Why I'm Hitting Pause on My Plant Obsession for All 40 Days of Lent

This will easily be one of my biggest challenges yet

By
Taylor Fuller
Taylor Fuller sitting holding a large houseplant
Taylor Fuller
Taylor Fuller has been writing about houseplants for The Spruce since winter 2020. She has a collection of over 75 plants in her London flat. She authored the book "The Rainbow Atlas" and her writing has appeared on Bustle and BuzzFeed.
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Updated on 11/19/22

The Spruce / Nusha Ashjaee

Lent is coming up (February 17), and while I’m not a very religious person, I really like the idea of giving something up and reflecting for 40 days. When I was a kid I remember going to Sunday school and everyone would say what they were going to give up for Lent, with answers ranging from candy to watching their favorite cartoons. As I got older answers changed from soda to giving up Facebook.

This time around, I’m going to press pause on my plant obsession.

Yes, I’ve tried to do a plant ban before, but I always seem to fail. A wishlist plant comes my way or I find the cutest little plant shop and I just can’t resist. Well, starting on Ash Wednesday, all bets are off. I’m sticking to it this time.

Here are the five reasons I'm giving up plants for Lent—and why it's going to work this time!

  • 01 of 05

    I Need to Care for the Plants I Have

    positive message about plants on board, surrounded by a beautiful collection of plants

    Taylor Fuller

    My plant collection took a big hit this winter. I first started really collecting plants at the end of March 2019 so I only ever experienced a planty winter with just a handful of plants. This year I had nearly 80 to look after. And some of them just did not make it (according to my Planta app graveyard seven have sadly passed on). Plus, there are a lot of them that are suffering. I need to spend the upcoming month focusing on getting my remaining plants ready for spring. I need to make sure I water them correctly and that they get enough light (grow lights for the win). And I need to make sure that they push through until spring (thankfully the days are getting longer). 

  • 02 of 05

    I Am Trying to Do a No-Spend February

    A portion of Taylor Fuller's plant collection, all in terracotta pots

    Taylor Fuller

    Plants aren’t cheap, and as they get more popular, prices are constantly on the rise. Unfortunately my pockets aren’t deep enough to add to my collection at the moment. I have a lot of financial goals this year and adding to my indoor jungle will only hinder them. I’d prefer to spend my money on good potting soil, some bigger pots for the repotting season which is coming up, and fertilizer so my plants get nice and strong and put out a lot of new growth during the spring and the summer. 

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  • 03 of 05

    There’s Literally No Space in My Flat

    More of Taylor Fuller's plant collection on a mantle, all in terracotta pots

    Taylor Fuller

    When I say I have plants everywhere, I mean it. They’re in the bathroom, they’re hanging off the side of doors, on curtain rods, covering mantles, taking over my desk, on the floor, and even on chairs. If I could build shelves and put them on every wall or hang hooks from my ceiling to allow for more plants I would. But I live in a rental and there is only so much I can do to my space. There’s also only so much light. And I’ll be honest I don’t think I ever thought things through… I mean, did you know that plants get bigger and take up more space as they grow (because I never put two and two together). 

  • 04 of 05

    I Don't Have Time to Care for More Plants

    A closeup of Taylor Fuller's anthurium and polka dot begonia

    Taylor Fuller

    Taking care of plants is hard work! It’s time consuming and it needs to be done meticulously to avoid overwatering. After having pretty much nothing to do last year, I’m now working multiple jobs which I’m so grateful for. But, that makes my time to care for my plants very limited. If I got anymore I’d have to make time to care for it, and it’s just not realistic at the moment. My feelings may change as the days get longer, but for now, it’s time to hit pause on adding more plant responsibility to my days.

    Continue to 5 of 5 below.
  • 05 of 05

    My Collection Is Beautiful as It Is

    Taylor Fuller's wishlist plant, a cebu blue pothos
    Wishlist plant, Cebu blue pothos

    Taylor Fuller

    Because houseplants have gotten so popular over the last year I feel like it’s easy to get envious of other people’s collections. It’s also a lot easier to be exposed to different kinds of plants given that people ship from all over the world (make sure you know where your plant is coming from—exporting plants can be dangerous to the environment). There are also so many amazing plant influencers sharing their favorite “rare” plants that it’s easy to feel like your collection could be better. Over the winter I realized that I love my plant collection as it is. Yes, I recently got my two wishlist plants but even without them I still had a gorgeous jungle growing in my London flat. 

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