Lessons from two years of gardening

How I went from 'black thumb' to "Oh my God you grew that?!" BY INA AMOR MEJIA

ALTHOUGH I GREW UP in a family of farmers and plant lovers, it took about eight years before I would bring plants into my own apartment. How this was even possible, eight long years with no green here except for dried moss, I don't know. But two Christmases ago we got a succulent as a present and it changed everything. Soon I was buying plants like a crazy person, pouring over gardening how-tos, making my own organic fertilizer and pesticides, and crying and rejoicing over plants in equal measure. I've learned so much in between. Here are my best lessons so far... 

Homemade Rosemary Tea

It's got numerous benefits, but here's why I've been drinking it lately. BY INA AMOR MEJIA

WE HAVE BEEN GROWING rosemary in our roof deck for a year now, and it has been one of the easiest culinary herbs to grow organically. Relatively hardy in our tropical weather, it is such a pleasure to grow and care for. I've always loved its scent---pine-like, earthy, and elegant. Whenever I go up there to prune it, when I'm done I like to bury my face in my hands and inhale. 

Turns out, this herb isn't just great for roast chicken. 

May you live long and prosper

I need to tell you something. I've been bitten by the plant bug. BY INA AMOR MEJIA

WE GOT AN ASSORTMENT of such wonderful presents over the holidays, including this group of succulents from my cousin-in-law Rica. I somehow felt a kinship with this thing, and it stirred a longing for a proper garden of my own somewhere in my three-storey apartment. Growing up my siblings and I had the run of my grandmother's large garden. I still dream of the ivy-covered walls, the manicured lawn, the lush orchids and the massive star-apple tree that lorded over everything. As the sun fell, my Dad would take a rock and hurl it at the tree, and we watched in awe as the flock of birds on its branches flew away, Hitchcock-style. My Mom seems to have inherited that elusive green thumb. One time she kept a rose garden where the blooms grew to the size of small plates. And curiously, we had a small pet cemetery behind it. There lay at least one dog, a lizard, a couple of spiders, and one other undefinable creature buried in a matchbox.

I had plants once, in my living room, and they all died. I didn't talk to them enough. Or maybe I have the Black Thumb of Death. I've named our succulent, Sucky.

Dear you, may you live long and prosper.

Update: I've repotted Sucky to three separate pots and moved them up to our deck for some fresh air and full sun. I've also decided to water every four days (against expert advise). So God of Succulents help me. Been reading Gardening Succs and Succulents and Sunshine and they're great. And thanks for reading!