so glad you brought up the elitism and classism that can be found in the houseplant community. people are so negative when they see other people using cheaper products and owning common plants. it’s even more mind blowing when people act superior for owning super rare plants that they don’t even like 😭 so happy I came across your channel this week. it already feels like a healthy and safe place to be in the houseplant community 💛
Don't think like that. I love my good old stinking philodendron over anything. It's a majestic and it is indeed majestic. I hate variegated plants, for me it has to be green. Everything is unstable and screams "I'm annoying and difficult".
I think the best plant advise I’ve gotten so far was from another customer at the nursery who was an older man. I was complaining about how I couldn’t keep my Rex Begonias alive and I keep having to buy new ones. He basically shrugged and said how he’s been caring for and killing plants for 30 years, keep going. I felt much better, and just free in a way. This hobby is basically continuous practice. Getting better, but things still die sometimes lol
my Begonia maculata almost died, I have been keeping her in the bathroom ever since and now she's putting out new growth and seems to be recovering really well!
Manager at a plant nursery, can confirm we're happy to help 😊 one of the best parts of the job is helping people find new plants and figure out what's going on with their sick plants.
I am a plant "father" since 2 or 3 years. Last year I finally had the room to have more plants. From my experience it is better as a starter to start slow and buy 1 or 2 plants a month. I killed a couple of plants because I didn't know the plant enough. Also gnats are part of the hobby. I have a 4000mAh electric zapper in my cabinet that zaps them to their afterlife.
Hey thanks for the tips! Also, I had a medium-ish fungus gnats invasion and I gotta say Mosquito bits SAVED ME! I literally haven't seen a single fungus gnat in about 6 months!!! I honestly recommend! More info: I was very lazy about dealing with the situation, I tried ceylon cinnamon as well as bottom watering, and it helped reduce the population but not much. I later got recommended mosquito bits and decided to give it a shot. Since I did not buy the sticky traps it did take about a month to get rid of all of the gnats (mosquito bits kills the larva in the soil). However, since then I have not seen a single fungus gnat in my home and all it took was pouring a couple mosquito bits on the soil of my houseplants. :))
I think definitely something I wish I knew when I started was that I had a limited number of plant spots. There are plants I want now, but just no space. Also, plants get bigger! This year I’m going to try bringing some of my indoor plants out for the summer. Looking forward to that.
Yeah, definitely underestimated how much some of these guys were going to grow in just a year lol. I'm going to be relieved when it's warm enough to put some of them outside just to make some room!
I totally agree with you!! 👏🏼👏🏼 No pests for 10-20 years of plant collecting is a LIE! I wish people like that would stay away! I love your videos and the way you remain transparent! Plants are a challenge and It’s part of the fun in taking care of them, learning how to properly care for each unique plant in our unique environment! 💙🪴
I've had house plants for about 4 years now and I've NEVER had pests except fungus gnats I swear! I keep new plants really separated from the rest of my collection until I am certain it's pest free. I have about 55 plants? Not counting propagations. So it's not like I have hundreds of plants lol but I'm going to see how long I can go without any pests 🤗
I consider fungus gnats pests, the only other pests I’ve had are spider mites, I didn’t know I had them till it was too late for one of my plants so make sure you check closely! But I clean my plants often, it’s a learning process and no one’s plant collection is perfect.
@@ritaalicea6460 nope no plant collection is perfect. Nothing is perfect. But for me I'm ok with a few fungus gnats not ok with a few mealy bugs so there's a difference to me. I water my plants in the shower so they get showered every single time and I spray all the leaves for a great clean. 👍
I work at a plant nursery w 3 large greenhouses full of houseplants and i cannot stress enough PLEASE. KNOW. THE DIRECTIONS. OF YOUR WINDOWS 😭 it is so beyond crucial in trying to help you find a plant that works for your space. I start playing 20 questions w people everyday to figure out what direction their window is lmaooo
Your “imperfect plants” and your attitude about the reality of your house plants is what made me subscribe to you! It made me feel more comfortable as a plant beginner. Thank you for being transparent and real! Cheers!
You gloriosum in the background almost doesn't look real, it looks so pillowy and squishy 😁 it's so cute! I definitely wish I took some more time to grow my collection in a more organic way instead of just buying without putting any thought to it. I just started trading off, selling and giving away some of the plants I wasn't really into anymore and it's such a relief!
Thank you for this excellent video! I’ve had houseplants for decades, so I’ve been delighted (and a bit amused) at the explosion of interest in collecting indoor plants. I was really fortunate to have had a grandmother who was a phenomenal gardener and keeper of houseplants. She was such an inspiration to me. I think that having plant/gardening mentors is incredibly important, especially if you’re both growing in similar conditions. Forgive me for writing this random essay. This video was very thought-provoking, and I couldn’t help myself.
I love the honesty of this chanel. I'm a brand new plant mom, and I find your videos soo helpful. Iv made soo many mistakes so far and now I'm really tryin to buckle down learn as much as I can and really trying to do good. Keeping them alive for longer than a few weeks has been a great goal of mine lol. At first , I always wanted to grab the coolest looking plants, and now I'm learning what plants to start out with as a beginner. What plants are easier and to learn from. I never thought I'd be into a snake plant. But I picked one up because it was on sale and I learned it was a great starter plant. Same as my NXT goal is to get a pothos, which I was always like nope, I wouldn't get, now I find myself really getting into them. Doin research on a plant before I bring it home has been a big learning step for me. My first "real" plant has been a philodendron Birkin and it's really spiked my new found interest. Especially not knowing what is was as there was no ne tag I had to do a bit of research to figure out what it was and proper care. Iv also learned that changing the soil has been important along with fertilizer. This was one of the first chanel I have found during the first few weeks of my plant process , and Iv really enjoyed all the help. I have goal plants I CnT wait to get to , but I now knw to take my time and prepair myself before I get there and impulse buy. Thnx for ur chanel.
I've had houseplants for quite awhile and I finally got my first snake plant! I waited and got one that was really striking to me and I really love it. And my basic golden pothos is one of the prettiest plants in my house. If you give them good light, they grow and fill out really fast.
@@myconfusedmerriment same, I recently got a baby Sansevieria Ehrenbergii and she's so beautiful?? Most snake plants are not 100% my cup of tea, but another one on my wishlist is a Sansevieria Moonshine - so gorgeous!
i love your videos, it keeps reminding me not to buy all my wish lists plants in a week😅. im trying my best to split it up like maybe 1 -2 plants a month which is soooo difficult cause i keep thinking of the plant i want🤣.
