August 27, 2021 - Fostering plants- You Got To Be Kidding

Crassula spp.

Succulents are a big fad in Japan as they are in many other countries right now, including the US.  Most people don’t realize that the term “succulent” applies to a whole range of plant species that have similar characteristics, but not necessarily similar care. I wish growers would stop labeling plants “succulents” and label them with their actual scientific names.

Plants classified as succulents have some beautiful and unusual members. But all succulents are not easy to grow, like dim light or can survive long periods without water. Each species has different needs, and some are quite difficult to grow in the home.

Many people now seem to be keeping plants simply as décor, and photographic subjects that can be posted on social media. In Japan it is extremely popular to post pictures of your succulents on Tic Toc and Facebook. The larger and more exotic your collection of succulents is the better.

But some of these social media personalities have found keeping a plant they spent a lot of money on so they could take pictures of it, is not as easy as they thought.  So, a new industry has blossomed in Japan, plant fostering.

That’s right, in Japan for a fee, greenhouses and experienced plant people will keep your prized succulents at their place, and send you pictures or let you come take pictures of the plants for your social media feed.  You get the recognition – but they get paid well for caring for your plant.

The top 10% have always had paid gardeners but take credit for their beautiful gardens. Martha Stewart is a prime example here, she’s shown working in her gardens, and no doubt she does do a little work. But the vast majority of the work on the gardens of Martha’s three homes is done by professionals. Most of the cooking and crafting is also done by others but that’s another story.

But rather ordinary people paying others to maintain houseplants for them so they can post pictures and talk about their collections is something new, and something I hope doesn’t spread to the US.  Houseplants are meant to be in YOUR house.  There’s no benefit to having houseplants if they are being kept somewhere else and being cared for by someone else.

This fostering of plants is also contributing to what has become a worldwide problem, the poaching of rare and endangered succulents from various countries. If an experienced grower is caring for a difficult succulent, it makes people more likely to spend big bucks on that rare succulent for their collection.  And if someone shows up at their door looking to arrest them for poaching, the plant isn’t there and they can say they the pictures they posted were faked.

I can see where unscrupulous plant fosters could make some big bucks off this insane trend also. Keep one of those big, rare succulents around and let people believe it’s theirs, while you sell it over and over again.

So far, I haven’t seen this fostering trend take hold in the US. It’s bad enough people are paying ridiculous prices for common plants because of a trend. But at least they seem to be trying to actually care for them at their home.  And that’s the way it should be.

If you are into collecting succulents because everyone else seems to be, at least make sure you get plants that have a scientific name attached, so you can find proper information on caring for them. All succulents do not like to grow in dim light and be watered by the teaspoon (or worse idea -ice cube.) They can’t be sat on a shelf and forgot about until you want a picture. And plants do not like to be shuffled into new pots and staged in new locations frequently for pictures either.

Houseplants will only benefit you if they are in your house and you are caring for them. Succulents are not the only plant type that are easy to grow, there are many types of easy to maintain houseplants. If you want houseplants, take the time to learn about them and assess your home so you can pick the right one for the spot and your capabilities.