There's certainly nothing wrong with trying to add a little color into your life. There is, however, a limit to how you should go about infusing that pop of color. 

As one shopper pointed out in a post on r/plants, that includes stores selling plants that have been painted. 

"Why do stores do this?" asked the original poster. 

They shared a couple of pictures of several plants that were blue, yellow, orange, or pink. But upon closer inspection, it's obvious that the plants had been painted. At the bottom of each plant, you can still see its natural shade of green.

"They didn't even try to hide it, they even had some not spray painted ones that looked much better than this," added the OP. 

It's not clear if the store painted the plants themselves or ordered them pre-painted from a supplier. But it certainly ruffled a few feathers in the comments section. 

"They care more about the greenbacks than the greenery," noted one commenter. 

"This makes me cry," shared another user. 

"Poinsettias are a huge one. Painted poinsettia are often crops that are coming off too late. They'd rather paint and sell at a discount rather than dumping them because they won't sell after Christmas," another commenter pointed out. 

As noted by the commenters, stores often resort to painting certain plants, especially succulents and cacti, for aesthetic appeal. They do so to attract customers and increase sales. 

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Whether the paint is non-toxic and water-based or not, it can block the plant's leaves from photosynthesizing. This can prevent the plant from making energy to live and could eventually kill it. 

Although the paint and color may wear off over time, some plants may be too weak before this can happen. This can be a waste of money for a customer who purchases the plant. And it can encourage stores to continue the questionable practice. 

There are a number of plants that are able to showcase vibrant colors without artificial paints. From coneflowers to wildflowers, you can find bright, vivid native plants that can add the perfect amount of color to any landscaping project.   

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