I was in Home Depot this morning and couldn't believe what I saw (bad enough that orchids are now dyed an ugly blue). But take a look at this:

Seriously, IMO they look fake and horrid.

Yes, I was hanging out with the succulent guy from Tropiflora nursery and he said they just returned from a big expo in Orlando for succulent nurseries...he said it's usually really exciting because they see all kinds of new, neat things.....but this time, it was Spraypainted Succulents! The biggest disappointment he'd ever seen, he said.

The other horrendous thing I've seen at Home Depot/Lowe's....Mammillaria cacti with fake flowers superglued to the tops of them. They can peel away bits of the cactus skin when you try to remove them. So stupid! What's wrong with the natural beauty of these plants' flowers!?

I don't get it either! Cacti and succulents are so beautiful on their own. It is horrible to take perfectly healthy plants and spray paint them.

Who purchases these? They look so artificial it's hard to believe they are mistaken for a natural plant. The spray painted ones were new to me this year, but those with the glued on ornaments I've seen for a few years now when the big box stores get their new plants coming in. I've always wondered about the customers. They must sell to someone since they keep doing it.

@ Donald (They must sell to someone since they keep doing it.)
A few years ago I had a laughing fit when I was in a local flea market with a friend ---- there was a huge black velvet picture, of Elvis - with a clock in the middle. Like you said -- someone buys this crap.

Yes I saw them at Lowes this week. It is so stupid. I did fins some nice sucs to add to my collection but spray painted plants is not something I find attractive.

I think the gaudiness of them would probably appeal more to children looking for a gift for Mom..... maybe ? I actually shivered when I saw them.

I agree, but also there are so many people with poor taste! From the time I was 8 or 9 my mom would ask my opinion saying "you have such good taste and I don't" (at least she knew) I don't think my mom would buy these things though! I can think of other of my relatives that would, and they love em!!
I thought they were maybe dyed by putting something in their water, I didn't realize they were spray painted - how could they possibly live
I saw a poster recently that had a photo of a puppy, caption said 'If you want this'
and then an old dog - 'but don't want this'
and a stuffed dog - 'then get this' (these sprayed plants remind me of that - if you want something that looks like plastic, just get plastic - way less plant suffering!)

That makes for a lot of little kids and folks with poor? taste. How many Lowe's, Home Depots and Wal-Marts are there? Each with a few racks of these things. That's a lot of dyed and glued succulents of some sort. The painted ones currently at the local Wal-Mart are Haworthias of a type similar to fasciata, so all the natural white lines are completely obscured. I suspect it's some kind of water based paint, so I think eventually the paint would disappear and the plant would have normal growth. I'm not too sure anyone who bought them would want the natural plant though.

That's what I don't understand. If the paint comes off & supposedly the plant is unharmed & normal looking later, (which I don't believe,) wouldn't that upset the folks who liked it painted? I don't see how there are any winners in this situation. The natural plant lovers are upset, and later, so also will be those who bought them because of the paint.

Tiffany we are plant people. I can see someone that really is not a plant person that would kill the plant even if it was not painted would just mark it up as they kill all plants anyway. I have a girlfriend that could kill a silk plant. I stopped giving her plants that are hard to kill she killed a spider plant. I do not know how she does it. Maybe I should buy her one of these for her birthday and see if it lives. Maybe the paint will save it.

Cinta, that reminds me of my sister..she says she has the deadly stare..so her house is a no plant zone

I do find any spray painted live plant very distasteful, too bad, merchandising at its worst..for some gullible customers..sadly. I know colors make for lovely art..why can't they find other inanimate objects to paint, instead of living plants.

Tarev totally agree! Inanimate objects deserve paint not plants!
You all have me thinking though - maybe they're using the types of plants that they use, so that when the plant dies, its still colorful, so the people just stop watering it, and they have a dried plant in their house???

I would rather they paint the container it is in, if they want to see their fancy colors, whatever it is, but spare the torture on the plant.

It's all for sales and nothing more. Those who supply them don't care what happens to the plants as long as they get bought. It's like going on ebay and seeing purple or blue watermelons from China or Japan or other areas. It's a gimmick. Unfortunately, those that buy into them, have no idea that they'll most likely be dead in a short time. I think their horrible, like the orchids that get dyed or roses, or even Poinsettia's with glitter. It's all about sales.

LOL! I'd forgotten about the glitter! Not just on Poinsettia's either. What I don't understand why dyeing, spray painting, glueing on fake flowers or ornaments or adding glitter is considered enhancing how any plant looks. I've never known anyone who thought so or purchased any of them (wait, except for glitter on poinsettia's and corsages - those I've seen outside the store). I have known people to buy those grafted cacti which are also pretty funky. Still it wouldn't seem to be such a large market to account for the large numbers, year after year. Those that get dyed and the grafted cacti may fool people, but I can't imagine the spray paint or the glued on doodads fool anyone. They are too obvious.

Donald I'm sure most of the folks that buy these types of things, simply think of them as 'novelties' - oh well

As bad as putting plastic flowers in your flower bed. Yes -- I have seen it - here in Florida. Yikes !!

Is the demand for novelties that big?!! I've considered buying those with glued on ornamentation a couple of times. I wanted the actual plant that was being tortured. They use some neat looking cacti. I've also seen them left at the store after the doodad has fallen off or grown off or been knocked off however. The glue spot does leave marring where it's applied. Not a huge scar, but definitely an unnecessary blemish. I suppose I might try a painted plant if it looked it might be a semp or something hiding under the paint and one I wanted and didn't already have and chance that it would eventually grow back to normal. I think I am probably pretty safe from dyed jobs and glitter. No corner lights out here in the boonies :).