Nurture.
It's that vital thing that mothers are selflessly supposed to give without question.
The important essence of whether something will survive or not.
Now there was something that pulled at my heartstrings for something that depended on you.
Whether it be a small pet, (which I had an abundance of when I was growing up. I couldn't go near a pet store without coming home with a bunny, or hamster, or parakeet), a wounded animal, or plants.
I remember my family always had plants around the house when I would visit them, I always assumed it was an easy task. A simple combination of water and sunlight and the rest would sort itself out.
However, When I got my first paycheck I decided I wanted to be surrounded by the wonderful creatures that create oxygen for me and so with anxious hands and a determined mind I set out to my nearest garden nursery and chose the ones that caught my attention the most. Not noticing that some were tropical plants while others weren't. I wouldn't think that different varieties had different needs. I just loved how they looked. So after filling the entire backseat with plants I was excited, thrilled to have something to take care of along with making my house look beautiful. Unfortunately, after a week or so with no knowledge that what one needed wasn't always beneficial to the others, some of them thrived while others started wilting. The soft green edges turning course brown until they fell to the bottom of the soil crushing my premature dream of ever becoming a gardener, or a the very least someone that could let things live. Over the years I've leaned several things:

There's no such thing as a green thumb. Most people get the hang of it the first time because they are more in tune and more attentive, along with other factors. Perhaps some of them grew up with someone that taught them basic gardening skills while others just research.
Sure, it's discouraging to see flora dying again and again when all you want to do is see its' healthy stems crawl towards the sun but it's good to keep in mind that everything takes practice and you can always get better. You have to start somewhere.
So after watching videos on YouTube, buying beginners houseplant guides at my local bookstore and reading articles online about other people and their methods I started improving.
One of the things that was most interesting to me was that most houseplants whether they're indoors or outdoors require some type of fertilizer and plant food. Sure, you can get more technical and talk about mulch and compost but for starters fertilizer is something so often dismissed but quite important if you want your plants to look healthy and grow. Another thing was knowing where my windows were located and placing plants there depending on how much sunlight they need and the amount of hours they need. Now I realize that all of this seems like obvious knowledge but for someone that comes almost blind to it it's not always something that's considered. And finally the moisture of the soil and watering. In the beginning stages I would water my plants constantly to the point where I would unknowingly drown them causing the roots to grow moldy and rot which caused the death of many. I was given the advice many times that I should just ignore them for a while and come back to them later but that didn't always work with some plants needing more water than others. A good thing to consider in the starter stages is to not take the responsibility of too many plants at once because it can get overwhelming. Start slow. Get used to just a few and their routine and progress from there until you're comfortable with acquiring more.



There's a lot more to learn and despite all the articles I read I still manage to kill a couple plants, some die for unknown reasons while others are just too delicate and my knowledge of reviving shrubbery still needs work but it's doable and the feeling of keeping something alive is a good one.
So I advocate to you to always keep at least one plant around and see the difference it can make in your life however small and insignificant it seems. It's rewarding and a fulfilling hobby, even if you don't actively pursue it. To gain another skill is satisfying in and of itself.

As always, thanks for reading and if you'd like to discuss more about it comment down below or message me.

sincerely,
Your floral narrator