Our theme for the month of February is “plants.”

Since I accidentally preempted this month’s theme in my last post, I shall do something silly.

A few notes to begin: it turns out that there are a lot of very nice plants in animated movies. In the interest of narrowing things down, I have ruled out any fruit or traditionally eaten flora. I also discovered that there are enough iconic trees and vines to warrant their own lists, but a few still made it onto this one based on no consistent criteria. Indiscriminate, I’d say. 

And now, animated plants in reverse order of appeal because I’m pro-suspense:

10. The Rumor Weed (Larry-Boy and the Rumor Weed)

Horrific. Scarring. Abhorrent. Iconic, yes. Appealing, it is not. The strength of emotion that this plant provokes in me, over a decade after I last watched this movie, is frankly impressive. The creators wanted you to fear this plant and they succeeded. It is the vile opposite of appealing and therefore dead last. 

9. The Food Stuck in Yzma’s Teeth (The Emperor’s New Groove)

Similar to the Rumor Weed, I am repulsed by this plant. But because it isn’t sentient and therefore lacks the malevolence of our #10, I feel less of a compulsion to flee from this plant. It’s more a victim of circumstance—it’s not its fault that it was trapped in the yellowed maw of a woman who apparently lacks access to floss, a mirror, or people in her life who are willing to point out the thing in her teeth. Again, iconic but gross.

8. The Tumbleweed (An American Tail: Fievel Goes West)

Full transparency: I don’t really remember this one. I just wanted to include something from this movie franchise. But I think this scraggly yet hauling bush is a great choice for #8. Do I want to hug it? No. Would it make a good centerpiece? Again, no. But does it evoke a mood? Is it illogically bouncy? Yes and yes. I do enjoy this tumbling weed, unlike it’s abhorrent cousin, the weed of rumors.

7. Tied for this spot: Magic Flower (Tangled), Magic Flower (Beauty and the Beast)

These are achieving the same thing for me. Central to the plot, shiny and/or sparkly, would look fine on a credenza in a retiree’s Airbnb, but I’m kind of not bothered. I’m certainly not offended by them, but they’re not going to get much more than a shrug. Clearly they are appealing to some (Mother Gothel of course) but they’re not the visuals that stuck with me from these films. The memory of these plants will not haunt me.

5. Grandmother Willow (Pocahontas)

She’s got wisdom, she’s got tips and tricks, she’s got a cozy voice. She’s a good listener, she interprets dreams. She’s combat ready but I still want to give her a hug. Plus, willow trees in general: very evocative and moody. 

5. The Wee Christmas Tree (A Charlie Brown Christmas)

This lil underdog, despite its balding, scrawny self has stolen generations of hearts. Yes, it’s stressful when the needles keep falling off, but I love this little guy. I would say it’s appeal is its spirit and its underdog story more than its appearance, which is undeniably unfortunate—until the glow-up at the end. This plant had character development.

3. The Clover that Thumper Eats (Bambi)

We now have a that-isn’t-really-human-food-but-mmm-I-do-kinda-want-to-eat-it plant. “What do you want for your afternoon snack, children? Totino’s?” No—that clover. That clover is appealing. It’s plump. It’s soft. Thumper treats it like a dessert. He’s a salesman, truly.

2. The Dandelion Glider (A Bug’s Life)

There are so many quality plants in this film. The leaf the scouts paint the battle scene on, the tall grass Dot and her friends hide in, the glowing mushrooms, and on and on. But for me, the elegance and beauty of the glider steals the show. And I didn’t even remember until I looked up a reference clip that Flik smacks into a rock before making it across the canyon. That thing is so classy I forgot that it was only somewhat ineffective.

1. The Tree Star (Land Before Time)

Could #1 be anything else? I remember pretty much nothing from these movies but I would pay 100 American dollars for a Tree Star. These young dino guys are absolutely drooling over these leaves and somehow the animators got me, a human person, on board. This is the most appealing plant. I would eat this leaf.

Honorable mentions:

• Cinderella’s pumpkin
• The forest that Robin Hood and Little John are runnin’ through (Disney’s Robin Hood)
• The log that Pacha and Kuzko are strapped to (The Emperor’s New Groove)
• The big tree (Peter Pan, Lion King, Winnie the Pooh, Princess and the Frog, etc)

Ruled out on technicalities:

• The anemone (Finding Nemo): technically not a plant
• Treebeard (The Two Towers): technically not a plant and also not animated

Christina Ribbens

Christina Ribbens (’19) studied history, studio art, and data science at Calvin and public humanities at Georgetown. She now lives in the part of Virginia that’s almost Washington, DC where she helps award grants to arts nonprofits. She takes a lot of walks to admire the landscaping in peoples’ front yards, mostly listens to British comedians’ podcasts, and likes to make friends via sports.