During the pandemic, as people latched onto homebound hobbies, houseplants saw a notable popularity boom, particularly among millennials.
Around that time, Beatrice (Bea) Boggs Allen also took an interest in house plants—although as a kindergartner, she represents a bit of a younger demographic. At the time, her mom, the writer Belle Boggs, had brought home a few lackluster office plants that needed reviving. An interest sparked.
Bea and Belle have since collaborated to put their experiences and experiments into a book, Plant Pets: 27 Houseplants to Grow and Love, which published last year. After a round of events last September, the pair is kicking off the summer with an author talk at Chapel Hill’s Flyleaf Books on May 10.
“I think that more people should have a hobby like this,” says Bea, now 11, gesturing at a windowsill table behind her. A pothos, mother of thousands, philodendron, and several other plants are on the table, sitting by a basket of knitting supplies; at the time of the publication, she had 38 “plant pets” in her bedroom.
“Most of the time, kids my age are on their phones playing TikTok or Fortnite, and during COVID, I think a lot of my classmates basically played video games,” Bea explains. “I never did that, and I think that’s part of the reason why I can have a hobby like this and not immediately give up on it.”
I’m interviewing Bea and Belle at their home in Pittsboro, where the duo are getting ready to drive to the North Carolina State Capitol, a box of giveaway tomato starts in tow, to join a protest organized by NC Writers for Democratic Action.
Bea, now a writer in her own right, is preparing to give a speech at the event; Belle and other writers will carry signs featuring words banned or censored from federal communications by the Trump administration. Belle teaches at NC State and is the author of several books, including The Gulf: A Novel and Mattaponi Queen: Stories—books which, like Plant Pets, deal in the flora and fauna of the natural world.
Plant Pets is published by Storey Publishing, an imprint of Hachette that publishes “practical books for self-reliance,” and the book is indeed a great tool for kids who may want to foster curiosity and practice independence with a hobby. Adults, too, have plenty to learn from the book, which took Bea and Belle to Triangle nurseries, science labs, and even vets for research.
Divided into three sections, the book’s colorful illustrations guide readers through the dos and don’ts of propagating, planting, and nurturing specific house plants. (Don’t touch your Venus Flytrap’s trigger hairs; do water your orchid when the plant feels physically light.) There are also plenty of ideas for directions kids can take the hobby, from plant-sitting services to making herb salt or aloe vera gel.
“There are lots of easy-to-grow plants,” Bea offers. “Pothos is a very easy-to-grow plant, but it might not work for certain people. You just kind of have to figure it out.”
“For a while, we were very into glass bottle propagation with pothos, which is very fun because then you get to see the roots,” says Belle. “We were on this kick where we had to drink Jarritos all the time so that we would have them.”
As for advice for kids who may want to get into plants (or writing), Bea—who is considering writing a book on knitting next—has evergreen wisdom to share.
“Don’t give up,” she says. “I know it might be hard at first, but if you keep at it, you’ll get really good and it’s a very rewarding hobby.”
Plant Pets is available at area bookstores or online.
Follow Culture Editor Sarah Edwards on Bluesky or email sedwards@indyweek.com.