WEBVTT - Learning Life Lessons from Plants 0:00:05.120 --> 0:00:07.760 Years ago, I read this article and news scientists about 0:00:07.840 --> 0:00:11.960 boring ology, where this reporter, Valerie Jameson, decided to spend 0:00:11.960 --> 0:00:15.200 a week looking into the science of the most boring things, 0:00:15.520 --> 0:00:19.560 watching paint dry, observing ditch water. But she starts the 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:24.040 week spending a day watching grass grow with scientists. She 0:00:24.120 --> 0:00:26.480 learns there are more than nine thousand species of grass, 0:00:26.520 --> 0:00:29.040 and the one thing that unites them is that, unlike 0:00:29.080 --> 0:00:31.680 so many other plants that shoot up from the tops 0:00:31.720 --> 0:00:35.480 of mature stems, grass actually grows from the bottom near 0:00:35.520 --> 0:00:38.880 this embryonic tissue called maris stem, and as the cell 0:00:38.960 --> 0:00:42.720 divides and multiply, you can apparently even hear the crackle 0:00:42.880 --> 0:00:45.720 of it growing. But the most fun part of the 0:00:45.840 --> 0:00:49.879 article is where the scientist has this digital voltmeter clamped 0:00:49.880 --> 0:00:53.120 onto a little piece of grass, and as they watched together, 0:00:53.800 --> 0:00:57.000 it starts flickering and in an hour it grows three 0:00:57.040 --> 0:01:00.800 point five millimeters. And while that is so in significant, 0:01:01.120 --> 0:01:04.200 Valerie points out that if the temperature holds, her little 0:01:04.240 --> 0:01:07.319 seedling will grow seventeen millimeters taller by the time she 0:01:07.400 --> 0:01:11.560 gets home that night, And suddenly she is buzzing with pride, 0:01:11.800 --> 0:01:15.240 and she has been convinced that watching grass grow is 0:01:15.360 --> 0:01:20.240 actually fun. I've been thinking about that article and also 0:01:20.280 --> 0:01:22.880 about my own kiddos, who my wife and I spend 0:01:23.080 --> 0:01:26.360 very long days within this pandemic, and while the daily 0:01:26.440 --> 0:01:30.680 changes are imperceptible, it blows my mind how quickly time 0:01:30.720 --> 0:01:34.440 has passed and how much they've learned and evolved and 0:01:34.520 --> 0:01:40.240 grown into little adult Almost Ruby refuses to let us 0:01:40.240 --> 0:01:43.200 help them with their homework. Henry would rather sneak off 0:01:43.200 --> 0:01:45.080 to the neighbor's house and then walk to the bodego 0:01:45.120 --> 0:01:47.480 to get snacks rather than kick a soccer ball in 0:01:47.520 --> 0:01:50.320 the backyard with this old man. And it makes me 0:01:50.400 --> 0:01:54.400 smile how they made themselves eggs and fended for themselves, 0:01:54.640 --> 0:01:57.520 turning the upstairs into a four when Lizzie and I 0:01:57.600 --> 0:02:01.560 contracted COVID at the end of last year. But growing 0:02:01.680 --> 0:02:05.280 is good, at least, that's what I keep reminding myself. 0:02:05.520 --> 0:02:08.240 And most of us are all growing and evolving even 0:02:08.280 --> 0:02:13.400 well into our adulthood, and I know some of those 0:02:13.440 --> 0:02:16.679 lessons have come from caring for plants. In fact, I'm 0:02:16.680 --> 0:02:19.320 starting to think that plants maybe one of our greatest 0:02:19.360 --> 0:02:22.640 teachers about how to be better humans. I mean, the 0:02:22.720 --> 0:02:24.840 numerous basil plants I killed at the start of the 0:02:24.919 --> 0:02:27.640 series have taught me to never give up, and to 0:02:27.720 --> 0:02:31.640 be kind and forgiving to myself. Our MONSTERA has taught 0:02:31.639 --> 0:02:34.320 me how to be flexible and find ways to adapt 0:02:34.320 --> 0:02:37.760 in new environments. And all those seeds that Ruby and 0:02:37.800 --> 0:02:41.359 I planted in our backyard totally scatter shot have taught 0:02:41.400 --> 0:02:44.880 me to keep my expectations low and to be delighted 0:02:44.880 --> 0:02:48.320 when things do sprowed up. While I've learned a lot 0:02:48.320 --> 0:02:51.000 over the last fourteen months of the pandemic, I also 0:02:51.040 --> 0:02:53.919 know that with each new change or shift to life, 0:02:54.320 --> 0:02:58.440 or challenge or loss, there will be more growing and evolving. 