Plant-xiety

As we progress with our plant hobby, I’m sure most of you have experienced it. ANXIETY. yes, the thing that we hardly talk about. This is often overshadowed by the beautiful pictures on post and stories. I’m not saying that we have to necessarily dwell on it, but I hope that by giving each other a safe space to talk about it would help alleviate the stressors and anxieties.

Out of the many issues that we face, the more common ones are the condition of the plant. Be it acclimatising, rooting, growing, flowering, signs of change in leaf and so on. As plant parents we are very invested in them. Many of us have spent not only money but also time and energy into acquiring these plants. So it is very natural for us to want to give it the best it can have.

I remember a year back last summer when it was going all crazy with the Facebook selling groups and Instagram stories, I was one of them who was waiting and obsessing about bidding on a specific plant. It was like preparing for a showdown. Many of times, television-series, dinners and social events had to be paused in order to focus on the bidding. What I often saw was cat fights emerging on who won the bid based on the minute difference of just mere seconds. Either you came out winning or you were disappointed as you missed your chance to buy a coveted plant that you have been longing for. So it was very much about exercising constraint to how much you’re willing to foot out for the plant.

Then comes the next part of shipping and communication. Some better, some worse. I have met many new people through buying things from them and most of them were kind and helpful. But there were also many that were out for a quick buck and couldn’t really careless whether the plant survived or not. It taught me a lot about how important it was to have certain principles when it came to ordering and to always stick to them. Often when I didn’t follow my gut feeling, I would then be disappointed. I think having certain ground rules help set the expectations of what you will be receiving on your end. My advice would be to ask questions, ask for pictures, have clear documentation in order to avoid confusion or false expectation before sealing the deal.

I would rate DELIVERY as my worse nightmare. Due to the current world pandemic it has made it a lot more severe as well. From tracking the package, to customs and lastly delivery companies. I think this multi factored process can absolutely drive you nuts. Either the package is stuck somewhere and not moving at all or the customs just decided to keep the package under their ‘wings’. Mostly if you follow the guidelines and documentations most packages will sail smoothly through the cracks. But once in a while if you’re unlucky then you’ll be waiting for weeks. If I could choose I would definitely prefer to buy locally for the sake of the plants and my sanity. So think twice and ask yourself, can I buy this locally? Even though it might cost a bit more, I would say it is totally worth it.

Now after all that, finally we have the plant in our hands. Hoorah! At the start of the hobby I was often very affected by the conditions of the plants came in. But now having done it for a while, I try to be more sensible about it. It of course does test my patience but more often than not, the rewards are pretty satisfying seeing a plant come back to life. #wetsticks. My gosh the life lessons in the plant hobby are just countless.

Just to bring it into perspective, albeit the negative tone to the post, I would like to stress that my plants really have done me a lot of good. But if I had made better choices perhaps I would have saved myself a lot of money and grief.

On that note. Choose your battles carefully and till next time.