Houseplants and Good Fortune: My Journey with a Money Tree

Today is Houseplant Appreciation Day, and let’s be honest—

Houseplants deserve their own holiday. They sit there quietly, bringing life and energy to our homes, asking for so little in return (other than water…which I sometimes forget). Whether you’re a seasoned plant enthusiast or more of a hopeful beginner like me, this day is about celebrating the joy and positivity houseplants bring—even if they’re a little neglected sometimes.

Houseplants…do I love them? Yes! Can I keep them alive? Not often.

Let me tell you about my favorite houseplant that I’ve managed to keep healthy for a year now and the unexpected benefits it has brought into my life in return. Don’t roll your eyes just yet—keep an open mind for a moment. Trust me, there are plenty more reasons I’ll give you to roll your eyes later. This little plant just recently reminded me of a story my mom and aunt would tell about their childhood. Such a fun recurring theme…maybe there is something to it. Then I’ll add in a fun craft at the end to dress up your houseplants. They say “if walls could talk”—I’m sure it’s the same for houseplants. After all, they are living…well, in most houses, maybe just not mine.

Starting Fresh with Houseplants 

Last year, after some pretty traumatic experiences, it was time to move and create a new little home to heal and get my kids through the last little stretch of high school. Side note…5 months! I have 5 months, and my baby will graduate high school. I will also regain my freedom to live wherever I want and not be tied down to living in a specific school zone. Anyway…houseplants.

We were starting over again, with basically nothing. I started finding all sorts of free furniture, and I found everything I needed. What a blessing! I still have some things I’ve wanted to paint to add our own touch to them, but I’ll show you those projects later.

Feng Shui and the Money Corner

I don’t know much about feng shui, but over the years, I have learned about the “death of the family” (couch placement focused on the TV) and not having dead/dried flowers in your bedroom (that place needs to stay pumping with live energy!). All things that made sense, and I’ve enjoyed implementing them into my home.

As I’m waiting to move in and turn this little space into a home, I started researching a little more about feng shui to see if there was anything else I could adopt into practice. (Let’s clarify research…you know I mean scrolling through Pinterest or watching TikToks.) That’s when I came across the idea of a money corner.

This was new to me, and I dove down the rabbit hole of what I could find. I mean, as a single mom, I could only benefit from a money corner. There were different suggestions, but I landed on needing a black box in the north corner of your house. Write a dollar amount on it and throw in some cash if you have it for extra luck.

So, it’s the first thing I wanted to do when we moved in. I had found a little box at the Dollar-and-a-Quarter Store and painted it black. I saw a money tree as I was checking out at Aldi, and I impulsively grabbed it.

As we were moving in, I had my son find the north corner of the apartment. When he asked why, I explained. He did as he was asked (and, by the way, he’s learned to keep his eye-rolling inside his head and not physically do it). Turns out it’s a little corner in my kitchen, which is my absolute favorite spot in my house. I had spent hours cutting vinyl and putting spices into these little jars, and everything was going in this same space.

I placed the black box, threw in the $25 cash I had on me, and forgot it (which is how my plants usually meet an untimely end, but money trees barely ever get watered…win-win for our relationship).

The Surprises Begin

A few days later, my daughter casually mentioned that my son had been messing with the black box. That’s weird, so I go and look in it, and that sweet boy had put $40 more in it. After that, not another thought…until—

Fast forward a month.

My boys are out at an event, and I get a call asking if I was home because they wanted to deliver something to me they had won: a 65” TV. My son says it’s the first thing he’s ever won. I had never bought a new TV, just hand-me-downs, and definitely nothing close to that big. They bring it over and proudly set it up for me to enjoy in my new space. Wait…my $25, the extra $40…$65, and they win me a 65” TV. That’s odd.

A few weeks go by, and my boyfriend says my girls have been through a lot recently. They need a trip for spring break. I thought, “Cool, as long as I can drive there on my budget.” He decides on Hawaii. Now, I know I don’t know everything, but I’m smart enough to know we can’t drive to Hawaii from Virginia. It was the first time I had flown with my girls, and we had the most amazing trip.

A while after we got back, I remembered I had placed a bottle of leftover pineapple wine in the corner after I hosted Bunco because it just looked good there, in my opinion. A Pacific Fruit Sweet Pineapple wine bottle in my money corner, and a few weeks later, we are in Hawaii? This is starting to get a little more than weird.

Now it’s my corner. My little slice of good fortune, hope, and all positive energy. All fueled by my little money tree. After another event, I added an extra bottle of champagne because I’m welcoming reasons to celebrate—and there have been so many!

A Family Tradition with the Money Tree

Just in the last few days, I remembered this page in my “Book of Remembrance” I’ve had forever. Here’s a story my mom had recorded about her sister, herself, and her dad. Her dad died when she was a small child, and her sister recently died at 96. What a fun memory and even more reason to believe in a money tree.

“I’m told that our dad use to take us to the woods and tell my sister and I to look for a money tree. We would dig around after he would point to a good spot. Years later we found out that he had planted the money for us to find. June and I have felt that this little act was hard for us to outgrow—we had acted sometimes - as though money really did grow on trees.”

This memory only adds to my belief in the magic of the money tree. Now you can roll your eyes…or you can come along on this fun journey with me.

A Fun DIY Plant Craft

I was trying to come up with a gift for a friend one time. Same story…I’m on a tight budget but wanted to give something meaningful. I walked around the hardware store forever to see what I could come up with for my garden-loving friend. I hunted a few items, and they became plant markers. Look how fun it is to add a saying to your houseplant.

Welcome the positive energy the plants bring into your life.

Let them breathe new energy in. If you can’t keep one alive, crochet one! (I’m currently trying to figure this out.) Dress up an existing plant…or even better, just throw yourself a luau and pretend you are in Hawaii. More ideas for that to come—stay tuned!