Anyone feel like they want to type a whole paragraph comment 🤔 🙃. I think my most favorite part is taking the time to communicate and learn from nursery owners locally. Trying to absorb everything and not cutting them off even if I already know the information they are providing because even though you might know a lot i imagine they get joy out of the info they give you too.
I've quit watching any influencer that doesn't share their plant chores and struggles. Anyone can unbox or shop for plants. I want to share the journey, tips, tricks and community.
I’m glad I found this video. After a lot of reflection, I decided to downsize my collection. I’ve been very serious about my plants for ~ 2 months and went from about 30 (just succulents) to around 100+ different plants, most of which are foliage-type, in that time. I have a shelf beside my front door with a free plants sign, and I’ve been slowly giving away my plants and propagations. The less I have, the better I start to feel about it all.
Sprinkle cinnamon on top of the soil of every plant especially the more moist ones or water all plants with cinnamon water. Easiest way to kill the fungus in the soil that fungus gnats feed from. No chemicals or sticky traps needed. You can also put a mix of vinegar, water und a drop of dishsoap in a bowl and put it somewhere. The gnats will drown in it. Cheapest and easiest way to get rid of them.
Love the content! Agree on all your points, especially elitism from plant snobs. No one is perfect, neither are our collections. Plant parenthood is an imperfect journey that brings out the light in all of us. Thank you.
Does anyone ever get the opposite? My sisters are always like “you have such a green thumb, you are so good at plants”. I try to tell them I have plenty of ugly and half dead plants because I don’t want them to think I have some natural skill and discourage them from having plants.
I noticed I only got pest infestations when I overwateter. When I became negligent to my plants they don't rot and pests don't like me anymore. In the beginning I killed more plants with overwatetering. Than I killed more plants with underwatering.
Just love how you just tell it like it is. Never having a pest or ugly plant, really come on. That really is hard to believe. I don't own "rare" plants, but I still like seeing plant videos that have them. I wouldn't condemn anyone of them for what they like, and I wouldn't expect someone to turn up their nose at me for loving all the common plants.
Hi Becc a, this was a great topic, lots of plant food for thought!! And for myself, I would add to your list to let your plants acclimate to your environment before you think about repotting it, especially if you want to change the substrate!!
Thanks for bringing up those people who judge you based on a plant, or even question you about it. I was helping someone with some imported succulents that arrived not so great and had posted a photo of my own shelf of succulents, to show them what one specific plant looks like after recovery because this person asked me if I had one. There were a few that have begun to absorb their bottom leaves in favour of new ones, so they start to turn yellow and then the plants basically 'eat' them as energy, to fund brand new ones. Another person stepped in and questioned my advice because I had succulents with yellowing leaves (they were in the background and quite blurry, as I was just holding this single plant!!), and I found that super weird!!
Some of my plants I’ve had 20 - 30 years and I don’t have any pest. I live in an apartment and they are never outside. My thermostat is 68 - 70 degrees. When I get a new plant I quarantine. Most of the time I change the potting mix. I’m always checking though.💚
OMG the rare plant addiction! There are THREE rare plants I still want, but I'm waiting until they aren't rare anymore. I love philodendron and epipremnum and they propagate easily so they often flood the market at some point if popular. I just wait it out. I get what makes me happy but I can wait out a dumbass price hike. I can't believe that manjula pothos is so expensive now! What the hell happened? It was like $5 for a 4" last year! Now it's like $40 to order! I am not buying it until it comes down again. It's hella easy to prop and becoming popular again so it'll just come with time. I was going to get it for my wife but now I'm thinking how about no. The one rare I really spent on was a $100 philodendron Maximum. That's the most I've ever spent on a plant and the most I ever will. I waited literally a whole ass year before buying to make sure it was something I really wanted. I bought a baby Monstera deliciosa when I was pregnant with my son for $15 and getting myself another special plant was how I wanted to celebrate my soon to appear second/youngest son. I guess the fern leaf cactus is kinda rare, but I want it for my son's room. I got a fishbone cactus (its cousin) last year and I've found that I'm amazing at taking care of it, so I want it because yeah it's gorgeous, but I also know that the fishbone cactus has become my favorite plant and I genuinely love the care. It's like the perfect plant for me and I would love the fern leaf cactus to compliment it aesthetically in my son's room. Pretty sure they have almost the same requirements. I usually buy small but the fern leaf is going to come in a 6" pot at $30. I'm spoiling myself and I'm getting two. It's my birthday and I don't usually splurge like this so it's all good. There are months I don't even buy plants and I'm thinking about just stopping completely after this because I want to focus on an outdoor edible garden. What I have is fulfilling. I do have a lot of houseplants (maybe between 50 and 80 I don't know), but the vast majority were trades, gifted, or under $10. I am patient so I buy small. If I can't keep it alive as a baby why would I want to spend money on a full ass plant to find out I can kill it on a larger scale? I have given away plants and then later regretted the decision, but I often get cuttings back when they mature if I just ask. I just got a whole N'joy pothos vine from a mother plant I gave away last year (I missed it! I'm so surprised!) and same with an adansonii. I'm going to get a bunch of "string of" plants from trading cuttings with a friend because my wife loves them. Idk man. I mean I get really wanting something rare (obviously) but I also find that the common ones are my favorite.
This was a great video. I've been collecting houseplants for a few years and assumed other people into houseplants were chill too. Boy was I wrong 🤣 Love your channel and other creators who are all about keeping it real
I don’t really care so much about a plants rarity as much as it’s weirdness 😂 I like funky weird plants with strangely shaped or coloured foliage haha, even if they’re very common
Tip: you don't need expensive grow lights. Normal bulbs with 80 to 100 watt are just as amazing and way cheaper. You don't need purple light or anything fancy and expensive. My 90w living room bulbs measure 20.000 lumen at 15 cm distance. A pack of 10 cost me 20 €
@han regular led bulbs that are 100w equivalent are great for growing plants :) I used to work in the lighting industry and I've done all my lighting in my home with a ton of different kinds of plants from rare to the common :) I also live in Alaska where it's dark for a lot of the winter ❄️. So lighting is very important to me. LED grow lights are great if you want to get the most light which is usually 1000w equivalent which is very bright. Great for seedlings and herbs. If you do get an LED grow light, get a dimmable one so you can adjust it so you're more comfortable. I prefer LED bulbs that are warm white which is 3000K color temperature. 4000k is more of a blue hue and 2700k is more a yellow hue. Sorry for the long response, but I am passionate about plants and lighting. Kinda go hand in hand lol. Best of luck!
