Notes on Wiping the Leaves

The weather turned grey late on Saturday, which changed my plans for watering less. I'm starting to trust my own notes on the terracotta pot more than the books.

What Lotte said about the new leaf

Doing it in the bathroom made a real difference. The funny thing is that propagating in water worked.

My mother, who never lost a plant would probably have said the same thing about the propagation jar. I kept a bag of bark close, just in case. The notebook says 27 cm pot, which is about what I expected.

Even Bobbin seemed to disapprove. My list for the next time I'm moving everything closer to the window:

• The windowsill: 23 °C
• Time spent checking for pests: the whole morning, Friday
• Mood: a bit annoyed, around 54% humidity
• A pebble tray: used twice, at 3 plants

What went wrong with the cutting on Sunday

There's always a risk of a plant that dropped every leaf, and this time it nearly happened. It's the kind of thing you only learn by taking cuttings. After that, I cut back the leggy stems, and that seemed to settle things. Halfway through I noticed root rot.

I used to think thrips on everything meant I'd done something wrong, but now I think it's just part of it. Thanks, as ever, to Wilma for putting up with me.