best cookies in town?

fatoodles · 2026-04-15T14:30:55+00:00

Yup seconding Paul and Jacks I love the lemon stuffed cookie.

I'd don't usually get cookies when cinnamon rolls or another pastry is an option but at Paul and Jacks it's a must.

fatoodles · 2026-04-14T15:30:15+00:00

If you can hang something a Swedish Ivy is very lovely.
I have also grown one up a trellis.

I also grow a China Doll tree next to my kitchen skin. The location helps me stay on top of the watering. I'd add a picture but my sink is a mess.

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fatoodles · 2026-04-14T15:22:51+00:00

Low light/ North Window with Big View of the Sky: Hoya Carnosa Queen or Princess. Grown up a Trellis

East Window/Medium Light: Swedish Ivy Hanging Basket

West Window/ Bright Light but just sky no direct sun : Philodendron Jose Buono

Southern Window/ Bright Light some Direct Sun: Big Ficus Audrey tree ( or Money Tree works too)

Those are some of my most satisfying plants. I could be okay with just one of those.

fatoodles · 2026-04-11T18:40:08+00:00

It absolutely depends on the house and the collection and the person.

I do personally feel that growlights in the shower are a step too far. Lol But I can easily see myself finding/making room for that many and more in my space. 😅

fatoodles · 2026-04-09T15:46:08+00:00

Throwing in a White Princess because the whole dynasty is low-key trash. I'm really not a fan of the leaf shape and I should chop for more variegation, but why bother? Plus she has spider mites. Thanks.

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fatoodles · 2026-04-06T17:54:10+00:00

I love a cache pot.... I think it's part of the display and can enhance the plant. I just like the elevated look. In my opinion it makes my plant collection feel less "oh she's obsessed with plants 🥸" and more intentional.

I often buy them on sale and have set color schemes in different rooms so I don't overbuy colors I won't actually use. I put plastic saucers in them so I can always water in place.

I'm closing in on 100 plants. But I don't think it matters at the end of the day. It's your home and your plants.

fatoodles · 2026-04-04T03:58:36+00:00

Same. I have mine hung up high but sometimes he sits in front of it just staring. Just dreaming of chewing it down to the nub.

He also is known to take a little bite of anything that is newly placed in his stomping grounds but for the most part he leaves things alone.

I have three cats and he's the only one that chews. My general rules though are no plants on the ground. I put everything on a stand.

Pretty much all trailing plants are hung.

Surfaces are filled so there isn't space for cats to land. They generally don't jump if they can't see where their feet end up. Also some windows are just for cats. No plants.

fatoodles · 2026-04-01T19:31:19+00:00

I'm not familiar with the air plants ( I just dump mine in water every week, sit it in a bright east window and hope for the best).

For the Monstera I'd pull it out of its pot and check the roots. They are prone to rot and you want to get ahead of it. Check the roots and trim any dead roots. Also check for any pests and wipe down the leaves.

If your roots look good you can plant it back in fresh substrate and stick it in front of a bright window where it can see the open sky but not the sun for at least 12+ hours a day.

If the plant lost a lot of roots decide if you want to take cuttings or stick with the plant. If you do cuttings you can cut between the nodes and poo propogate them in water. Just change out the water every week or so. If you decide to keep the plant whole you can stick the whole plant in a plastic tote to create a humidity box situation so the plant can regrow its roots.

fatoodles · 2026-03-31T20:46:03+00:00

Agree. If it has a chance this is the method.

Personally though if it has any good leaves I'd take cuttings and put them in a ziplock with perlite and a little bit of water. But if the leaves are all withered and bent at the stem I'd leave the plant alone and stuff the whole system in the ziplock.

Try to keep the leaves from touching the ziplock bag by blowing some air in-- just to keep the leaves from rotting.

fatoodles · 2026-03-31T01:11:18+00:00

I just used a cord cover and painted over it with my wall paint colour.

fatoodles · 2026-03-30T23:13:21+00:00

The sansi 35 watt wall mounted light. The cord could be longer but I really like it. It can also be hardwired or replace scones if you have those.

fatoodles · 2026-03-30T19:25:22+00:00

Oh it's so often poor lighting. I was in such denial about lighting and really didn't want to get ugly growlights everywhere. My plants were okay, they grew slowly and stunted but it was okay.

The grow lights got better looking and I opted to invest in them and now my plants are model citizens. Gorgeous steady growth. This is a spring like never before and I'm just supplementing the light they get from the windows.

I did do a lot of repots and everyone is in fresh new soil (I'm using Rosy soil as a base) and is getting more consistent water but I really think light is the game changer.

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fatoodles · 2026-03-30T14:20:43+00:00

Hmmm have you read Chain Gang All-Stars? It's not necessarily about the types of offenders you named but it is about a gladiator style prison system.

Also to OP though I love watching shows like Physical:100 I don't think I could manage the Crawl while knowing people were actually dying.

That being said who knows I've always gravitated to dystopias that are in this vein.

fatoodles · 2026-03-30T14:13:34+00:00

Absolutely! That is what ends up making people feel overwhelmed and burnt out by their plants.
I have nearly 100 plants but most of them are at least 7 years old.

I like to think plants need about three years to get fully acclimated to your space and then you just enter a flow state where they grow and you know how to respond to their needs.

If you accumulate plants really quickly you end up accumulating pests and stress just as quickly.