@@majormisstake6118 omg I would have needed your comment months ago before I did all the confusing research myself 😂 this is exactly what I was talking about. Thank you for explaining it from a professional perspective 😄👍🏻
Sometimes if I start to lose interest in a plant, I put it in a different cover pot or move it to a new location. Or, if that doesn’t spark anything for me, I give it away.
Much love, I've learned so much from you Becca! Re: fungus gnats, I noticed...once I stopped using peat based substrates entirely (and using coco coir instead) fungus gnats disappeared from my life entirely too! (I'd better go knock on wood...just in case)
Love this video. I've been having similar feelings about what I wish I knew as a plant newby lately too. Like that you can use a 1.00 solar head bobber to know if a plant has enough light. Just found that one out recently, and it would have saved me so much light worry early on.
Great advice! I'd add to the idea of looking where plants can fit to also think about how wide and tall plants will be as they mature. It's stressful to have a great plant that has outgrown its location and not know where else it can be placed in the house.
Always well put Becca, thank you :) Something I wish I knew is, don't repot your new plants immediately after you bring them home, especially peperomia!
Definitely agree with giving yourself enough time to get to know each new plant. I'm currently experimenting with terrariums and planting multiple plants in a single pot. Next big experiment will be a giant terrarium cabinet. I have about 250 plants and I don't actually find I spend that much time on watering, although the spring repotting season is a marathon!
Def make friends with the local nurseries! I make friends with any store employee at my local favorite places who will talk to me lol! I made an amazing friend at one that i always went on saturdays when she was also working. we coincidentally also have the same autoimmune disease. Because of her I was able to get a Begonia ginny galaxy for my best friends birthday! I still can't believe it happened. It never would have fallen into place if we'd never of become friends. 🥺 I love planty people so much. Especially employees at private nurseries/locally owned Plant shops. 💝
Great video Becca and so true! I think I’ve done all of the above in my plant journey 🤦♀️. Being a plant enthusiast is a never ending job. But the ones that do thrive in our continuing learning and care, gives us great joy and satisfaction. 😘
Boy, did I need to find you! I have a tendency to go all-in on hobbies. I'm moving into a custom new home designed for light, light, light in Florida. Lots of windows and a cupola. I have had all these grand plans to learn about and buy lots of plants. I first saw one of these plant people channels with rare plant hauls and admit I felt some excitement. lol But I think I'm going to stick with yours instead before I end up surrounded by entirely too many dead plants. Coincidentally, I just ordered your book the other day and didn't realize you were the author until just a moment ago! Ha! Looking forward to it while I take to heart some of your newbie-focused videos. Thanks!
This was an excellent video. Yes, I totally agree, watch all of these UA-cam videos, especially yours (😉), then glean what works for you and, like you said, put it in your fruit basket. 👏
These were so true and refreshing. I’m definitely guilty of having 1 or 2 plants now I have 20 in the matter of scout 2 weeks. I think watching UA-cam exploded and expanded that love for me. Now I’m slowing down like whoa? I have one south facing window and I live in cold and dry Alaska. I need to slow down and figure out what’s best opposed for just filling space and decorating. I’m slowly becoming more intentional about how to care for these girlies
idk if you got tips for your lil gloriosum but I just saw that other vid asking for advice. I would say based on the leaf curl, you might be under watering it just a tad. For some reason gloriosum like to dry out less than other Philos. Also, this may be my quirk l, but I think crawling philos do better when they’re placed closer to the ground rather than high up on a shelf, because they get a better angle and that’s normally where they grow
So I work a fun side job at a garden center two Saturdays a month and I love talking with the plant collecting customers, tho we aren't that common actually hah. I have a lot of experience with and knowledge about plants so being able to chat with people like you at the job makes it much more enjoyable. Thanks for the shout out cuz garden center employees work hard and are passionate about plants, but work retail, dealing mostly with an ignorant public, so it's really fun to be able to teach and learn from my reg foliar geeks. Peace 🍄
LOVEloveLOve! Here Here!! :) Thank you for standing up for your own plants! I definitely concur! I think plants are amazing....I definitely know that I cannot have ALL the awesome plants...You have an awesome fruit basket!! Have an awesome day!
I have been watching your videos, Soaking in all your tips and tricks for a little bit now and I always saw that book in the background of your videos and I would always say to myself I have that book too… I had no idea that you wrote that that is awesome. And I got the book before I even knew about your channel so cool! I love it
Wow! An amazing & informative video. You are so right on each point...I've made so many mistakes on my plant journey. Hopefully we learn from our experiences so that our plants thrive in our environment. 🙏
I definitely am one of those people who just want to fill my space with beautiful shades of greenery 💚 i just bought a new wave of plants to fill my porch area even though I live in an apartment doesn’t mean I can’t have a nice front door area and my neighbor is totally cool with my obsession lol
I bought my first two houseplants at ikea. They were potted in 100% peat moss. Let’s just say I quickly learned what fungus gnats are 😂 I def blame the medium over myself
I was just like that when I started, I killed all my plants in my first house just bc I bought ones I thought were pretty. Now I have a bright house and easy plants that I can’t kill easily lol. I just like looking at the green, I don’t need fancy ones
I loved this thank you ,I just started building up my houseplants.I have had a marble queen and a diffenbachia for appr.10 years my son gave me..Sooo I love pothos all of them and diffenbachia-i know plain but thats what I love. I have added some others that i like that do need extra care.But I know that up front and since I'm home as I can't work anymore I have time to love them.Again thank you.
