Today we’re visiting with Nez, a plant lover who is building her own backyard botanical garden in Los Angeles.

I think of this Monstera pinnatipartita as my “soul plant.” My husband bought it for me in September 2021 as a congratulatory gift, because I was stagnant in my old position and chose to take a step back and make a lateral move career-wise in order to keep progressing. This plant was stagnant for the first eight months, then started growing with a vengeance. It has already needed to be repotted twice in order to keep growing.

Sometimes when it looks like you aren’t visibly growing, you’re actually growing on the inside and working on your “roots” (aka your mental and emotional health) and laying the foundation for your future self. Then when the right time comes, you’ll have stronger emotional and mental “roots” to support your new outward growth.

If you want to see more from Nez, check out her Instagram: @staythirstymyfronds

Have a garden you’d like to share?

Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!

To submit, send 5-10 photos to gpod@taunton.com along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.

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