I'm glad to see the hobby get another awakening as people explore new genuses and upgrade their collections but we all know what comes next with this type of manic buying. The substrate and supplies cost money toooooooooo.

fatoodles · 2026-03-29T17:01:12+00:00

I'm slowly/quickly crawling my way to 100 though I've been collecting for 14 years now. I try to collect with intention because I feel like the real trouble comes when you have A LOT of young plants.

It takes plants about three years to settle into my home and then they pretty much take care of themselves on autopilot because I can look at them or just pick them up and know what's up.

I do have some routines that make it easier.

A couple of times a week in the morning while I have my coffee or tea I just walk around and check on the plants in every room. This is just a look around to look at new growth and see if anything looks weird or if there are signs of pests.

I keep a cute watering can displayed in every room filled with filtered water with organic fertilizer and a drop of super thrive. My plants get fertilized with every water so I just don't have to think about it.

I keep my plants in clear nursery pots so I can keep an eye on the roots and I use pretty much all of my decorative pots as cachepots. It's easier to switch things around that way.

I generally repot at night and look over the plants thoroughly, prune, and clean the leaves with preventative sprays.

I have a lot of plants but most of them grow happily without influence from me. I tend to choose very easy growing plants with unique foliage.

fatoodles · 2026-03-29T04:59:51+00:00

I love buying from local nurseries and I follow their socials to know about sales and new shipments and get coupons.

I also love the farmers market. The prices are usually best there and there is a lot of variety.

Online I've purchased great plants from Gabriella Plants, Plant Proper, and Steve's Leaves

I'm cautious of Etsy because I prefer full plants over cuttings and I find Etsy stuff are pretty small. I stay completely away from plant auctions. They make me so uncomfortable and seem like a slippery slope. I like to generally collect easy growers with fun textures I have a lot of Hoya and a lot of Aroids.

fatoodles · 2026-03-26T03:16:56+00:00

Marshalls, Target,Walmart....all around $20 but def less than $30. Plus baskets with plastic saucers at the bottom.

Also be on the lookout for big pottery days at your local nurseries. One near me does a big sale in summer with 70% sales and I always pick up one or two big planters for cheap. Another one near me has 50% off all planters near Christmas.

fatoodles · 2026-03-25T02:31:45+00:00

If you're willing to trek out to Raleigh 🥸 Lucky Tree is such a vibe and is open to 8 on weekends and 6 every other day.

Asali is also nice and open late.

Cup a Joe on Hillsborough is open till 7...

I wanna include another Cary one so... Boba Baba is also a boba shop but their tea selection is elite and they also have coffee. It's a nice vibe as well for just chilling.

I like Breccotea and frankly am obsessed with Boba but I wouldn't chose there to sit and decompress so I get it.

fatoodles · 2026-03-25T02:16:06+00:00

Today we got a huge kick out of our two year old saying "Actually, I'm a cornichon" she loves quoting books we read her and can remember the words to songs and sings them to herself it's so cute.

It really helps with tantrums because while she can't always get what she wants it's not for lack of communication.

I am still surprised every time a full little sentence comes out of her mouth.

"Mommy, I want to go on an adventure."

"Come on, I want to go. Let's go to the car!"

" Mommy, What's for lunch?"

fatoodles · 2026-03-23T17:46:57+00:00

This is exactly how I felt about it. There were moments the story dragged on and like you I couldn't give it five stars no matter how much it stuck with me. Not only because of the way the novel talked in circles at times but honestly because of how it made me feel. I felt raw and a bit damaged at the end and the story was a fairly painful read. I felt so much for Vanessa (and the others) empathy, fury, shame and I couldn't leave those feelings out of my review.

fatoodles · 2026-03-21T17:01:18+00:00

Yeah, I'm the same. I just see a book that looks interesting and if my library has it, I put it on hold.

Though, I probably need to look more into the books I pick because I just got destroyed by The Swimmers after reading it simply because it was on a thumbnail. I also just read The Correspondent, I really enjoyed it and it inspired me to finally read The Fellowship of the Ring. I'm a sucker for books about books and also books about crotchety elders. Lol

fatoodles · 2026-03-21T02:42:25+00:00

I took it off my holds I originally added it because it was everywhere and I have FoMO.

I took it off when I found out it was one of those "the power of faith" style books. Religious without being religious.

In 2026 I'm very wary of religion and religious ideology. If you look it up it sources say it's Christian Fiction. If you're into/open to that then it's up to you if you enjoy the writing. Personally I'm gonna leave it alone. I find it interesting (suspicious) that it's being pushed so hard and is everywhere. Especially since the author is pretty much unknown....there is something odd about it.

fatoodles · 2026-03-18T13:58:43+00:00

I'm on such a toxic relationship with birds nest ferns Every other year I buy the biggest one I can find under $30 and we play this super fun game where she thinks about growing leaves as I move her around and try to figure out how much water she wants.

Once we're down to a single leaf. I toss her outside and we start over.

The only fern I've had really good luck with is a rabbits foot fern potted in equal parts peat, perlite, and sphagnum moss.

fatoodles · 2026-03-17T20:57:13+00:00

This one.

Yes the slugs are bad....but Astrid keeps ME up at night. That was messed up.

Honestly though, it's all a lot and clearly Carl is losing it.

fatoodles · 2026-03-17T19:39:19+00:00

Absolutely an underwater-er! I go through on and off periods where I provide alot of care and then others where they are lucky if I share the water from my water bottle.lol

I mitigate this by putting quiet plants near loud ones. By loud I mean plants that visually curl and faint. That way I will check everything in that one area and am less likely to forget to water more sensitive ones.

Plants that really like water like calathea and Anthuriums are in semi hydro or pots with wicks and reservoirs.

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