The author examines Russian poetry of the late 19th and early 20th centuries from an unexpected perspective: how the spread of exotic plants in Europe influenced shifts in artistic styles and contributed to the emergence of modernism in literature. This ironic approach leads to a surprising conclusion: it wasn't the decadents who created the orchid craze, but rather the orchid itself that 'gave birth' to the decadents, and Russian symbolism 'grew' on the windowsills of Moscow merchant Matryona Bryusova. The author suggests viewing houseplants as a universal indicator of the common man's notions of beauty, and in this case, it turns out that the change of flowers on windowsills is fraught with serious upheavals in art. Illustrated with drawings, photographs, and texts from old floriculture publications, the book can serve as a concise reference on 'literary botany.'