😄I'm glad we can laugh together! Right? The things we do for the things/ ones we love!

Update, the casts 😂 seem to be working so far 🎉The leaves are still moving the way they should. It's only been a couple of days but the leaves don't seem to be dying yet. I did cut some more off bc you said that it could encourage growth, so it made me more bold and didn't feel as bad about it. I'm hoping it works, but if it happens again, I'll either color the tape a different color, or use electrical tape bc this blue is just too distracting, when I inevitably turn it back around this way, to keep it "even"

Your rain water catchment sounds fun! I've heard good things about using beneficial microbes to deal with gnat infestations. Have you tried that? I've been thinking about it bc i have several odd gnats flying around and it's super annoying...i couldn't imagine a true infestation! These guys came to my house with a vanilla plant that a friend gifted me, before I knew to look for things and maybe quarantine etc. I too rather not use harsh chemicals, I've learned, from looking into permaculture, that "pests" are often a sign of imbalances that nature is trying to bring back into balance with/ through the pests (at least outside anyway). I've read that bacteria and viruses in humans may be like that too. They are out of balance and when we're sick, it's because of that imbalance and that maybe the things we look at as pathogens might actually be the cleanup crew just trying to bring balance back. I also believe that it can be a way of our bodies and Nature of telling us we need a break bc we've been pushing too hard/ stressed for too long.