also attributes the new surge in plant popularity to the timelessness factor. She says plants can bring memories to older buyers whose grandparents might’ve had plants that the buyers have been unable to find.
“Everybody has a reason to want a plant,” she says.
Some of these reasons range from beautifying the home, to distracting oneself, to building up a food supply. According to a survey of 990 people by Stoneside, a design company, 64 percent of millenials say a major purpose their plants serve is for ambience and decoration. Kati’s reason was exactly this, along with improving the air quality in her home.
“Plants make any space look nicer,” she says. “Some plants even cleanse the air.”
Starting on a houseplant journey can come with a lot of fear. Kati relates to this but has advice for others in this situation.
“I’d say my biggest thing is when I see a plant in the store I’m scared to buy it because I don’t want to kill it,” she says. “But buy the plant and figure the rest out along the way.”
Pepple recommends doing research on the plant prior to buying it. She says a pothos plant or a peace lily are best for beginners. Once the plant is purchased, she says to find a good window spot for it, but warns against overwatering. She claims this is a common mistake for those more accustomed to caring for outdoor plants.
“Just start with one, learn about it, love on it, try your best and then you buy another one,” she says.
The overall message from both Kati and Pepple is similar. Just go for it.
Sources: National Gardening Association, National Gardening Association, Civic Science, Stoneside
Featured Image: Alex Bracken
