Plants for Life?
PlantforLife is a UK based initiative led by the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA), with assistance from the European Community, aimed at raising the awareness of plants and the role that they can play in enhancing our quality of life.
Increasing numbers of people are living in towns and cities, often without gardens or easy access to parks or the countryside. It is fundamental to our general health and well-being that we can easily obtain regular exposure to plants and green spaces. Houseplants provide a convenient, economic, attractive and fun solution.
Houseplants are often considered to be cheap, disposable items or gifts that temporarily brighten up our homes. The horticulture industry myth that short-lived houseplants are readily and frequently replaced with new purchases needs to be challenged. Consumers do not want to kill houseplants within days of purchase, nor do they want to treat them like fresh flowers and dispose of them after only a few weeks or days of enjoyment. Many people want to care and nurture their houseplants and often keep cherished and favourite plants for many years. Greater success with houseplants leads to more and frequent purchases.
Market research (Mintel, Flowers & Plants Association) indicates that one of the main barriers to increasing houseplants sales is the real but often perceived problem that consumers have with watering their plants properly. However, effective self-watering products such as Osmogro® are addressing that issue. Market research also concludes that greater success with houseplants at home will lead to more and repeat purchases of plants. Additionally, consumers are willing to pay more for houseplants, seeing them as naturally attractive, healthy, living and valuable commodities. The current trends towards more expensive and exotic plants such as orchids and peace lilies, provides further evidence that consumers do not view houseplants as cheap, disposable short-term purchases.
The horticulture industry should fully embrace the aims and aspirations of its own PlantforLife initiative and provide their customers with the products and support that they want.
Increased sales of houseplants will mean having more plants in our homes, living and working spaces, providing all the many important direct and associated benefits to our health, outlook and environment. You might say that if we look after them, then our indoor plants will look after us...for life. Naturally.