Why Renting Potted Plants For Your Wedding Is As Chic As It Is Eco-Friendly
Flowers can make or break a wedding, especially if you’ve already selected one of the blank-slate open spaces that are growing in popularity. Floral arrangements and installations fill out a wedding design, from incorporating your color palette to setting the vibe, be it modern or whimsical. And, as we’re sure you’ve already discovered, flowers can be expensive! According to a recent study by Zola, florals account for 8-10% of your overall wedding budget. So, for a wedding with a $30,000 budget, that’s $3,000 on flowers alone! While most florists are doing their best to be more sustainable in their practice by going foam-free and donating the arrangements on the couple’s behalf, the reality is, cut flowers eventually wilt and will need to be thrown away. But, imagine a world in which you could have all the greenery your little heart desires, where the plants never die, and you could save up to 50%...sounds pretty incredible right?
AN INVESTMENT YOU CAN FEEL GOOD ABOUT
Potted Plant Rentals are growing in popularity as couples become more and more interested in sustainable practices, especially when it comes to their wedding. We spoke with Dave Williams, Co-owner of Plants Alive!, to talk about just how much this slight change in your wedding design could decrease the impact your wedding has on the environment. When you rent plants for your wedding, “Everything is renewable, everything is alive.”, says Dave. In fact, the oldest plant that they’re still renting out is about 15 years old! Imagine how many weddings and events that plant has seen vs. hundreds of flowers that are grown to last just for one day.
THE BIGGER THE BETTER
They don’t just make you feel good, they look incredible too! Another perk about using potted plants is their size. When you’re working with plants as old as that, they’ve had time to grow and mature–they take up more space and create more of a visual impact than a smaller arrangement would. Imagine grand topiaries lining the aisle, orange trees with actual oranges on them, Monstera leaves bigger than your torso, or Fiddle Leaf fig trees that your guests will want to snag for their living room. While the all-green look is currently trending big-time, there is always the option to incorporate a small number of cut florals into the larger live plants, getting the best of both worlds. According to Dave of Plants Alive!, the most popular rentals are palms and ferns, and we can totally see why. We’ve also seen potted cacti and orchids as centerpieces and even as favors or place cards–the possibilities are endless.
EASY ON THE EYES AND THE BUDGET!
So, not only are they a chic decision both in looks and environmentally, they are super budget-friendly. We honestly didn’t know if there was a major price difference between renting potted plants vs. cut flowers, we figured there were other expenses (labor, transportation, storage, etc.) that might tip the scales or make the decision a tie between the two, budget-wise. But, when we asked Dave from Plants Alive! if it was indeed more affordable to rent plants, his answer was so quick and decisive, he almost chuckled at the question. “Positively!”, he said. He estimated the savings for couples opting for potted rentals over cut flowers to be about 50%. We were floored–that’s a huge savings, way more than we were expecting! So, if you’re looking for a way to stretch your wedding budget that you can also feel good about, consider potted plants for all or even part of your floral decor. This little decision can go a long way.
- Plant Rental: Plants Alive!
- Wedding Photographers: Lindie Wilton
- Wedding Photographers: Julia Mather Photography
- Wedding Photographers: Davy Whitener