One woman has some advice for thrifty plant shoppers: Talk the plant you want to buy into wilting. Then she claims you may be able to get a discount.
Last week, Jenn (@raej022) posted a TikTok of herself shopping for plants in Walmart. In the 14-second video, she first picks up a healthy looking plant.
“I’m gonna need you to do me a favor. I’m gonna need you to play dead so I can convince them to give me a discount,” she tells the lush green plant.
Then the video cuts to her picking up a slightly wilted plant that’s supposedly the same one.
“I know you can do better than that,” she says.
Next she picks up a somewhat more wilted looking plant. Jenn’s still not satisfied.
“We’re getting there, we’re getting there. But not quite,” she says.
Finally, she lifts a sad-looking plant with drooping leaves.
“That’s it. That’s how you do it,” Jenn says.
The plant, a peace lily, is purportedly the same one throughout.
Jenn’s post has 1.4 million views and 1,356 comments as of this writing. She captioned it, “idk I think I can save her.”
It seems pretty clear that Jenn’s post is satirical. Plants do react to sounds like the human voice, but it’s clearly not possible to talk a plant into wilting in a matter of minutes.
Or is it?
Many people in the comments certainly think so.
“That’s wild. And people say plants aren’t sentient. There’s the proof,” wrote one.
Another person mused that they “[g]otta start talking to plants and trees more.”
Others shared their own experiences with sentient plants. “Plants can actually hear you and even feel your emotions!” wrote one. “Two of my plants knew I was worried about overwatering and transporting them and they communicated through my dreams they were growing.”
Jenn didn’t immediately respond to a direct message seeking comment.
Do stores offer discounts for wilted plants?
A trip to the garden store is one of life’s greatest pleasures for plant lovers. Each purchase is a chance for that one-of-a-kind relationship with a plant—provided you take care of it.
Growing things can be an expensive habit, however. Even for people with what’s known as a green thumb.
You can sometimes save some money on that venus fly trip you’re eyeing in the garden section. You just have to be willing to buy one that looks like it’s not long for this world and put in a little extra time and effort to resurrect it. The trick is in picking one that won’t actually die when you get it home.
Some, but not all, stores offer discounts.
Walmart is one of the stores where you can reportedly get a discount if the plant is in bad shape. Sometimes the store marks them down on its own; people also report convincing a manager to reduce the price.
Not every store offers a discount for that shriveled aloe plant you just have to have. But it may give you a refund if it decays after you take it home.
@raej022 Idk ??♀️ I think I can save her ? #plants #houseplants #walmart #peacelily #plantsoftiktok #fyp #iykyk #lol #fypシ ♬ Hood Fairies – Thriftworks
Home Depot and Lowe’s give refunds on most indoor plants for 90 days. Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Walmart all offer refunds on perennials, shrubs, and trees that expire within a year of purchase. You just have to bring the plant back along with the receipt.
But first you may want to try talking the plant back to life.
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