The Sinister Truth Behind Succulents: Are You Guilty of Worshiping These Plants?

Sometimes succulents tempt us to do things we wouldn't normally do. While they're all fun and happy most of the time, every once in a while they can bring out the worst in people.

Maybe they may not actually be one of the seven deadly sins, but they sure can cause people to commit most of the sins. This may seem a bit silly, but the more I thought about it the more true I realized it is. Don't believe me? Read on!

In case you don't know the “Seven Deadly Sins” are: lust, envy, greed, gluttony, sloth, wrath, and pride.

Lust

Lust can also be defined as a strong desire for something. How many times have you been browsing Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook or other blogs and seen amazing photos of succulents and succulent gardens? How many times have you then suddenly wanted to go buy a bunch of succulents? I know I have.

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Echeveria elegans

Envy

Lust generally leads into envy, defined as desiring to have something that belongs to someone else. Walking around Southern California you'll be confronted with a gorgeous succulent garden on nearly every street. When I see these beautiful gardens I always thing to myself, “I wish I lived here!” I've never been so tempted to steal in my life than when I see a huge garden full of rosettes. They wouldn't notice if I just clipped off one, right? What is it about these plants that makes me think so irrationally? They'd probably share if I asked, but I'm usually too embarrassed or shy to do so.

Greed

… intense and selfish desire for something. This goes along with the others, but who doesn't want more succulents?

Gluttony

Gluttony, defined as habitual greed. Succulents are addicting. Even when I have a lot it seems I always see a plant I don't have an want to add it to my collection. I'm constantly reminding myself that I have plenty of plants, more than I need even, and yet I still find myself buying more and thinking about buying more. Plus, I almost always have some leaves propagating. They're just so fun!

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Succulent leaf propagation

Sloth

And then there's sloth… While succulents often make you want to work hard in the garden, they tend to cause slothfulness in other areas. Have you ever found yourself perusing Pinterest looking at succulent gardens or doing some online succulent shopping on Etsy? I know I have! Dreaming about new plants and pottery has definitely caused me to put off things I should have been doing.

Wrath

Wrath doesn't come along too often but it can definitely come! A couple things I can think of… Slugs eating my succulents, accidentally knocking an arrangement off a table and destroying everything, having plants tip over in the car and spill dirt all over… I guess I've had a few run ins with being upset about succulents. Usually though they just make life happy!

Pride

Finally we have pride: a feeling or deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one's own achievements. I don't know this is necessarily a sin, but I've definitely been proud of most of my succulent arrangements and projects. After putting so much effort into growing succulents it's only natural to want to show them off; they're beautiful!

So what do you think? What sin do succulents cause you to commit?

This article originally appeared on Succulents and Sunshine.