Last growing season I had 4 plants, of those 4, I have 2 remaining because I lost interest in 2 of those 4. This year, I have 8 little young plants and 3 on the way. I've purchased 5 different genera. :) I think this is the perfect amount of plants for me right now. Enough to try my hand at a wide variety and see what likes me and my home. But I'm an over-carer. So I need busy hands. Lol or always a thing to do. I think, based on advise from all the avenues I get plant advise, I am at a good spot. :)
Hello thank you for all your knowledge ...and yes in the plant world people always say fungus gnats and other pest it's something I'm doing wrong I don't believe that because when I only had six plants for so many years I had nothing dealing with pest now 50+ plants later it's all happening... It's a process and for anyone starting need to know especially if they will have many plants...thank you nothing is perfect wish someone would have said what u saying .. LoL
Just want to say I love your videos! I get so excited when you post! Also I agree with enjoying the plants you have and not buy so many All at ones. I did that and kinda just put them down and I ended up buying a syngonium and put it in my bathroom and didn’t think anything and now I have thrips in my bathroom. Lucky I caught it fast and am so shocked on how I even saw it. It spread to 3/10 plants but I am treating all!! Honestly I blame me for not doing what I need to do and just SLOW DOWN. And now I have thrips living rent free in my house smh🤦🏼♀️
Great video. Totally agree with all of these. 🙌 I think if I started again, I'd keep a tally of how much I was spending on plants. I got totally caught up in the excitement and I think if I could see the total of the cost of the plants that didn't make it, in real time, I'd have made some more sensible choices more quickly. Also, see which plants have survived your first winter with them, is there a specific family of plants that don't work in your environment? I think I must have killed four Peace Lillies hoping I "knew better" each time, when in reality my house just gets too cold for them.
People are mean and rude...WE LOVE YOU AND YOUR CHANNEL..think of it this way HATERS ARE HELPING YOU BY VIEWING YOUR CHANNEL SO LETS JUS SAY THANK YOU. LOL🤣
Love seeing the watermelon peperomia in your background! Its one of the most beautiful I've seen! Would you ever do a video on caring for it or peperomias in general. I recently just killed my watermelon peperomia and I'm not sure where I went wrong
Fungus gnats are a pain. I use to have pet millipedes which were so cute but dull. And they needed to be in damp substrate all the time. So gnats from plants are way less bad. And tips brown. It happens. I did go to my localish garden center today. I was not as wise as I know I should be and I stand my my daft choices hehe Great vid
Nice topics you brought up. I too am not really in the rare plants. I love my common house plants and somewhat hard to come by plants. I’m recently really into Hoyas now but not the crazy expensive ones though. Lol. 🪴🌿 I see the bangs are making a come back. Love it. 😀
It’s so cool finding people from como on youtube! I’ve been to Helmi’s a few times, I absolutely love it there. Are there any other nurseries in the area you recommend?
Quick plant question: I am thinking of letting a climbing plant climb a branch instead of a moss pole or plank. Is there something I can do to prevent the branch from rotting?
This girl on a Facebook group got upset at me when I called her out for being rude and incorrect. She insisted that a silver satin pothos wasn't a pothos. I stated that it was a common name (and therefore a valid way to call an exotica) and that when someone posts that they need help with a plant it's rude, or oblivious at best, to try and police someone over what they call a plant instead of helping. She replied by saying that it "most certainly is not a silver satin pothos, it's an exotica." She didn't get that it doesn't matter, she just wanted to be right and wanted everyone to know that she was right. Idk why people feel the need to be right, i see the "actually that's a" on many posts. I get it when they call a Monstera a philodendron (for correct plant care and whatnot) but i even see it when people call it a Swiss cheese plant (valid af, and if you Google you get the right care info so it doesn't even matter). Same with wandering dude, rubber trees, mini monstera (that one really gets me 😂), etc. The only thing i don't see this with is the distinction between Eppipernum and pothos haha. It's almost like people don't actually want to know the scientific name, they just want to be right and validate their own knowledge.
I was annoyed with someone once, she said that pests only go to unhealthy plants… 🤨 as if the pests walk/fly along a healthy plant and thinks: oh no this plant is healthy I'm looking for an unhealthy plant! oh all the plants in this house are healthy... maybe the neighbors have an unhealthy plant… 😂 of course not! your whole house is one big salad bar for pests! whether they are healthy plants or not.
Problem with TC outside of the US is getting PPM. Smallest size I could find in germany was 100mL for like 400€. Any other usefull prservatives around?
Yeah I am still trying to not buy plants that I see other people have lol, it is a work in progress, or I am :P. I really wish I knew not to buy so many pots that don’t really fit any plants that I own haha, accumulated way too much too fast!
These people who brag about their abilities for never having a pest are clearly not as great as they think they are, since they haven’t been able to identify them. 😂 Or they’re in deep denial. Either way, it’s all part of the learning experience! Great video.
so glad you brought up the elitism and classism that can be found in the houseplant community. people are so negative when they see other people using cheaper products and owning common plants. it’s even more mind blowing when people act superior for owning super rare plants that they don’t even like 😭 so happy I came across your channel this week. it already feels like a healthy and safe place to be in the houseplant community 💛
Retweet!!!!! 👍
Its so weird...🤣🤣🤣 "my plant is better than yours" jfc...
Don't think like that. I love my good old stinking philodendron over anything. It's a majestic and it is indeed majestic. I hate variegated plants, for me it has to be green. Everything is unstable and screams "I'm annoying and difficult".
I think the best plant advise I’ve gotten so far was from another customer at the nursery who was an older man. I was complaining about how I couldn’t keep my Rex Begonias alive and I keep having to buy new ones. He basically shrugged and said how he’s been caring for and killing plants for 30 years, keep going. I felt much better, and just free in a way. This hobby is basically continuous practice. Getting better, but things still die sometimes lol
my Begonia maculata almost died, I have been keeping her in the bathroom ever since and now she's putting out new growth and seems to be recovering really well!
Manager at a plant nursery, can confirm we're happy to help 😊 one of the best parts of the job is helping people find new plants and figure out what's going on with their sick plants.
I love to hear that!! :)
I am a plant "father" since 2 or 3 years. Last year I finally had the room to have more plants. From my experience it is better as a starter to start slow and buy 1 or 2 plants a month. I killed a couple of plants because I didn't know the plant enough. Also gnats are part of the hobby. I have a 4000mAh electric zapper in my cabinet that zaps them to their afterlife.
Hey thanks for the tips! Also, I had a medium-ish fungus gnats invasion and I gotta say Mosquito bits SAVED ME! I literally haven't seen a single fungus gnat in about 6 months!!! I honestly recommend!
