A friend suggested that I start a blog to share my passion for plants. This is my experiment to develop that mental outlet.

In my mid twenties, I attended a university horticulture class. The class room was attached to an old stone and glass greenhouse. The instructor was teaching the course as a side gig, basically she was a semester substitute in place of the professor. She actually worked somewhere else doing soil restoration, among other things. Her course was one of the few things that I looked forward to during that semester. It was an evening class, and she’d take our class into the greenhouse for many of those classes. I was going through a divorce, college was socially and academically frustrating for me, and there were other challenges in my life, but that class was an oasis when I would find momentary gratification.

The greenhouse and class refreshed my fascination with growing plants.

Scutellaria lateriflora and Valeriana officianalis started my initial plant collection. Over time the collection expanded and contracted; at several points it’d be more than 50 some plants, and sometimes as little as 10. Now it has become a small collection of a single Thai Lime tree, a Goji Berry, a few Chicago Hardy Figs, some ginger root, and a philodendron in containers.

I’ve led a somewhat nomadic life as far as a residence. Thus, opportunities for growing were extremely varied: apartment or house, extreme sun or extreme shade, little access to a water supply or subjected to frequent floods. Sometimes I thought I’d be living at a location longer than I did. Sometimes a location that I thought was temporary, turned into years. Regardless it’s always, always, always been located within agricultural zone 6.

Gardening has taught me lessons that I refused in the past: acceptance, moderation, patience, imagination, perseverance, humility, and most importantly, curiosity.

I didn’t think to bother with a website through most of those gardening years. A few people eventually suggested I should create a gardening website. Apparently I made an impression on at least a couple people when they saw the infrastructure I built for a flood zone garden.

These days, I currently do not have much space, time, or money for my plants, but perhaps someone out there will gain value from my particular experience, discernment, or insight. Better yet, I’m hoping I will grow through the process.

For whatever it’s worth, this website is the next chapter of my plant journey.

Some of the products discussed on this website will include affiliate links. At no cost to you, if you click a link and purchase a product, I may receive a small commission. I’ll only recommend, or provide links, to products that I’ve used or believe are a quality product. None the less, what product works for me, may not be appropriate for your situation. Experience and situation does vary based on circumstances.