My very first house plant

For those of you who don't know I created this blog for a class where I will be learning, discussing, and making art about nature. This blog will be used to document a plant I received on my first day of class. I will also be reflecting on nature and my relationship with my new house plant! Unfortunately, I am a little behind. We were supposed to start this blog two Friday ago, right after we first got the plant. So please use your imagination and pretend this entry is for Friday January 14 2011
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This week I received a brand new house plant. I discovered that my plant is called Chlorophytum comosum, otherwise known as a spider plant. Spider plants are native to South Africa and therefore don't like being below 50 degrees. They need to be watered once a week and can survive in semi-shady to partial-direct sunlight. For class, we had to come up with ideas of how to house our plant and how to help it survive. Here are sketches of my two ideas:




The first picture is a planter that uses negative reinforcement to get me to water the plant. By having the plant set up to an IV I will be reminded that it is a living thing that is capable of die and will therefore remember to water it. The second image is a planter that uses positive reinforcement to get me to water it. If I give the plant water, the water will power the pot to play a song.
When I was first given my plant I was strangely nervous. It's the first plant I have ever been given. With that comes a pressure to keep it alive. I think I felt that if I killed this plant it would prove in my inability to be a good care taker, or a great gardener for that matter. The pressures of having to be responsible for a living being can be very overwhelming, even if it is just a simple house plant. People don't normally get satisfaction from killing things. At the same time I am thankful that I have something to look after that I can call my own. Taking care of things makes people feel like they have a purpose. Which is a very healthy feeling to have. Right after I got my plant I named it Herb. I've already played it a classical song because I heard that that is stimulating for plants ( I should do some research to confirm or deny this). I think the future will only bring more bonding experiences for Herb and I. So far, he's looking mighty healthy. I am a little concerned though because in order for Herb to get sunlight I have to place him by the window and it is quite cold by my window. I had to take him away for a break because he was looking a little droopy one day, I will have to find a solution to this and will share it with you all in the future. Until next time!

TBultema