Houseplants - A (Brief) History
Houseplants are a strange thing to think about. We take a plant that naturally occurs somewhere in the world and give it a cute little home within our homes. We buy or make sweet little pots for it to live in, and make it acclimate to the climate of our homes. I mean it’s essentially like having a less mobile pet—we even name them! But where did it start? Who was the first person to see a pretty plant and say, “Yeah, you’re coming home with me?”
Maybe no one else was wondering this, but I was, so I did some research.
The first documented examples of houseplants actually go back 5,000 years! Apparently the ancient Egyptians had great taste in interior design. They brought plants like palms and ferns into their homes and important structures for decor and connections with the living world.
In the past, houseplants were actually a status symbol. Only the wealthy and affluent could afford to buy and take care of them, so they were seen as a symbol of wealth. Huge parlor palms might drape over noblemen and royalty in their homes. There were even rare plant collectors back then too! However, even though plants started as a status symbol, working and middle class people soon began finding means of getting and growing their own. This gave more people access to plants and birthed some plant markets that helped lower the impossibly steep prices typically attached to houseplants, rare or otherwise.
As we entered the 19th century, technological advances in Europe turned the attention to plants. Though they had largely been concentrated in Africa, now Europeans were learning how to own and upkeep early terrariums! In the Victorian era, ferns grew wildly popular due to their hardiness and acclimation to small terrariums. The terrariums also revolutionized plant transport, and this led to plants of all types being spread around the world and into homes.
In the 20th century in America, potted houseplants became available for the first in the 1920s. Then, the 40s and 50s saw a huge jump in houseplants, maybe as a piece of comfort starting after WWII where women were taking them into the workplace as a piece of home. Then, NASA actually affirmed how beneficial it is to have houseplants in the 60s, and the trend only expanded. Plants were even used as a kind of social protest as we entered the 70s! Where there was a huge anti-war movement that was often grouped with a fight for being conscious of the climate, many people brought plants into their home as a means of protecting Mother Earth.
Now, houseplants are more accessible than they have ever been! It’s how stores like us at Glass Tangerine can bring you exotic and beautiful plants for a variety of budgets. We want these things to be more accessible. Plants are not a hobby for any one individual; they can be for everyone, and we can all tell you how much peace and happiness a little green friend in your house can bring you. (A plant, not an alien)
I hope this was as interesting to you as it was to me. I’ll link some sources below for if you want a little more information!
Links:
https://theplantrunner.com/blogs/the-plant-runner-blog/a-horticulturalists-history-of-houseplants
https://www.plantsavvy.com/blog/a-brief-history-of-houseplants-and-humans
https://blog.leonandgeorge.com/posts/brief-history-of-houseplants
News, Updates, And More…
Valentine’s Day is so close now! Preorders are still live, so go secure your bouquet and delivery for a stress-free V-Day!
As always, you can find all of his under our “Order Online” tab.
Don’t forget, next Wednesday, February 5th, is a huge episode of “A Podcast To Water Your Plants To.” Tune in to hear all of our huge announcements about what’s coming for the shop. Do not miss this!
True Love Tattoo will be back in the shop for another fun-filled tattoo and piercing pop-up from 5 - 8pm on February 14th. Looking for a cute new tattoo? Come get one of the super cute flash designs they’ve drawn up for us. (Posted under last weeks blog post)
