Plant care to keep them living longer
Today we would like to introduce REN, a foliage plant specialty store that is making the industry's first attempt at plant care. As COVID forced people to stay indoors, the number of people who found interest in growing foliage plants has surely grown. We spoke with Mr. Nobuaki Kawahara of REN about plant care.
"The main reason why we started our efforts is to return to the basics that plants are living things. The root of this idea stems from the ikebana company, which was founded in 1919, where their company motto was “to live” and we arrived at the idea of sustainability when thinking of what it means to grow plants with roots.
At REN, we value plant care as much as our products. When growing plants, the upper part is all dead, but there are other parts that are still alive like leaves growing on the lower part. Before, all we could respond to inquiry was to tell customers to do their best to grow them, but now we will make a diagnosis by receiving a photo from the line or email.
For those who have the passion to grow but are having trouble, you may want to replace it or prun it, but if you are still having difficulty or just need self-care advice, you can bring the plant to us and we can help you. We can make a trip to your place if necessary. When it is difficult to continue growing them due to various reasons, there is a service where you can comfortably let them go, trade in, or recycle and resell it. "
As a rule for trade-in, it has to be a foliage plant and must be alive. People return their plants due to being busy with childcare or their pets mishandling and biting the plants.
People used to buy foliage plants for decorations, which is not necessarily a wrong way to use them, however, they are a living thing first and a decoration second, so as long as they are growing, I believe it’s important to think about ways to prolong its life.”
When cared for correctly, foliage plants can live longer than humans. Bonsai and the likes of them proves that, but there are things that can live throughout generations. I hope that everyone who grows plants will have a deepening desire to keep them alive as long as possible.”
It seems that the number of consultations with shops is increasing. If you are interested, please check their homepage.
Originally Aired February 27th, 2022
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