After yoga, food and fashion, it’s time for plants to get their moment of glory on the web. Whether on TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram, the plant people are gathering audiences of millions of internet users.
Fashion? Uh, we don’t really have any more occasion to get dressed up for. The kitchen? Well, to be honest, we’re getting a bit tired of making pancakes. So what’s left? Plants! In real gardens for those who are luckiest, in terrariums for those in small spaces and even hanging on the walls, nothing can stop the “plantfluenceurs,” the plant fanatics who are making their interiors into genuine urban jungles.
The trend is not entirely new. Back in November 2018 The New York Times published an investigation in November 2018 on the rise in popularity of these digital influencers. But the arrival of the pandemic has caused this trend to get even bigger. Google has also registered a huge increase in searches related to gardening.
In an urban jungle atmosphere, these plantfluenceurs display their most beautiful specimens, distill their watering advice and above all display dreamworthy universes, all the more so in these times of disconnection with nature. Halfway between “Alice in Wonderland” and Elle Decor, foliage invades the walls, becoming tapestries and headboards and replacing books on shelves.
Plants for all
Of course it can’t be denied that plants have numerous benefits. Inexpensive, they are accessible to all budgets. And gardening, even indoors, is good for our morale. When interviewed by French magazine Psychologies, Denis Richard, head of department at the Henri Laborit hospital in Poitiers, France even suggested that the activity is “likely to prevent the emergence of certain disorders or dependencies, to influence the course of certain pathologies (neurological, psychiatric), to improve living conditions.” A must-have, therefore, in these gloomy times.
No wonder then that these plantfluencers are followed by huge audiences. The account The Sill, for instance, is followed by 838k subscribers on Instagram. Both a store and a blog, the account dispenses advice through its stories on how to take care of one’s beloved plants.
Another big success, the account houseplantclub tallies up a million followers. The two creators, Morgan Doane and Erin Harding, have even published a book called “How to Raise a Plant: and Make It Love You Back.”
For those in small spaces with big ambitions, Darryl Cheng and his houseplantjournal, with more than 500k followers, posts advice on a daily basis. In the same vein, The Potted Jungle, Hilton Carter and JamiesJungle are all betting big on the aesthetic of the leafy interior.
The trend has also taken hold on TikTok, where tutorials for growing plants from seed or making macramé pot holders are all around. The account of Jessie Jacobson, growithjessie, for example, shows followers how to extract seeds from dragon fruit and grow them at home. You can also learn how to clean the roots of your favorite plants for repotting. A must.
Monstera deliciosa forever
For anyone who would like to get into the urban jungle trend, it is impossible to start without a monstera deliciosa. Graphic, elegant and ultra instagrammable, the plant is described by the site Slate as a generational fashion phenomenon, the essential accessory of the moment. Seen on wallpaper, jewelry, and even tattoos, the trend is absolutely everywhere.
But while this elegant plant with the ‘cut-out’ leaves seems to have seduced the general public, the ginkgo biloba is already on the horizon.
Planting the seeds of a future trend… NVG
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