I'm not terribly good at introductions, but I'll try. My name's Amanda and I'm 20 years old. I've been taking care of houseplants for maybe ten years now. Yeah, I was pretty young. I learned quickly that my mom couldn't be trusted with plants. I claimed responsibility of her peace lily when I was probably 11 because she would unintentionally neglect it. These past three years, however, my depression kind of affected how involved I was with my plants, so I was less aware of them for awhile, but after rescuing one of my African violets this last November (which is now very happy and also starting its bloom), its recovery really helped me to bond with my plants again, which in turn has also helped with my depression. Now, counting three violet leaves I just potted after propagating them, I have 14 houseplants, including my mom's peace lilies. I'm also babysitting my sister's new succulent that she got for her dorm because it's too cold this time of year in her dorm for it to stay happy.
Over time, I have become more proactive about consulting the internet regarding concerns of mine. I'm generally pretty aware of changes in my plants, and I usually can tell when one isn't happy very early on, but I'm not always too great at finding the cause. But, because my care techniques are probably not the norm, it's a little difficult to find information about plants specific to my plants' circumstances, so I've been contemplating joining a plant-oriented message board this past week, and came across this one. I'll probably be making a thread about my poinsettia here soon. I've had mine for three years now and I never groomed it or cut it back so it's about two feet tall. I like it leafy and tall like it is (from what I understand the only reason people do cut them back is for the bloom and because it's "unsightly," not because leaving it tall is bad for it), but it's very difficult to find anything about poinsettia care for people who aren't adamant on getting them to bloom again.
But, back to me. Aside from plants, some of my other interests include, drawing (digitally & traditionally), music, video games, and web design. I'm self-taught in most of what I do, so joining up here is a little out of my comfort zone. But, regardless, I hope to see you guys around.
