Becoming a Plant Person

Whether you’re taking classes from your dorm room, an apartment, or your childhood room at home, one thing is probably true: you’re spending a lotttttt of time in that space. Far too much, probably. Sometimes I really don’t know how much longer I can continue to stare at the ~steaming~ dumpster (why does it do this??) outside of my window. Rather than buying another poster to hang in my Zoom backdrop to make myself look more edgy, I did myself a favor and invested in some beautiful, oxygen-producing plants!!

After experimenting with growing some tulips on my windowsill, I’ve progressed to growing a few tropical plants on my desk that offer a much better view than the steaming dumpster. At first, I was a little hesitant to go ham with plant-buying since I’m not exactly the green thumb type, but honestly, all of the plants I’ve bought have been extremely resilient despite my occasional forgetfulness, so if my plants can thrive, yours (probably) can too...

If you’re looking to get started on the journey of spicing up your room with plants and you’re in the Boston area, this is a shameless plug for niche, a plant store in Somerville. The store is filled with absolutely beautiful plants and personally really appeals to my I-just-became-a-vegetarian-and-I-want-to-be-environmental-royalty side, which I’m sure applies to at least 20 percent of Harvard students,,,,, maybe more.

Isn't she beautiful? By Niche Plant Store

ALSO, if you’re more of a lazy plant person, but want to grow yourself some fresh herbs or lettuce, I highly recommend the AeroGarden (thanks for the birthday gift, Mom). All you have to do is fill up the container with some water and liquid plant food, and the plants literally just grow themselves. No need to worry about making sure the herbs are getting enough sunshine, because the lights in the kit time themselves and let you know when to refill the water or plant food. I keep my AeroGarden on my windowsill, and in only a few weeks, I was able to grow Romaine lettuce for salads and some basil that made the absolute best pesto.

In my experience, some plants are honestly pretty hard to grow, especially because I frequently forget that I need to take care of them, and that they do not just exist purely for my amusement. But, don’t fear, there are some plants that are super low maintenance and also super pretty! My best advice would be to buy plants that are pre-potted (like tulips or other fast growing flowers) and only need to be watered a few times a week when the soil gets noticeably dry. Also, I’ve found my best bet is to buy a big pot that has a bunch of different flowers/plants in it, because at least some of them are bound to grow, amirite?

Be warned: the plant business is honestly addictive. The plants outnumber the people in my apartment at least four to one, and the ratio is only increasing. Bottom line... if you’re feeling bored of your study space and are looking for a little extra oxygen boost, go treat yourself to some plants and have fun with it!