Not only am I a crazy succulent lady, I'm also a crazy planner lady. I've been in possession of the Hobonichi Techo 2016 since December, and I've played around with ways to use it. Over the course of the past few months, it's tracked the events of my fairly quiet life, the weather, appointments, etc. I went from trying to sketch out the events (shopping bags, clouds, waves) to printing a sh-t-ton of stickers. I use sticky notes everywhere, to note cleaning days, study days, succulent updates, and so forth.
And I STILL don't know how I want to use this thing.
with its utilitarian protective cover
without the cover
I don't want it to function as a glorified to-do list. The paper is amazingly bleed-proof, and it is laid out beautifully. The calendar even starts on Mondays! It's got so much more potential than a mere to-do list.
Daiso's got me covered for that:
$1.50! F-cking love Daiso
I created a Google spreadsheet for my meal log as well, so I won't track what I eat in the Hobonichi. So what WILL I do with it? Well, here are some shots of what I've done thus far:
tracking birthdays (sorry it's so blurry)
tracking daily activities
And here are some ideas of what's to come:
Iceland, bitches!
those stickers are also from Daiso
I've wanted to track everything I read for a long time now; this is a nifty way to keep it all in one place. I taped down that printable, so I can flip it up and still note the day's events, if that's something I decide to maintain. I've also been printing photos onto label paper and adding them to the pages, and I might tape in some cards I've received as well.
the rifled look of the paper, omg
I get the feeling this little notebook will expand considerably before I'm through.
I swear this isn't a plant blog. I'm no horticulturist; I couldn't tell you the difference between poison oak and poison ivy, and I'm highly allergic to fuzzy fruits, so I do not dwell much in the greater outdoors.
But I do love flowers, and orchids especially because they're beautiful and I can actually grow them. I once believed the myth that they were difficult to care for, and I've killed a couple despite all my best intentions, so I specifically requested to NOT receive them as gifts. Despite my protestations, however, one of my researchers gave me a beautiful orchid as a gift a couple of years ago. It didn't hold up well in my office, but this time, I was determined not to fail. I took it home, I did some online research, and I eventually coaxed new roots and blooms out of the plant. Victory!
Orchids like ice. I have underwatered and overwatered, and I can speak from experience when I say that I would err on the side of underwatering. I water this plant once a week, using three to four ice cubes.
Orchids should not sit with their roots submerged in water. I'm caring for the mini-orchid in the above photo for a friend, and it came to me in a little terracotta pot looking limp and devoid of happiness. I removed it from the pot and put it into a little glass I had on hand, and let the roots dry out completely. Then I started it on the ice regime; because it's so little, it only gets one cube of ice per week. That little new leaf? It came in under my care! /dusts off shoulders
Indirect sunlight is key! I have another orchid at work (also a gift), and I put it in a window with full sunlight. The leaves got terribly sunburned; I actually had to cut off part of a leaf.
I have a weird window display
I also changed the vase so the roots wouldn't be submerged, which is really important for this orchid because I don't have ice cubes at work. Instead, I use water from my betta's tank for all of the plants in my office. (He gets clean water, the plants get fertilizer, and everyone wins!) The bigger vase ensures that the water runs through the orchid's planter without causing root rot.
Moral of the story: If I can raise orchids, so can YOU.
Mind you, I'd still prefer to be a crazy cat lady, but I remain deathly allergic to cats despite multiple complaints filed with both the Genetics and the Luck of the Draw departments. And I'm not allowed to have pets in my apartment, nor do I really have the time to care for them, or I'd be a crazy dog lady (I've got names picked out already for all the dogs I don't have). I do have a fish at work and a snake at home, but one of each seems to be plenty.
So, succulents! Easy to grow and care for, not at all time-consuming (ish) - they seemed to be the perfect fit.
I started with a succulent that a friend had given to me for Christmas.
It soon outgrew its britches, however, which was when I started reading about growing succulents. And aftermuch reading, I learned that it was really easy to propagate succulents from their leaves.
So now, this is what my windowsill looks like:
recycling yogurt containers
And after a couple weeks of careful observation, I finally noticed roots:
they're there - look harder
proud plant parent
The level of observation may look a little like stalking, if one can stalk one's plants, but hey - it's working.
The majority of these leaves were pulled on 19-Jan, so I'm hoping I see little succulent babies in another two weeks or so. In the meantime, I'll keep watering these little guys, and hopefully seeing roots grow in on the ones not yet potted.
