Life is too short to not buy a plant

When I was in school, I remember planting saplings almost forced by the teachers to do so. Then the words trending were afforestation and deforestation.

Nowadays, houseplants have taken a massive trend on the internet. “The millennial version of 2.5 kids and a picket fence is six houseplants and no roommate,"@tinygorgon wrote in twitter which broke the feed with likes and followers.

People are rewinding back to getting connected with nature. Now almost every third person aims to have houseplants at his/her home. [As you gradually move forward you will come to know the reasons]

(********Disclaimer: Links to buy from Amazon at the end of the blogpost********)

"While there has been a big focus on what we are putting into our bodies, there is now an increasing number of people considering what they are putting in their homes to make themselves feel better". This mindset is gradually increasing and influencing people towards houseplants. 

Millennials (The real Game changer) are a visual generation whose attention span is lower and social media interest is higher. Bang on!!! Today, more Millennials than baby boomers are growing plants and herbs indoors. Do you know ‘WHY?’ Because of Plantfluencers. Never heard of!!! Yes! Yes! They are Instagrammers just like us but run an account focused on plants. They are certainly blowing up on Instagram. The #plantfluencer has over 2.5 thousand posts. With this sudden surge in Social media, houseplant sales have increased to upto 50%. It is not just a trend but a lifestyle. They are an inspiration to the millennial generation who are slowly moving towards sustainable living.  Youtube, Facebook, and other social media are also flooded with influencers. So now if you are a plant parent, there is a job out there. 

“Plant lady is the new cat lady”. If you have heard this quote then you must know the next word Plant parenting. This is not ‘out of ordinary’ thing. But the first time I heard, I had a 😕 face. As the name suggests, it is parenting a plant.“WHY?". It is much less work than parenting a kid or a pet (a lot of tantrums to deal with). We all stay alone, away from family, in the hustles and bustles of the city, lack of time, limited space, and landlord not allowing pets {Ohh! so many problems}. But who can say ‘NO’ to plants. Plants are living, thriving, and at the same time silent not like children. Plant Parents are typically those who are passionate about growing and maintaining plants. If gardening and plant caring is your passion, yes, you are a Plant Parent. Plant parents love to share pictures of their plant children as if they are proud of it. But why not, the feeling is great because it requires patience and love to grow plants.“I am a proud father of 10 plants,” said a friend. He loves plants so much that he has kept names for all. 💁💁💁 How are they different from normal people? Their interests are more focused on gardening, farming, wild-life, etc.  They are creative with plants starting from making crafts to cooking to home decorating. They believe more in sustainable and mindful living. 

Medium talks about many interesting facts like average plant parent kills approx 7 plants they bring home. This is all about a survey, you should be aware of before being a plant parent, so, that you are not disheartened or broken, if your plant dies.

You should follow this book which has a rating as high as 4 in Goodreads and Amazon: Plant Parenting- Easy ways to make more houseplants [Link at the end]. To start with it is a good read.

All of us are aware, how important it is to have trees around. But again, there are specific reasons to have house plants. To start with the NASA study, ‘the Clean Air Study’ determines which plants help to clean the air we breathe by eliminating harmful toxins. Apart from producing fresh air, natural humidifiers, and natural scents, these plants have a positive impact on our mind and soul. Nowadays, it is encouraged to have table plants [Link at the end] on the desk in the office because plants reduce stress, fatigue, and enhance productivity. People use lavender or jasmine plants closer to the bed for good sleep.
Loneliness and depression can be overturned by having plants around and some kind of gardening (easy ones to start with- Aloe vera, money plant, etc)

If you give little attention and observe a plantfluencer or a plant parent. You will find them to be calm, composed, positive, and happy. The lifestyle that comes with plants is sublime.

A recent study found young adults with indoor houseplants had reduced psychological and physiological stress, suppressed autonomically nervous system activity, and lower diastolic blood pressure. To know more: Click

The joy of accomplishment when a flower blossom is enormous. But being an amateur, I will share with you, “Why I am in love with plants?”

• The first thing I planted was Mint. Guess what! It survived. That became a motivation.
• One word to describe the benefit is "Therapeutic". Yes, holding your first cup of tea as the sun rises and contemplating the growth of the plants is a therapy. 
• It became a challenging and productive activity during these hard times staying at home.
• It is cheap and economical for home decoration and air purification. Otherwise, I wasted a lot of money buying temporary things that again bored me easily.
• Gifting saplings are the best way of spreading awareness amongst others. (My first gift was a lucky bamboo plant 😍). Not very difficult but very thoughtful to gift someone. [So, now you know if you have to gift me, what it should be].
• None of my photography is complete without a plant in it. Like- Taking a picture of a book, there has to be a succulent with it. Taking a picture of my sofa, there has to be a rubber plant.

During this lockdown period, the most refreshing and mindful job can be growing plants to pass the time, starting from vegetables to flowers. It is fulfilling, enriching, and gives a sense of achievement. I am practicing it for quite some time now. And I have successfully grown Aloe vera, Curry tree (in a pot), basil, money plants. With little experience and knowledge that I gained from my mother, maternal uncle, and friends, I can easily tell that it is never late to start having plants around you.
Nowadays with growing e-commerce platforms buying plants, seeds, tools, and even soil are very easy. With its availability, we do not have to hop out and bargain with the vendors.

Recently, I came across Ugaoo, an e-commerce platform which is also listed in Amazon. It has a great collection of plants with beautiful pots. {Check the links at the end} 
We have bought and added a few more plants and tools in our home jungle from Amazon. 

Buy directly from 👇👇👇👇👇, so, that I can help you with more comprehensive links

Plants for home decor, easy to maintain, and gift ideas: Ugaoo green fern mini, Ugaoo Good Luck Indoor Plants, Ugaoo Syngonium mini plant, Ugaoo aralia golden plan, Ceramic pots, Bamboo plants

Convenient tools I use: Ketsy564 garden tool kit, Watering can, Hand gloves, Succulent water bottles, Beautiful railing planters

Book for Beginners: Plant parenting: easy ways to make more houseplants

Table plants( WFH is incomplete without these) IKEA Plants

To know more about the plants, check out my Instagram.

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