Save a house plant with a new initiative from the RHS

A new house plant initiative between Sarah Gerrard-Jones, author of The Plant Rescuer, and the RHS is launching on 28 January.

The RHS Plant Rescue Box will be available to buy from RHS Garden Wisley and will contain at least six houseplants, all of which will need some looking after.

The boxes will contain a variety of different house plants and will retail between £10 and £20, but customers will not know what plants will be in the box before they buy.

It is hoped that the Plant Rescue Box will champion the idea of saving imperfect house plants and highlight the importance of sustainability in horticulture.

The scheme will save unhappy house plants from the compost heap and will reduce waste. It is hoped that the scheme will also open up the world of house plants to new people, offering them the chance to buy house plants without investing a lot financially.

The Plant Rescue Box is being rolled out to coincide with the Houseplant Takeover at RHS Garden Wisley between 4 February and 12 March.

Gerrard-Jones said: “We’ve moved so far away from the ‘make do and mend’ mentality of previous generations that we have a tendency to chuck anything away, from faulty appliances and out-of-style clothing to vegetables and plants that are deemed imperfect. A culture obsessed with perfection leads to millions of healthy plants being discarded. The RHS Plant Rescue Box is a fantastic way to give wonky plants a second chance. The affordable boxes are a brilliant way of reducing wastage and making the industry more sustainable, and the rewards are great – with a little bit of love these houseplants will thrive and bring life to their new homes. Everyone’s a winner!”

Read our guide to getting your house plants through winter.