Before quarantine started I only owned three house plants which honestly should not have counted because all three were tiny air plants that are hung up from the ceiling of my apartment and only two out of the three are actually alive.
I had always put myself into this story that I had a brown thumb because of how often and how easily I killed all of my plants growing up. I strayed away from purchasing houseplants for my current apartment because what was the point of getting plants if they were just going to perish under my care?
After the world came to a standstill and my interactions with other humans other than my partner became severely limited, I began to become obsessed with houseplants. Something about seeing someone’s home decorated with houseplants in every corner looked so comforting. Suddenly my Tik Tok and Instagram feeds were flooding with people’s homes filled with houseplants and giving tips on how to care for houseplants. That’s when I learned the first rule of plant parenting. Under-watering is always better than over-watering.
Say it with me.
Under-watering is always better than over-watering.
I decided that I would venture out to my local plant nursery and purchase a few plants to give my apartment some life that it desperately needed.
I purchased my first set of plants, a Pothos, a Peperomia, and a Praying Plant. Unfortunately, my Praying Plant died pretty quickly, but I believe it’s because my apartment was too dry and too hot for it to survive. My other plants on the other hand, absolutely thrived and have both been doing very well in how it looks and growth.
Seeing that I was able to keep 2/3 of my plants alive for more than two weeks I was encouraged enough to purchase more Pothos plants as they seemed nearly impossible to kill. Since that second trip to the plant nursery, it soon became a weekly occurrence.
I wound up making an appearance at my local plant nursery almost every single week, each time taking home at least one plant. I was so excited to watch my apartment slowly become a plant friendly atmosphere, and it gave me a new hobby. I also really love my local plant store because of how spacious it is and there are literally thousands of plants to select from. There are also a couple of koi ponds and a lovely parrot named Lindy who greets all of the plant lovers.
I now have two Air Plants, three different types of Pothos, a Peperomia, two Lucky bamboo stems, a Spider plant, two spider plant babies (that are being propagated in shot glasses because I have nothing else), a Snake plant, and finally my latest edition, my Monstera.
Although becoming a plant mom is a very new development for me, it makes me so excited to see my plants doing well and continuing to grow. I understand now that I never had a brown thumb growing up, I was just uneducated about how to care for certain plants and that each plant has different care instructions and personalities. It’s important to pay attention to what your plant likes in particular outside of the general care instructions.
This will likely not be the last time I write about my plants on this blog and I will likely be talking about care for specific plants in more depth in the future. I’m really excited about my plant journey and if I will be able to keep my plants alive throughout the year. I will keep you all updated on my plant journey.
MINAH WEBB 