I bought a houseplant.
It called to me at a store with its three big healthy bushy pink and green stocks. Its label simply said “Tropical Plant.” At that time I did not know what it was or its geographic origin.
I treated it the same as my other plants which were thriving. They thrived, this plant started to wither. I tried different locations in the sun, out of the sun. I tried watering it often or very little. I replanted it in a bigger pot with quality soil. I fed it Miracle Grow which is my last medical intervention for plants which usually perks them right up.
Despite everything, after about a year, I was left with what looked like three dead stubs rising about an inch out of the soil. Even then, I continued to water them, but after a while, my watering was out of a feeling of guilt. I thought the plant had completely died.
I had on my list to remove the remains and use the pot for a different plant. I procrastinated, and kept watering it… still out of guilt. Sometimes I take the demise of plants way too personally. It becomes a testimony of my ability to nurture. I failed my little tropical plant.
This condition remained for about a year. I watered 3 brown stubs. Then one day, I noticed something green emerging from the middle of the pot, between the 3 stubs. The plant was growing again!
Fast forward to today. This is what my ‘dead’ plant looks like now. Researching the appearance of it, I believe it is called Cordyline Fruticosa, or Hawaiian Red Sister Ti Plant. I lived for six years on Maui. It makes me even more glad this particular plant finally thrived.
