'Ugly, clearly neglected': Husband surprises wife with new plant after weeks of redecorating, she expresses disgust at it, causing marital problems

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Briana Viser • Writer and Editor
Oct 26, 2025 12:00 PM EDT

When you're married, every little thing can turn into an argument. The little things are really just embodiments of the big things, but that's a different story. The story here is about plants. Yes, even a pretty green guy only meant to cause life and happiness in the dread and dull of a city apartment is causing a marital couple to fight on the brink of divorce. 

The protagonist is a wife who's been redecorating the home with her husband for weeks now. They've discussed getting new plants many times, and she already expressed that she wants a small, cute plant. He continually shows her new plants on Facebook marketplace, and she says no to them. Then one day, she comes home to a surprise plant – a big, old, ugly, neglected plant. The opposite of what she wanted, and what's more is that he didn't ask her permission before getting it. But you'll have to read the full story below. 

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  • 01

    AITAH for getting mad at my husband for bringing a free plant?

    Husband watering plants
    via Elnur / Canva

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    Ok, this sounds silly but here we go. I (36F) and my husband (37M) have been redecorating our apt and findings plants for a limited
    via u/Ill-Society-823
  • 03
    space. He LOVES finding stuff on FB marketplace so he constantly looks for plants and has brought a couple before. Just yesterday he
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  • 04
    was showing me a few options and I wanted to be very clear with what I was hoping to get: small (or young) plant so I can take care
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  • 05
    of it and grow it, different plant to the ones we already have, not a dying plant. When I told him these expectations (because I
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  • 06
    take care of the plants) he said they made sense and it seemed he was OK with it -- he did not say anything in the contrary --
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  • 07
    Now, it's important to add that our friends are giving us a plant and my husband kept showing me options of the same plant on
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  • 08
    FB to see if I wanted them and I said NO over and over because | wanted different plants. I thought I was clear and that he
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  • 09
    understood what I wanted. Cue today, he comes home with the same plant our friends are giving us... it was HUGE and it was ugly
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  • 10
    F., clearly neglected and dying. He did not let me know he was getting that plant, didn't call me to show it to me (which he does
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  • 11
    House plants
    via Merinka / Canva

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 12
    ALL THE TIME) and thought I would be happy about it. It was like he heard everything I said I didn't want and turned it into a
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  • 13
    damn plant. I was SO mad, i told him he didn't give a fuck about my opinion. He is now saying I am overreacting and that I should
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  • 14
    not be 'insulted' because he brought a free plant. Even when I tell him that it's because he didn't take me into consideration at all
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  • 15
    and he disregarded what i said THE DAY BEFORE, he is calling me dramatic, that I'm hurting him by my reaction and that he doesn't
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  • 16
    know what will trigger me, as I'm so fragile at the moment (dealing with depressive thoughts).
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  • 17
    I should also add we are not in the best moment in our relationship, but we are getting couples and ind therapy. I just
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  • 18
    need to know if I'm really the I know I should have approached things differently but I hate that
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  • 19
    he doesn't own that he just wanted the fucking plant and didn't care what I thought.
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  • 20
    Becalmandkind ⚫ 13h ago • ESH. Husband needs to listen to you. You need to realize it's just a plant.
    via u/Becalmandkind
  • 21
    Maybe he wants the challenge of bringing it back to life. Otherwise, when it dies, just get rid of it.
    via u/Becalmandkind

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