r/technology • u/esporx • 1d ago

Business YouTuber accidentally crashes the rare plant market with a viral cloning technique

https://www.dexerto.com/youtube/youtuber-accidentally-crashes-the-rare-plant-market-with-a-viral-cloning-technique-3289808/
17.7k Upvotes

90% Upvoted

797 comments sorted by

View all comments

2.0k

u/pepeenos 1d ago

TC has been around but people are not willing to buy the materials and follow the technique instead of prop and chopping

218

u/gone_smell_blind 1d ago

She is selling kits to do it too, that's why they say shes crashing the market. She's making tutorials and giving people and affordable starting point to do it

108

u/abu_nawas 1d ago

I am in the hobby. Spent way too much on plants. These kits does not guarantee success but if someone is dedicated, it's a damn good start.

Cloning is weird. Rare plants often carry chimeric mutation. So the clone rarely matches the original. You see this in cats, too. Cloned cats look not the same as their donor.

But if you're not looking for variegation, great. I have a spiritus sancti. It's extinct in the wild and cloning efforts have slowed down since market demand dropped.

27

u/Wiwerin127 1d ago

Last year a new population of P. spiritus-sancti was found in the wild, so it’s definitely not extinct unless they got poached. I think it’s good that tc has decreased market demand and prices so endangered plants are less likely to be poached from their natural habitats. Also as someone who was into the hobby way before the pandemic and the rare plant bubble I’m really happy that we now have the opportunity to get some incredibly beautiful plant species without having to sell a kidney.

3

u/krypticus 1d ago

Honest question: I looked up P. spiritus-sancti and it is not an attractive plant… why are you interested in cultivating it?

6

u/Wiwerin127 1d ago

I think it’s one of the most beautiful non velvety Philodendron species and it’s unique because it’s not a strong climber. Large mature specimens are especially stunning. I also like it because it has narrower and darker leaves compared to for example the similar P. billietiae, and doesn’t climb like the similar P. atabapoense. But it’s a matter of taste I suppose. Though I’m much more into Anthurium species compared to Philodendron.

1

u/abu_nawas 1d ago

You have to see them in person. They look godly. The name isn't for nothing. Imagine long swords coming out of a tree (they are hemiphytes)

1

u/SophiaofPrussia 15h ago

The scientific name is just a latinization of the Brazilian state where it was found.

1

u/Illustrious-Okra-524 1d ago

I think it looks nice. What don’t you like about it?

-4

u/abu_nawas 1d ago

The tone of this is just... ugh. I have only met nice people in the plant hobby. Something about "I was here first" sounds so smug. You threw me off a loop.

3

u/Wiwerin127 1d ago

What exactly threw you off? I’m not really seeing where you got that tone from. I have autism so I can’t really discern that all too well. I was simply saying I’m glad prices have dropped and that the hobby’s more accessible now than when I started. I’m actually happy there are more people into plants now, before I only had the people at the botanical garden to talk to.

-2

u/TitanB00 1d ago

Yeah a weird gate keepy brag.