LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Scammers have been targeting gardeners who buy seeds online and unfortunately, some people aren't getting what they think they're paying for and artificial intelligence has played a big part in it.
"I've had a few people actually send me photos, and they're like, hey, I want to get some of these. What do you think? And I'm like, no, please don't get those. Like, you're going to get scammed, unfortunately," said Jon-Haydn Mcelyea said.
Mcelyea got into collecting house plants a couple of years ago and has been growing his indoor garden ever since.
Now, his friends and family all go to him with their plant questions and sometimes he saves them from wasting their money.
"I've actually gotten photos of clearly AI-enhanced or AI-generated photos of plants," Mcelyea described. "These right here whenever you're seeing this hot pink, if it looks too good to be true, unfortunately, the majority of the time it is."
He said he's seen suspicious links to buy seeds for these nonexistent plants on Amazon.
"I've done the plant ordering online before, and it does have its risks involved. You just want to make sure that you're buying from a verified seller," he explained.
That's especially important because not all the plant pictures you see online are real.
Chris Olsen, the owner of Botanica Gardens, admits that those photos can be very eye-catching.
"I have to be honest with you when I first saw it, I'm like, wow, that's the coolest color. I've never seen a hosta that color, and didn't really realize it until I started looking a little deeper," Olsen said.
For example, if you look up pink and blue hostas for sale, you'll see some unrealistic colors.
"You can usually tell because mother nature does not do most foliage like this color with the purple and the red. But what's really interesting when you look at these images [it's] kinda like a game, they are all the same hosta but a different color," Olsen said.
Most hostas don't look like that, though.
"These are the real deal, the hostas. If you look at the colors, they are just so much more realistic, you're not having these vibrant fuchsias and these dark rich purples and such," he explained.
This is why he encourages you to think twice before spending your money based on what you see in a photo.
"There's so many scams out there, and so you just have to be really careful and really do your research," he added.
Before clicking buy, Olsen recommends that you ask a reputable grower for a second opinion and research the people you're buying the plants from.