More info: I was very lazy about dealing with the situation, I tried ceylon cinnamon as well as bottom watering, and it helped reduce the population but not much. I later got recommended mosquito bits and decided to give it a shot. Since I did not buy the sticky traps it did take about a month to get rid of all of the gnats (mosquito bits kills the larva in the soil). However, since then I have not seen a single fungus gnat in my home and all it took was pouring a couple mosquito bits on the soil of my houseplants. :))
I think definitely something I wish I knew when I started was that I had a limited number of plant spots. There are plants I want now, but just no space. Also, plants get bigger! This year I’m going to try bringing some of my indoor plants out for the summer. Looking forward to that.
They don't get bigger if you kill them and have to start over. Pro tip 😉😂😂
Yeah, definitely underestimated how much some of these guys were going to grow in just a year lol. I'm going to be relieved when it's warm enough to put some of them outside just to make some room!
I totally agree with you!! 👏🏼👏🏼 No pests for 10-20 years of plant collecting is a LIE! I wish people like that would stay away! I love your videos and the way you remain transparent! Plants are a challenge and It’s part of the fun in taking care of them, learning how to properly care for each unique plant in our unique environment! 💙🪴
Maybe they owned pothos for 10 to 20 years🤣
I've had house plants for about 4 years now and I've NEVER had pests except fungus gnats I swear! I keep new plants really separated from the rest of my collection until I am certain it's pest free. I have about 55 plants? Not counting propagations. So it's not like I have hundreds of plants lol but I'm going to see how long I can go without any pests 🤗
@@Jie-rz2hf no pests here and I definitely own a handful of pothos LOL
I consider fungus gnats pests, the only other pests I’ve had are spider mites, I didn’t know I had them till it was too late for one of my plants so make sure you check closely! But I clean my plants often, it’s a learning process and no one’s plant collection is perfect.
@@ritaalicea6460 nope no plant collection is perfect. Nothing is perfect. But for me I'm ok with a few fungus gnats not ok with a few mealy bugs so there's a difference to me. I water my plants in the shower so they get showered every single time and I spray all the leaves for a great clean. 👍
I work at a plant nursery w 3 large greenhouses full of houseplants and i cannot stress enough PLEASE. KNOW. THE DIRECTIONS. OF YOUR WINDOWS 😭 it is so beyond crucial in trying to help you find a plant that works for your space.
I start playing 20 questions w people everyday to figure out what direction their window is lmaooo
Your “imperfect plants” and your attitude about the reality of your house plants is what made me subscribe to you! It made me feel more comfortable as a plant beginner. Thank you for being transparent and real! Cheers!
You gloriosum in the background almost doesn't look real, it looks so pillowy and squishy 😁 it's so cute! I definitely wish I took some more time to grow my collection in a more organic way instead of just buying without putting any thought to it. I just started trading off, selling and giving away some of the plants I wasn't really into anymore and it's such a relief!
I also notice the gloriosum that you mentioned. HAHHAHA Cutie Philodendron gloriosum.
Thank you for this excellent video!
I’ve had houseplants for decades, so I’ve been delighted (and a bit amused) at the explosion of interest in collecting indoor plants.
I was really fortunate to have had a grandmother who was a phenomenal gardener and keeper of houseplants. She was such an inspiration to me.
I think that having plant/gardening mentors is incredibly important, especially if you’re both growing in similar conditions.
Forgive me for writing this random essay. This video was very thought-provoking, and I couldn’t help myself.
I love the honesty of this chanel. I'm a brand new plant mom, and I find your videos soo helpful. Iv made soo many mistakes so far and now I'm really tryin to buckle down learn as much as I can and really trying to do good. Keeping them alive for longer than a few weeks has been a great goal of mine lol. At first , I always wanted to grab the coolest looking plants, and now I'm learning what plants to start out with as a beginner. What plants are easier and to learn from. I never thought I'd be into a snake plant. But I picked one up because it was on sale and I learned it was a great starter plant. Same as my NXT goal is to get a pothos, which I was always like nope, I wouldn't get, now I find myself really getting into them. Doin research on a plant before I bring it home has been a big learning step for me. My first "real" plant has been a philodendron Birkin and it's really spiked my new found interest. Especially not knowing what is was as there was no ne tag I had to do a bit of research to figure out what it was and proper care. Iv also learned that changing the soil has been important along with fertilizer.
This was one of the first chanel I have found during the first few weeks of my plant process , and Iv really enjoyed all the help. I have goal plants I CnT wait to get to , but I now knw to take my time and prepair myself before I get there and impulse buy. Thnx for ur chanel.
Pothos really are beautiful
@@M_SC they really are. I love that lemon lime one or is it the neon, ??
I've had houseplants for quite awhile and I finally got my first snake plant! I waited and got one that was really striking to me and I really love it. And my basic golden pothos is one of the prettiest plants in my house. If you give them good light, they grow and fill out really fast.
@@myconfusedmerriment same, I recently got a baby Sansevieria Ehrenbergii and she's so beautiful?? Most snake plants are not 100% my cup of tea, but another one on my wishlist is a Sansevieria Moonshine - so gorgeous!
I’m trying to only buy plants that I really LOVE and are unique. not like just collecting every type of plants I just don’t care about as much.
i love your videos, it keeps reminding me not to buy all my wish lists plants in a week😅. im trying my best to split it up like maybe 1 -2 plants a month which is soooo difficult cause i keep thinking of the plant i want🤣.
Anyone feel like they want to type a whole paragraph comment 🤔 🙃. I think my most favorite part is taking the time to communicate and learn from nursery owners locally. Trying to absorb everything and not cutting them off even if I already know the information they are providing because even though you might know a lot i imagine they get joy out of the info they give you too.
I've quit watching any influencer that doesn't share their plant chores and struggles. Anyone can unbox or shop for plants. I want to share the journey, tips, tricks and community.
I’m glad I found this video. After a lot of reflection, I decided to downsize my collection. I’ve been very serious about my plants for ~ 2 months and went from about 30 (just succulents) to around 100+ different plants, most of which are foliage-type, in that time.
I have a shelf beside my front door with a free plants sign, and I’ve been slowly giving away my plants and propagations. The less I have, the better I start to feel about it all.
Sprinkle cinnamon on top of the soil of every plant especially the more moist ones or water all plants with cinnamon water. Easiest way to kill the fungus in the soil that fungus gnats feed from. No chemicals or sticky traps needed. You can also put a mix of vinegar, water und a drop of dishsoap in a bowl and put it somewhere. The gnats will drown in it. Cheapest and easiest way to get rid of them.
Does the cinnamon hurt the plants?
