PlantsGiving Encourages Renewed Connections with Plants

By Andi Anderson

Plants are central to daily life, shaping everything from clothing to food, yet many people move through their routines without noticing them. Scientists describe this disconnection as “plant blindness” or “plant awareness disparity” (PAD).

These terms reflect how modern society, shaped by industrialization and land-use changes, has distanced many communities from the plants that sustain them.

While this concept was introduced years ago, only recently has a framework been developed to measure it. However, for many Indigenous peoples, plants have always been seen as relatives with histories, responsibilities, and roles in the living world.

Efforts to address PAD are not just about identifying plants but rebuilding relationships with them. These relationships shape how people care for ecosystems, understand food sources, and recognize their responsibilities to nature.

For more than 30 years, the Michigan 4-H Children’s Gardens and Michigan State University Extension have helped rebuild these connections by offering hands-on educational programs, storytelling, and interactive learning. Their recent efforts include digitizing plant collections and lesson plans so communities everywhere can access these resources.

The online celebration known as #PlantsGiving encourages people to explore the plant families behind their holiday meals. Participants count the plant families used in their dishes and share photos using the hashtag.

With more than 288 edible plant families, the activity highlights the diversity behind everyday meals and helps people slow down and appreciate the plants that nourish them.

Plants such as manoomin (wild rice), a central food and cultural relative for the Anishinaabe people, show how deeply plants shape identity and stewardship practices.

Sunchokes (sunroot), a resilient native plant, have long served as an important food in Indigenous communities. Chokecherries, used in food, medicine, and ceremony, illustrate the cultural roles plants carry across generations.

Celebrating PlantsGiving invites people to reconnect with plant relatives, appreciate their ecological and cultural significance, and support traditions that promote diversity, resilience, and sustainable relationships with the land.

Photo Credit: pexels-greta-hoffman