plant nerdery – [insert current hyperfocus here]

A Considerable Blip

So I did get my medication back, and it was helping, but thanks to a stressful couple of weeks and my inability to notice things, I have gone without my bupropion for the last three days, and wow has it sent my brain straight into the trash. I haven’t had the time or energy to write any more since that one little spree, but I am thinking about it again, which is still a vast improvement over the zoloft-induced zombification from last summer. It doesn’t help that my current hyper-focus is PLANTS PLANTS PLANTS. I’m compiling a dossier on some of the native milkweeds, images and information about germination, growing requirements, all that stuff. It’s probably not necessary, since most of them are native, after all, and won’t require much effort once they get established–if they ever do. I have a good track record for germination, but a very bad one when it comes to actually, you know. Getting things into the ground. I have exactly one tree left from the great tree-spree of 2022, and it is, unfortunately, one that requires cross-pollination. oops.

Anyway: I have had seeds on the brain. I don’t need to buy more seeds, since I have plenty left over from last year (and the year before) but I couldn’t help myself. *facepalm* I finally got some Pearl Milkweed seeds, some various other native things like Mexican Buckeye and Texas Lantana, American Wisteria…started updating my spreadsheets…now if I could get some time to actually plant things…

Getting Back Into a Rhythm

So after two years I have finally been put back on the meds combo that was working so well in 2022, and I’m starting to feel something closer to myself again. My appetite is back to normal, I’ve gained back all the weight I lost, and I’m starting to be a little productive around the house. Writing is still not happening, but that’s more about not having time–we are shorthanded at work so I’ve been working something closer to full time hours, and I’m behind on Christmas gifts, plus the whole mare’s nest of my house after two years of major depressive issues. I’ve also been reading again, a little. Mostly rereads–brainless stuff to distract myself from the cesspit my country is currently sinking into, though I did finally read my most recent inter-library loan, My Aunt Is a Monster by Reimena Yee. Putting aside the irony of a graphic novel about a blind protagonist, it was a very cute story, though I think it would have made more of an impact as a regular novel, in which Safia’s blindness could have been better illustrated (no pun intended) by telling the story through her other senses. It does give me an idea for a novel…but I won’t say any more on that, considering how many other projects I have in the pipeline right now.

Since I’ve been feeling more capable, I allowed myself to buy a few plants to replace the ones I lost during my last depressive episode. They had a Monstera Thai Constellation at Walmart of all places, and I couldn’t resist that. I also found a Golden Pothos on clearance–usually Walmart’s clearance plants are in A State, but this one was gorgeous and full. I also got a Ficus Tineke, a small Pearls and Jade Pothos, and a couple of African Violets. And last night they had a Rhaphidophora on the clearance rack at Walmart, and even though it was in less that sterling condition, the plant seemed healthy enough–just some sunburnt leaves, and at $7 it was a too good a price to resist. There are some small pots of Shefflera I’ve been eyeing too, but I’ll have to see if there are any left next week, because the budget is too tight right now for even another $6 baby plant, sigh.

The weather has been pretty bad the last couple days–freezing temps, we even had snow, which they predict every year, but almost never actually happens. The dogs were extremely excited about that, though Sadie was a little dubious of all that cold, fluffy white stuff all over the porch the morning after.

Crawling out from under my rock

A dewberry flower, five petals, white with pale pink accents — Dewberry flower

The dewberry vines are flowering in the ditch, so it must be spring. A little early, it’s still February (because it’s leap year) but I’m not going to complain. My peach tree is also starting to bloom, pictures to come. Hopefully this stupid cold front doesn’t blow off all the flowers.

So the bupropion/buspirone combo is not working as needed, and I have made the decision to discontinue the bupropion for now. This leaves my ADHD untreated, but I’m going to have to prioritize my mental health for the time being and stay on the anti-anxiety medication until I have the spoons to make an appointment with the new brain doc at my doctor’s office. My physical health appears to be good, all my labs came back with decent numbers for once, which is a load off my mind. I’m still attempting to crawl out from under my current…episode, seasonal affective disorder, whatever it was. Feeling better, enough to have dived right into my usual spring fever, been seed prepping since last Friday. Logging my farm progress over at the spacecat.studio site. As I tanked my progress pretty hard on that front, I’ve decided to go a bit slower at it, not intending to renew my nursery license until next year at the earliest, just gonna focus on getting plants going, setting up the beds and trellises and things, repairing the greenhouses (the wind today blew out another panel, which I found in the ditch while walking Ben Ben), soil enrichment, trying to germinate seeds that are a bit past their prime. Slowly rebuilding my succulent collection. (Very slowly, sigh. I still can’t think about all the plants I lost without getting discouraged; cleaning out the small greenhouse is going to be tough.)

Things are still creeping along on the creative front. Tor 2 is still not done, still can’t read anything, not even the slightest pretension to art stuff. It’s frustrating.

Wildflower Season, Part 4

Opuntia cactus with yellow blossom just beginning to open A few years ago when I developed an intense interest in succulents and cacti, I harvested some pads from the prickly pear in the back corner of my yard to root. One of them got planted in the front yard two years ago, and last year it flourished, growing about a dozen new pads. This year the pads are covered with flower buds, which I’ve been watching, waiting for my very own cactus roses to bloom. The first one started opening yesterday!

Wildflower Season, Part 3

Patch of pink primrose with a fuzzy black caterpillar — Pink Primrose is a prolific wildflower, shown here with a fuzzy black caterpillar

I took this pic during Ben Ben’s morning walk. It turned out surprisingly good considering the wind today, which you can kind of see in the way the primroses it’s happily feasting on are all swept to one side. This year has been excellent for primrose, they are literally everywhere right now and I love it!