@@Jameson77777 No it doesn't :) You can also put cinnamon on the stem after cutting. It desinfects the wound and doesn't hurt the plant.
Love the content! Agree on all your points, especially elitism from plant snobs. No one is perfect, neither are our collections. Plant parenthood is an imperfect journey that brings out the light in all of us. Thank you.
Does anyone ever get the opposite? My sisters are always like “you have such a green thumb, you are so good at plants”. I try to tell them I have plenty of ugly and half dead plants because I don’t want them to think I have some natural skill and discourage them from having plants.
Yes I get this too, I always say I’ve killed lots of plants and that I don’t know everything, just watch a lot of UA-cam lol
I noticed I only got pest infestations when I overwateter. When I became negligent to my plants they don't rot and pests don't like me anymore. In the beginning I killed more plants with overwatetering. Than I killed more plants with underwatering.
Most times the rare plants become less expensive the longer you wait.🌷💚🙃
Just love how you just tell it like it is. Never having a pest or ugly plant, really come on.
That really is hard to believe. I don't own "rare" plants, but I still like seeing plant videos that have them. I wouldn't condemn anyone of them for what they like, and I wouldn't expect someone to turn up their nose at me for loving all the common plants.
Hi Becc a, this was a great topic, lots of plant food for thought!! And for myself, I would add to your list to let your plants acclimate to your environment before you think about repotting it, especially if you want to change the substrate!!
Love your plants and that you share with us. We never stop learning. No one has all the answers
Thanks for bringing up those people who judge you based on a plant, or even question you about it. I was helping someone with some imported succulents that arrived not so great and had posted a photo of my own shelf of succulents, to show them what one specific plant looks like after recovery because this person asked me if I had one. There were a few that have begun to absorb their bottom leaves in favour of new ones, so they start to turn yellow and then the plants basically 'eat' them as energy, to fund brand new ones. Another person stepped in and questioned my advice because I had succulents with yellowing leaves (they were in the background and quite blurry, as I was just holding this single plant!!), and I found that super weird!!
Some of my plants I’ve had 20 - 30 years and I don’t have any pest. I live in an apartment and they are never outside. My thermostat is 68 - 70 degrees. When I get a new plant I quarantine. Most of the time I change the potting mix. I’m always checking though.💚
That's awesome! I've never had any pests either 🤗
OMG the rare plant addiction!
There are THREE rare plants I still want, but I'm waiting until they aren't rare anymore. I love philodendron and epipremnum and they propagate easily so they often flood the market at some point if popular. I just wait it out.
I get what makes me happy but I can wait out a dumbass price hike. I can't believe that manjula pothos is so expensive now! What the hell happened? It was like $5 for a 4" last year! Now it's like $40 to order! I am not buying it until it comes down again. It's hella easy to prop and becoming popular again so it'll just come with time. I was going to get it for my wife but now I'm thinking how about no.
The one rare I really spent on was a $100 philodendron Maximum. That's the most I've ever spent on a plant and the most I ever will. I waited literally a whole ass year before buying to make sure it was something I really wanted. I bought a baby Monstera deliciosa when I was pregnant with my son for $15 and getting myself another special plant was how I wanted to celebrate my soon to appear second/youngest son.
I guess the fern leaf cactus is kinda rare, but I want it for my son's room. I got a fishbone cactus (its cousin) last year and I've found that I'm amazing at taking care of it, so I want it because yeah it's gorgeous, but I also know that the fishbone cactus has become my favorite plant and I genuinely love the care. It's like the perfect plant for me and I would love the fern leaf cactus to compliment it aesthetically in my son's room. Pretty sure they have almost the same requirements.
I usually buy small but the fern leaf is going to come in a 6" pot at $30. I'm spoiling myself and I'm getting two. It's my birthday and I don't usually splurge like this so it's all good. There are months I don't even buy plants and I'm thinking about just stopping completely after this because I want to focus on an outdoor edible garden. What I have is fulfilling.
I do have a lot of houseplants (maybe between 50 and 80 I don't know), but the vast majority were trades, gifted, or under $10. I am patient so I buy small. If I can't keep it alive as a baby why would I want to spend money on a full ass plant to find out I can kill it on a larger scale?
I have given away plants and then later regretted the decision, but I often get cuttings back when they mature if I just ask. I just got a whole N'joy pothos vine from a mother plant I gave away last year (I missed it! I'm so surprised!) and same with an adansonii. I'm going to get a bunch of "string of" plants from trading cuttings with a friend because my wife loves them.
Idk man. I mean I get really wanting something rare (obviously) but I also find that the common ones are my favorite.
You go Becca!! NOTHING is this world is perfect!!!🌷💚🙃
This was a great video. I've been collecting houseplants for a few years and assumed other people into houseplants were chill too. Boy was I wrong 🤣 Love your channel and other creators who are all about keeping it real
I don’t really care so much about a plants rarity as much as it’s weirdness 😂 I like funky weird plants with strangely shaped or coloured foliage haha, even if they’re very common
Tip: you don't need expensive grow lights. Normal bulbs with 80 to 100 watt are just as amazing and way cheaper. You don't need purple light or anything fancy and expensive. My 90w living room bulbs measure 20.000 lumen at 15 cm distance. A pack of 10 cost me 20 €
Good to know, thank you!
@han regular led bulbs that are 100w equivalent are great for growing plants :)
I used to work in the lighting industry and I've done all my lighting in my home with a ton of different kinds of plants from rare to the common :) I also live in Alaska where it's dark for a lot of the winter ❄️. So lighting is very important to me.
LED grow lights are great if you want to get the most light which is usually 1000w equivalent which is very bright. Great for seedlings and herbs. If you do get an LED grow light, get a dimmable one so you can adjust it so you're more comfortable. I prefer LED bulbs that are warm white which is 3000K color temperature. 4000k is more of a blue hue and 2700k is more a yellow hue.
Sorry for the long response, but I am passionate about plants and lighting. Kinda go hand in hand lol. Best of luck!
@@majormisstake6118 omg I would have needed your comment months ago before I did all the confusing research myself 😂 this is exactly what I was talking about. Thank you for explaining it from a professional perspective 😄👍🏻
I love all pothos and pothos type plants 🌷💚🙃
Sometimes if I start to lose interest in a plant, I put it in a different cover pot or move it to a new location. Or, if that doesn’t spark anything for me, I give it away.
