How do contemporary plant trends manifest & proliferate through social media? Can this content be re-situated in a way that provides a new & wider perspective? A critique of the content, systems & spaces that contribute to the fetishization of ‘exotic’ house plants.

From pteridomania to orchidilerium, there has always been a frenzy around the most fashionable plants amongst the middle & upper-class British. This phyto-exoticism has been driven by the collection & extraction of tropical specimens throughout Britain’s colonial history. It has created lucrative business, caused financial crashes and driven some wild species into extinction.

First came the Dutch tulip mania of the 1630’s with cultivars such as Viceroy & Semper Augustus amongst the most sought after for their striking, variegated petals. Despite this arguably causing a speculative bubble, resulting in a financial crash, the Netherland remains the largest exporter & contributor to the global plant market. Next, there was the fern fever of the Victorian era. Amateur botanists scoured native habitats for rare species and even ‘monstrosities,’ severely damaging certain populations. These ‘monstrosities’ that collectors developed a taste for were odd variants of naturally occurring species found in the wild. A further fetishization of weird & rare plant aesthetics. Following ferns, the Victorians developed an eye for Orchids. Similarly fetishized for their exotic appearance with damaging results for wild populations. One such example is the British Slipper Orchid where some wild plants on the Yorkshire Dales are kept permanently caged to deter would-be poachers. Thankfully international trading of wild orchids was eventually band in 1973.

The effects of these historical trends can still be felt and seen within contemporary plant culture. Although wild populations are generally better protected, rare plants are seen, ever more, as a status symbol. Exotic aesthetics are continually pushed, through selective breeding to generate new trends and fashionable cultivars. Variegated Monsteras & pink Philodendrons are two popular variants often found on social media platforms. It is here that new trends manifest and are distributed by so-called plant influencers.