A TikToker discovered her $30 Bunnings monstera plant was actually worth $1200, which has seriously made me regret not taking better care of my leafy friends.
Certified plant queen Elsie Bishop snagged a cheap as chips monstera from Bunnings. When she got it home, she realise it had variegated markings which are caused by a rare genetic anomaly.
@elsiebishop My lucky day ???????? #indoorplants #monstera #variegatedmonstera #monsteraborsigianaaureavar #rareplants #materialgirl ♬ original sound – ????????????????????
Those markings can make a monstera worth more than a $1000, which is just … so much money for a plant. Some can fetch up to US$5000 (AUD$7000) according to The Spruce.
I felt bad enough when I overwatered and murdered my $15 spider plant, so the thought of keeping a special rare plant alive is incredibly stressful.
That being said, if you’re a bonafide plant parent maybe it’s a good idea to get down to Bunnings with your magnifying glass?
Elsie runs a Melbourne plant shop called Green Envy, so I reckon she knows what she’s talking about. A true material girl moment there, good for her. It’s like the nature version of scoring a rare, shiny Pokemon card.
If you haven’t the faintest fiddleleaf of what makes a variegated monstera plant so special, let activate my green thumbs and explain.
So, according to Bloom Sprouts, two main types of variegation can occur.
There’s marbling, where there are different patches of light and dark on the leaf. Those funky little patches are usually evenly distributed.
Then there’s sectoral variegation, where you see big white patches on the leaves. Because of the variegation those plants have less chlorophyll. That means they grow slower and propagate less, producing less baby plants.
The more you know!
Elsie also explained a little bit about variegation of her monstera in the comments of the TikTok vid.
“The coloured spots on the leaves are variegation!” she wrote.
“You know it’s stable when the coloured streaks are going up the stem as well.”
Cue everyone reading this article immediately hunting for streaks on their plant stems. Apparently, she found it amid the regular monsteras at her local Bunnings.
“It’s a genetic deformity that can naturally occur so the growers must not have noticed,” Elsie said.
So next time you’re at Bunnings and perusing the plant aisle, keep your eyes peeled. Who knows what you might discover amid the monsteras?
