Sierra and I have been friends for over 10 years now, so (of course) she also loves plants now too! I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as we did. We enjoyed talking plants SO much this may just be a Part 1 for us...
We wanted to share some some fun photos of us over the last 10 years! Photos of Sierra's plant space are down a bit further in the questions!
Who is Sierra Jones?
My (Holly's) best friend
She currently lives in Chicago, but I have been trying to convince her to move to the Milwaukee area for years now (because I miss her).
She is an Occupational Therapist in Pediatrics.
She has a dog named Atticus (follow him on @atticusthedramatticus- you can also see him on the Pets and Plants blog post!)
She loves to read!
She also loves Lego sets.
And obviously "houseplanting"
How do we know each other?
We met each other in the spring semester of our freshman year of college (Carthage College) in our Drawing 1 class. We both looked at each other thinking we wanted to be friends but, since we are both antisocial, we didn't say anything!
We ended up having to go to Chicago for our art class and we bonded on that field trip. We clicked better then the other people on that trip and (Sierra says) "now I am stuck with her and I can't get rid of her." 😄
When and how was she introduced to plants?
Growing up, Sierra's Mom had houseplants in their home consistently. Not a ton but they were always there. Her Mom had a job when she was younger where she went into other business and took care of the plants for them too!
Sierra didn't remember when she starting getting plants but she said "obviously it's your fault." 😄
She didn't remember her first plant but Holly thinks it was a Ponytail Palm she bought at IKEA several years ago. "And then I don't know what happened. It's like tattoos, they are addictive! Now I've got a million plants!"
What does she love/hate about plants?
Sierra loves the aesthetic of them which brings a very relaxing vibe. Since most of the plants are concentrated in the living room everyone says it looks like a jungle but its really peaceful and a nice place to hang out.
She doesn't love taking care of some of them. She has moments where she sits down and takes care of them. But she also has phases where she thinks "I can barely take care of myself and you guys seem a little more finicky then me right now, so I can't do this."
She also spent a decent amount on a plant when I was with her and she is really stressed about killing that plant (or any kind of plant) that is super expensive.
She doesn't like how watering instructions are so unclear.
She dislikes the amount of times you have to go back and forth to fill up the watering can.
And she determined that I need to make a watering tool to help her and everyone with this problem. 😆
Favorite plant/least favorite plant?
Her favorite plants are currently her Pothos plants because they are so easy to keep alive. She also loves the Scindapsus plants she has!
Her least favorite plants (but also one of her favorites) is her ferns (potentially Cotton Candy Fern)! She has a beautiful fern in a fun face pot that looks like hair. But they are so hard to keep alive and it always looks partially dead.
Her favorite plant she lost was the Black Velvet Alocasia that I got for her years ago (which technically isn't lost). She put the bulbs in water and it keep forming a new leaf every once in awhile.
Wishlist plant?
She loves the gothic looking (or black) houseplant varieties. She wants the Alocasia Dragon Scale, the Scindapsus Tricolor Dark Form (we are unsure if this is a real plant), maybe Scindapsus Treubii, and (of course) a Variegated Monstera.
She has avoided making a list because she knows they will be more expensive. She is also afraid she is going to kill it immediately!
Favorite plant product or hack?
A plant product she uses a lot is the sticky yellow fungal gnat traps.
She also uses Neem Oil for pests as well.
Her sister uses the watering bulbs in the plants that are higher up (where she can't reach).
She also uses a few grow lights that are helpful.
What is underrated and overrated in the plant world?
She said "plants!" for both under and overrated! She said everyone has gotten into plants and COVID escalated the amount of people with plants.
They are underrated because there are actually true health benefits of plants!
She said people might say Pothos are overrated, but she thinks they are underrated.
If she could change anything about her plant situation, what would she do and why?
She wishes she had a greenhouse attached to her house, or way more window space and ledges (to get more plants, obviously).
She wishes her bedroom was a space she could put more plants in.
She wishes plants can water themselves and take care of themselves. 😄
Instagram Q&A
I asked followers if they had any specific plant questions I could address in this podcast and blog. Here are the questions and answers for Sierra's Plant Chit-Chat:
"How many plants does she have? Does she have more because of your friendship?"
She said "I have plants because of you". 😄 She doesn't have a current count but she believes she has around 45 (just of her plants), but with her sister's plants, the count is probably over 100.
"What is your relationship with plants and WHY?"
She does feel like her relationship is a little wishy-washy sometimes. This is because the effort needed isn't given to the plants...because life is overwhelming! At the same time, she is very happy to have the aesthetic and enjoys the way her plants make her feel.
"What plant have you each had the best luck/experience with and why?"
Sierra says, "I've had some really good luck with my ZZ plants! Literally no idea why. 😄 They just seem to thrive and grow really well and I've never seen one brown or anything like that."
Holly says, "ZZ Plants have always thrived for me too, but Monstera, Philodendron and Hoya have been incredibly easy for me! Since I am a chronic underwater-er these can still survive my occasional neglect and look amazing! They aren't too picky with lighting which makes them versatile PLUS I rarely have pest issues on any of them!"
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Always written with extreme plant passion!
Love, Holly (Owner & Creator of Houseplant Homebody LLC)