Gardening

My family has some plants at home that I’m curious to learn how to take good care of. This will be a nice little venture into gardening — I’m excited to see how things go!

Current state

At a glance

• The plants are… not really doing well? They’re dropping and have some dead leaves and branches, so we’re currently focused on restoring them and giving them the space to begin healthily growing again

Meet the plants here:

Plant 1	Plant 2	Plant 3	Plant 4

I’m still not entirely sure which genus of plants these are, but my current working guess from plant identification websites is the Coleus genus. Some notes about this genus:

• Well-known for being “drama queens”; if not in the right environment (e.g. underwater), they tend to wilt dramatically
• Prefers consistently moist soil

Growthlog

3 January 2026

• The soil of the plants is still pretty moist, so I’m holding back from watering right now
• I’m a bit worried if we have a root rot situation here — I haven’t seen the plants “perk up” as most places online said they would after being watered
• Trimmed a little bit more of Plant 2, removing the stem that grows out of the pot and those flowering stems
• I’m only able to look after the plants when I’m here, and that’s a problem when I’ll be staying in camp for most of my time (this week was special because of New Year’s!). I’ll need my family’s help to keep an eye on them

1 January 2026

• Nothing much just yet! Trimmed a few dead branches and removed dead leaves from the area, and watered the plants deeply
• Went out to search about some info and the basics to gardening, learnt more about:
  • Fertilisers — a material applied onto soil or plant tissues directly to give the plant more nutrients. I guess it’s like protein powder for plants?
    • NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) is a common abbreviation used for a specific kind of fertiliser; this mix of fertilisers is frequently recommended for use
    • What matters is the concentration of the mixture; one may consider balanced (10-10-10 NPK) or a specialised blend for different purposes
    • Fertilisers aren’t meant to be used frequently; too much use can lead to root burn
  • Soil types — different kinds can influence the drainage (how fast water moves through), aeration (how much oxygen gets to the roots), and nutrient retention of the plant
  • Pest control — especially since these plants are sitting outside, we need to make sure no (or as little as possible) creepy crawlies invade the space and disrupt the plants’ growth
    • Neem oil and insecticidal soap can be looked into for pest control? Apparently wiping leaves might help too
• “Root rot” is a term I’ve seen a lot while looking things up; this may happen because of insufficient oxygen delivery to the roots or poor drainage among other potential causes