If you’ve sucked at gardening and caring for plants, most of your purchases at plant stores have likely been filled with the fear that your vibey Venus flytrap will make it to your windowsill, only to collapse with a sigh and die à la Fantasia. And that's all very justified, and very much a reality that makes it hard to pick out what plant(s) you should gift someone you actually like; because while flowers say, I didn’t forget you, a plant says, I’m thinking about you, and maybe I want to start the commune with you. That’s partially why finding the best place to buy plants online is worth at least eight minutes of your time. While there is no shame in buying a fake fiddle fig (real ones look like plastic anyways), imagine the look on your jabroni’s face when they unbox that stunnah bromeliad?
Advertisement
When it comes to houseplants, cacti are non-communicative, fiddle figs are sun divas, and orchids are elegant but deceptively finicky creatures. Which is a bummer, but good to know. The lockdown era filled us with more knowledge about flora and fauna than we ever imagined, and gave rise to many overcompensating plant parents with opinions about the best plants that are easy to care for. Maybe your giftee lives in a big city where the winter perennial is mostly plastic bags in bald trees. Maybe they already care for plants, and just need a small succulent to know they’re on your mind. Or perhaps they’re someone who needs to know you care, but in a platonic and profesh way. The best plant gifts below are easy to care for because they’re hearty, and communicative; they’ll raise a hand by lowering a leaf when they’re thirsty, and perk right back up again afterwards. They won’t go bananas if you over or under-water, and they’ve got the kind of (manageable) Gemini energy that brings fun, beauty, and a bunch of serotonin into our life. Bromeliads have all the intrigue of a complicated, colorful plant. (The flower fan thing! The long strands!) But these dudes are really easy to care for, with no need for special soil and a watering date every few weeks. (Note: watering should be done atop the actual greens, not around soil.) They like medium to bright light indoors, but will definitely be just fine in indirect sunlight. Find one on Amazon or at Natty Garden, a Black-owned nursery in Brooklyn that also sells some price-accessible pots and fun merch.
The one for feeling your 1980s oats
Advertisement
The perfect two-fer
Voted “most adaptable”
The one with great hair
No soil, just spritz
Advertisement
The Gemini of plants
The “camels of the plant world”
The one whose flowers last months
Advertisement
The ZZ
Music that wants to keep your plants happy
OK, not a plant. But this 1970s album is for plants, which is our kind of snake oil. TBH we don’t even feel comfortable trolling this tender album, which is a Moog masterpiece of sincerity; Plantasia was spawned from the 70s’ love affair with plant sentience that makes the case for plants feeling all the feels, in their own unique language. New York City label Sacred Bones reissued the album for the first time since its 1976 release, and there are loads of cool copies floating around the web. Whether or not the tracks actually improve your plants’ moods is up for debate, but who cares. There’s a track called “Concerto for Philodendron and Pothos,” for goddess sake.
The Rec Room staff independently selected all of the stuff featured in this story. Want more reviews, recommendations, and red-hot deals? Sign up for our newsletter.
We hope these palms, danglers, and climbers have helped bring a little more confidence to your green gifting goals.
The Rec Room staff independently selected all of the stuff featured in this story. Want more reviews, recommendations, and red-hot deals? Sign up for our newsletter.