How I became a Gardener – Planty Perspective

Gardener, plant mom, green thumb, savage gardener… There are many names for us plant lovers. 

And we garden in a variety of forms! Houseplants, specialty plants, greenhouses, food gardens, and flower beds. Everyone has their own gardening story, which shapes what plants they love, and how they approach a garden. 

My area of interest is indoor gardening, and this is no coincidence! I dislike bugs, and bees specifically terrify me. Funny, worldwide gardening needs bees, but here I am with a big plant habit and a big bee fear. 

This is why indoor gardening has such an appeal, there are much fewer bugs. 

My first plants started as my parent’s plants – they had a jade Gollum and a Haworthia – they did not care for them much, so I wanted to take them to university. My grandma set up the terrarium they were in with some sand and off I went!

Then it went wrong…

After about two weeks with me, the plants looked awful! I had a fungus gnat problem, and the plants were WAY overwatered (not that I knew that was a thing at that time). So I took to the internet, I googled the symptoms, leaves falling, bugs, and realized those dry-loving plants should NOT be in a glass container with sand!

So – I took them out, I put them into other pots and fresh dry soil, and started watering only when the top two inches were dry. 

Those two plants are still alive today and were the only plants I had for a while. That was until my aunt gifted me 3 cacti for my birthday, two moon cacti and one golden torch cactus. After giving them a couple of weeks to adjust, I repotted them into bigger pots, and had them for years! I still have the golden torch cactus, but because moon cacti have a shorter life expectancy, they have since passed.

Fun Fact

A moon cactus is two different cactus types grafted together, and the top colourful cactus feeds off of the bottom one since it can’t produce chlorophyll on its own. Because the bottom cactus can’t support the top one forever, these cacti typically last one to three years and can live up to five.

From there I found my favourite local plant store House of Plants, and have grown my garden significantly. At first, I stuck to plants that needed less watering, since that was my comfort zone based on previous experience. Echeveria was my next favourite plant, I have had a few and with practice, I excel at caring for the ones I have. 

From there I have moved to try many kinds of plants, pothos, moon pilea, monstera, fittonia, and more!

Despite their dramatics, I LOVE fittonia’s, the details in their leaves are stunning and perfect for photographs. 

What’s your gardening story? And how does it affect what plants you love, and what gardening you stay away from? I want to know! Learn about my gardening name, and contact me on my About Me page!