Do you kill plants? Be honest! If you do, you’re in the majority according to our most recent study - and it’s probably already cost you as much as £900. As HyperJar is the ultimate spending app, we’re frequently researching spending habits and looking at ways to help us make the most of our  money so we all have a little bit  more in our pockets.

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Ahead of the opening of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show this week, we started to wonder how many people optimistically spent money on plants every year, only to see them die a few months later (or days later if we’re really honest). So we put out a survey to HyperJar customers and our social followers and 1821 people took part. This blog post sums up our findings and asks how we can spend better. We’re not telling you to give up and get a shed load of fake plastic plants, but there are some plants that are more resilient and harder to kill.

How much does the average person spend on plants?

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 All those beautiful blooms and pot plants add up. We discovered:

·       Our average estimated spend on indoor and outdoor plants so far is £1824

·       13% of us have spent £3000-£5000+

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How many plants does the average person kill?

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Whether we’re buying the wrong plants for our soil conditions, failing to water them correctly (too much is as bad as too little), skipping the plant food or putting them in the wrong light conditions, plants don’t seem to do well at the hands of  the average British gardener.

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A third of us (29%) admit we don’t have the skills to make our plants thrive. And that gets expensive as we found:

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·        One in 5 (18%) admit to killing half of all the plants they’ve ever bought

·        12% confess to having ‘killed them all’

·        21% have seen off ‘75%-90%’ of them

·        Just 4% say they’ve kept them all alive

Why are plants important?

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Plants can be a breath of fresh air for your well-being. They act as natural air purifiers in the home, filtering out toxins and boosting oxygen levels, which can in turn reduce headaches and fatigue. Studies even suggest that caring for plants can lower stress and improve mood, while the presence of greenery can sharpen focus and boost productivity.

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Those taking part in the survey agreed:

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·       12% would rather ‘spend on plants than a night out’

·       Over 40% agree that plants and gardening are good for their mental health (if not for the plants themselves)

·        18% are spending more on plants now than 5 years ago

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How to be smarter with your plant spending

It’s always tempting to choose the prettiest blooms and the most dramatic greenery, but these are often high maintenance, with a high fatality rate to match. So, if you find that you’re more green reaper than green-fingered, we’ve found a list of low-maintenance ones for you, recommended by Gardener’s World:

1. Geraniums
2. Euonymus
3. Bracchyglottis
4. Penstemon
5. Astrantia
6. Choisya
7. Bamboo
8. Epimedium
9. Sarcococca
10. Primroses

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Second, are you getting the savings you deserve on your plant spending? If you buy plants from John Lewis, Waitrose, Habitat, B&Q, Morrisons or other big brand retailers, check out the HyperJar app before you spend. You’ll get up to 10 per cent back with our Cashback Vouchers, so you can cut your overall plant spend and have more money for other beautiful things this summer.

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