Thread by @UrsulaV

A number of replies to this thread are along the lines of “Is this why I kill plants?!” and the answer is...well...maybe, BUT...

https://twitter.com/ursulav/status/1392896074227101706

You see, my dearest and most beloved readers, the truth is that most gardens stand atop the bodies of the piled dead.

If killing even one plant stresses you, this is a terrible hobby that will upset you greatly.

Every single garden is different. No plant will grow in every single one.

No, not even mint.

People determined to sell you something will ALWAYS say it is easy and unkillable. They know you’ll blame yourself if it dies, so what do they care?

(Most cactus are very hard to grow outside of Very Specific Conditions. You didn’t fail, you were lied to. But that’s another rant for another day.)

Lots of plants die outright. Others die eventually because they just plain don’t live that long. Others do well at first, then gradually peter out over time. This is normal. This happens to all of us.

And it’s probably not that you didn’t do enough research. The categories are just too broad! The three soil types are Sand, Loam, and Clay. But dry clay is a very different beast than wet clay. Afternoon sun and morning sun are different lights.

Zone 7B is found in central NC, north Texas, mountains in Arizona, western Nevada and eastern Washington. The soil types, rainfall, and weather could not vary more dramatically.

Lots of spectacular plants from those other areas would melt in my humidity. Plants that I love from my area would be on life support in AZ.

The only way to know if a plant grows in your garden is to plant it there and see what happens.

Probably half will die, for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with you as a person.

Hell, even plants that grow in gardens nearby may not grow in yours. There are spectacular liatris in the garden at the co-op five miles away. I have never had one survive a season in my garden.

My personal rule of thumb is to try and grow a plant three times. If it dies each time, eh, time for me to move on.

Some plants are nearly bulletproof in my garden. Hostas and oakleaf hydrangeas do great if the dogs don’t dig them up.

Some plants died twice and the third one took hold like a weed. Some thrive in pots but croak in the ground. Some died instantly in a pot and the same species did great in a different pot three feet away.

You really don’t know until you try.

Basically just find what likes to grow for you, and plant more of that. If a plant dies, welp, you have paid X dollars to learn that plant didn’t want to grow there. That’s usually how it goes.