Much love, I've learned so much from you Becca! Re: fungus gnats, I noticed...once I stopped using peat based substrates entirely (and using coco coir instead) fungus gnats disappeared from my life entirely too! (I'd better go knock on wood...just in case)
Love this video. I've been having similar feelings about what I wish I knew as a plant newby lately too. Like that you can use a 1.00 solar head bobber to know if a plant has enough light. Just found that one out recently, and it would have saved me so much light worry early on.
Ooooh yesss!!! Good tip!
brilliant!
Great advice! I'd add to the idea of looking where plants can fit to also think about how wide and tall plants will be as they mature. It's stressful to have a great plant that has outgrown its location and not know where else it can be placed in the house.
Always well put Becca, thank you :)
Something I wish I knew is, don't repot your new plants immediately after you bring them home, especially peperomia!
Definitely agree with giving yourself enough time to get to know each new plant. I'm currently experimenting with terrariums and planting multiple plants in a single pot. Next big experiment will be a giant terrarium cabinet. I have about 250 plants and I don't actually find I spend that much time on watering, although the spring repotting season is a marathon!
Def make friends with the local nurseries! I make friends with any store employee at my local favorite places who will talk to me lol! I made an amazing friend at one that i always went on saturdays when she was also working. we coincidentally also have the same autoimmune disease. Because of her I was able to get a Begonia ginny galaxy for my best friends birthday! I still can't believe it happened. It never would have fallen into place if we'd never of become friends. 🥺 I love planty people so much. Especially employees at private nurseries/locally owned Plant shops. 💝
Love this honest chat about the reality of caring for house plants. Great video!
I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS SO MUCH and i am a new into plants and listening to this video is going to help so much!! Thank you!!!
Aww yay!!!! Hope it’s super helpful ❤️❤️
What a wonderful video! I was nodding in agreement to everything you said. I wished I had had this advice when I started collecting.
Great video Becca and so true! I think I’ve done all of the above in my plant journey 🤦♀️. Being a plant enthusiast is a never ending job. But the ones that do thrive in our continuing learning and care, gives us great joy and satisfaction. 😘
👁️ Love this! Wish I knew these things when I started too. 🌱💚
I just found you and wow you are so nice and kind, thanks so much for your time and patience! Salutations from Spain!
Boy, did I need to find you! I have a tendency to go all-in on hobbies. I'm moving into a custom new home designed for light, light, light in Florida. Lots of windows and a cupola. I have had all these grand plans to learn about and buy lots of plants. I first saw one of these plant people channels with rare plant hauls and admit I felt some excitement. lol But I think I'm going to stick with yours instead before I end up surrounded by entirely too many dead plants. Coincidentally, I just ordered your book the other day and didn't realize you were the author until just a moment ago! Ha! Looking forward to it while I take to heart some of your newbie-focused videos. Thanks!
This was an excellent video. Yes, I totally agree, watch all of these UA-cam videos, especially yours (😉), then glean what works for you and, like you said, put it in your fruit basket. 👏
The bangs are back in town!! Love em!! Thanks for sharing even more of your wisdom💜
These were so true and refreshing. I’m definitely guilty of having 1 or 2 plants now I have 20 in the matter of scout 2 weeks. I think watching UA-cam exploded and expanded that love for me. Now I’m slowing down like whoa? I have one south facing window and I live in cold and dry Alaska. I need to slow down and figure out what’s best opposed for just filling space and decorating. I’m slowly becoming more intentional about how to care for these girlies
Great advice. I've learned and shared so much from your chats. Thank you.
idk if you got tips for your lil gloriosum but I just saw that other vid asking for advice. I would say based on the leaf curl, you might be under watering it just a tad. For some reason gloriosum like to dry out less than other Philos. Also, this may be my quirk l, but I think crawling philos do better when they’re placed closer to the ground rather than high up on a shelf, because they get a better angle and that’s normally where they grow
So I work a fun side job at a garden center two Saturdays a month and I love talking with the plant collecting customers, tho we aren't that common actually hah. I have a lot of experience with and knowledge about plants so being able to chat with people like you at the job makes it much more enjoyable. Thanks for the shout out cuz garden center employees work hard and are passionate about plants, but work retail, dealing mostly with an ignorant public, so it's really fun to be able to teach and learn from my reg foliar geeks. Peace 🍄
This video got recommended and i watched the whole video, everything u said made so much sense to me!!!
LOVEloveLOve! Here Here!! :) Thank you for standing up for your own plants! I definitely concur! I think plants are amazing....I definitely know that I cannot have ALL the awesome plants...You have an awesome fruit basket!! Have an awesome day!
You speak so much truth-- imparted so much wisdom. This is a top ten video- sharing with others. Thank you for this one!
I have been watching your videos, Soaking in all your tips and tricks for a little bit now and I always saw that book in the background of your videos and I would always say to myself I have that book too… I had no idea that you wrote that that is awesome. And I got the book before I even knew about your channel so cool! I love it
Wow! An amazing & informative video. You are so right on each point...I've made so many mistakes on my plant journey. Hopefully we learn from our experiences so that our plants thrive in our environment. 🙏
I definitely am one of those people who just want to fill my space with beautiful shades of greenery 💚 i just bought a new wave of plants to fill my porch area even though I live in an apartment doesn’t mean I can’t have a nice front door area and my neighbor is totally cool with my obsession lol
Great genuine content on the reality of being a plant parent,
Me squashing a fungus knat that just rang across my phone screen! 😂
I bought my first two houseplants at ikea. They were potted in 100% peat moss. Let’s just say I quickly learned what fungus gnats are 😂 I def blame the medium over myself
Becca hi, i totally agree and believe you there a lot of things i thought i knew but did not.thanks.❤🌻
All good points you made today. I really enjoyed the discussion.
I was just like that when I started, I killed all my plants in my first house just bc I bought ones I thought were pretty. Now I have a bright house and easy plants that I can’t kill easily lol. I just like looking at the green, I don’t need fancy ones
I loved this thank you ,I just started building up my houseplants.I have had a marble queen and a diffenbachia for appr.10 years my son gave me..Sooo I love pothos all of them and diffenbachia-i know plain but thats what I love. I have added some others that i like that do need extra care.But I know that up front and since I'm home as I can't work anymore I have time to love them.Again thank you.
I love Vintage Hill!! Thanks for sharing your information! Hope you enjoy this weeks better weather :)
Great video! All are wonderful advices. All the pitfalls mentioned, I've been there.... 😚🤥
You are TOO WISE for your young age, truly!!!
Last growing season I had 4 plants, of those 4, I have 2 remaining because I lost interest in 2 of those 4. This year, I have 8 little young plants and 3 on the way. I've purchased 5 different genera. :) I think this is the perfect amount of plants for me right now. Enough to try my hand at a wide variety and see what likes me and my home. But I'm an over-carer. So I need busy hands. Lol or always a thing to do. I think, based on advise from all the avenues I get plant advise, I am at a good spot. :)
Hello thank you for all your knowledge ...and yes in the plant world people always say fungus gnats and other pest it's something I'm doing wrong I don't believe that because when I only had six plants for so many years I had nothing dealing with pest now 50+ plants later it's all happening... It's a process and for anyone starting need to know especially if they will have many plants...thank you nothing is perfect wish someone would have said what u saying .. LoL
The collect slowly is something I wish I had learned early on.
Great video with a lot of great points on plant collecting. I’d love to see a video on tissue culture at home!
Just want to say I love your videos! I get so excited when you post!
Also I agree with enjoying the plants you have and not buy so many All at ones. I did that and kinda just put them down and I ended up buying a syngonium and put it in my bathroom and didn’t think anything and now I have thrips in my bathroom. Lucky I caught it fast and am so shocked on how I even saw it. It spread to 3/10 plants but I am treating all!! Honestly I blame me for not doing what I need to do and just SLOW DOWN. And now I have thrips living rent free in my house smh🤦🏼♀️
Becca keeping it real - love this gal!
Great video. Totally agree with all of these. 🙌
I think if I started again, I'd keep a tally of how much I was spending on plants. I got totally caught up in the excitement and I think if I could see the total of the cost of the plants that didn't make it, in real time, I'd have made some more sensible choices more quickly.
Also, see which plants have survived your first winter with them, is there a specific family of plants that don't work in your environment? I think I must have killed four Peace Lillies hoping I "knew better" each time, when in reality my house just gets too cold for them.
What a great video! Thank you for sharing, this is so interesting!
This video is so good and top notch Becca!!!!!!
People are mean and rude...WE LOVE YOU AND YOUR CHANNEL..think of it this way HATERS ARE HELPING YOU BY VIEWING YOUR CHANNEL SO LETS JUS SAY THANK YOU. LOL🤣
Very well said. All good points
Love seeing the watermelon peperomia in your background! Its one of the most beautiful I've seen! Would you ever do a video on caring for it or peperomias in general. I recently just killed my watermelon peperomia and I'm not sure where I went wrong
Peperomias like being in small pots and don't like being soggyn so wany infrequent watering. They like indirect light, too.
Fungus gnats are a pain. I use to have pet millipedes which were so cute but dull. And they needed to be in damp substrate all the time. So gnats from plants are way less bad. And tips brown. It happens.
I did go to my localish garden center today. I was not as wise as I know I should be and I stand my my daft choices hehe
Great vid
A video on wet stick props!!! I’ve been experimenting with that and 😣😩 nothing is happening. They’re growing roots, but that’s it.
Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you. 🌱❤🌱❤🌱❤
i love your plants Becca
The bangs are back!!! 🙌
Could anyone tell me what the plant in the top left is called? IT IS SO PRETTY! :)
Looks like a Philodendron gloriosum. I could be wrong though 😅
@@Hannjobz Thanks a bunch, Hannah!
I was wondering the same thing! 😂 Thank you both! 💖🪴
Nice topics you brought up. I too am not really in the rare plants. I love my common house plants and somewhat hard to come by plants. I’m recently really into Hoyas now but not the crazy expensive ones though. Lol. 🪴🌿 I see the bangs are making a come back. Love it. 😀
Loving the bangs again!!
It’s so cool finding people from como on youtube! I’ve been to Helmi’s a few times, I absolutely love it there. Are there any other nurseries in the area you recommend?
Oh cool hi!!! My other favorite is Vintage Hill :)
Well said Becca 🌷💚🙃
Quick plant question: I am thinking of letting a climbing plant climb a branch instead of a moss pole or plank. Is there something I can do to prevent the branch from rotting?
Dry it for several years first :/ like firewood
This girl on a Facebook group got upset at me when I called her out for being rude and incorrect. She insisted that a silver satin pothos wasn't a pothos. I stated that it was a common name (and therefore a valid way to call an exotica) and that when someone posts that they need help with a plant it's rude, or oblivious at best, to try and police someone over what they call a plant instead of helping. She replied by saying that it "most certainly is not a silver satin pothos, it's an exotica." She didn't get that it doesn't matter, she just wanted to be right and wanted everyone to know that she was right. Idk why people feel the need to be right, i see the "actually that's a" on many posts. I get it when they call a Monstera a philodendron (for correct plant care and whatnot) but i even see it when people call it a Swiss cheese plant (valid af, and if you Google you get the right care info so it doesn't even matter). Same with wandering dude, rubber trees, mini monstera (that one really gets me 😂), etc.
The only thing i don't see this with is the distinction between Eppipernum and pothos haha. It's almost like people don't actually want to know the scientific name, they just want to be right and validate their own knowledge.
I was annoyed with someone once, she said that pests only go to unhealthy plants… 🤨
as if the pests walk/fly along a healthy plant and thinks: oh no this plant is healthy I'm looking for an unhealthy plant! oh all the plants in this house are healthy... maybe the neighbors have an unhealthy plant… 😂
of course not! your whole house is one big salad bar for pests! whether they are healthy plants or not.
Loving the hair!
YAY IM EARLY!!!! Im also pretty new to plants so this will be helpful!
Yay!!!
Problem with TC outside of the US is getting PPM. Smallest size I could find in germany was 100mL for like 400€. Any other usefull prservatives around?
Anyone knows what plant is next(left) to Becca's book?
Yeah I am still trying to not buy plants that I see other people have lol, it is a work in progress, or I am :P. I really wish I knew not to buy so many pots that don’t really fit any plants that I own haha, accumulated way too much too fast!
Hahaha yes!!!
Love your channel! I have a fiddle leaf that is thriving and yesterday I saw I killed one of my air plants. 😂 so ya 💩 happens
These people who brag about their abilities for never having a pest are clearly not as great as they think they are, since they haven’t been able to identify them. 😂 Or they’re in deep denial. Either way, it’s all part of the learning experience! Great video.