0:02:59.600 --> 0:03:02.560 But I feel confident that we'll get by with a 0:03:02.600 --> 0:03:09.480 little help from our plant friends. Hey there, I'm Mongish Particular, 0:03:09.680 --> 0:03:12.160 co host of Part Time Genius, one of the founders 0:03:12.160 --> 0:03:15.440 of Mental Flaws, and this is Humans Growing Stuff, a 0:03:15.480 --> 0:03:18.800 collaboration from my Heart Radio and your friends and Miracle Grow. 0:03:19.520 --> 0:03:21.919 Our goal is to make this the most human show 0:03:22.360 --> 0:03:25.840 about plants you'll ever listen to. Along the way, we'll 0:03:25.840 --> 0:03:29.440 share inspiring stories, tips and tricks to nurture your plant addiction, 0:03:29.840 --> 0:03:32.560 and just enough science to make you sound like an expert. 0:03:33.000 --> 0:03:37.119 On this episode, our season finale, we are examining how 0:03:37.160 --> 0:03:40.080 we're growing alongside plants and the life lessons we can 0:03:40.160 --> 0:03:44.800 learn from our leafy green roommates. We'll discover ways plants motivators, 0:03:44.880 --> 0:03:47.720 what they teach us about resilience and survival, and whether 0:03:47.840 --> 0:03:50.520 or not caring for them can make us better humans. 0:03:52.280 --> 0:04:00.240 Chapter fourteen, Learning life Lessons from plants. Despy at the 0:04:00.280 --> 0:04:04.200 often delicate appearance of some plants, they can be incredibly 0:04:04.280 --> 0:04:10.360 resilient snake plants, easy plants, Chinese evergreen, rubber plants, cacti, 0:04:10.480 --> 0:04:14.760 and succulents. They're all very resilient and can handle minimal water, 0:04:15.400 --> 0:04:21.080 lackluster light, and still somehow thrive. Take the cactus for example, 0:04:21.120 --> 0:04:24.560 It's thorns are highly modified plant leaves, which protect them 0:04:24.560 --> 0:04:28.080 from animals who try to access the liquid inside. The 0:04:28.120 --> 0:04:30.760 top level roots collect water from the rain, and the lower, 0:04:31.160 --> 0:04:34.640 much deeper roots collect water from deep below the surface. 0:04:35.400 --> 0:04:38.560 They can store water for years, and the feisty cactus 0:04:38.600 --> 0:04:42.040 does so by opening its pores at night, whereas most 0:04:42.040 --> 0:04:44.919 plants open there is during the day, and as a result, 0:04:45.080 --> 0:04:48.479 they are less vulnerable to warm temperatures that would ordinarily 0:04:48.600 --> 0:04:52.800 evaporate that store of water. Think of how smart that is. 0:04:53.240 --> 0:04:58.360 They are prickly geniuses. But plants are incredibly resilient, and 0:04:58.520 --> 0:05:01.760 after an unexpected winter warm hit Texas this year, so 0:05:01.839 --> 0:05:04.599 many people were shocked to see how native plants bounced 0:05:04.640 --> 0:05:09.240 back after experiencing this true shock to their systems. I 0:05:09.279 --> 0:05:12.400 want to talk to someone who witnessed this resiliency firsthand, 0:05:12.480 --> 0:05:15.599 so I called up Mark Peacock. Mark is native of 0:05:15.600 --> 0:05:20.360 Great Britain who recently followed his heart to Texas, and 0:05:20.480 --> 0:05:23.799 although he pursued a career in fitness after school, he's 0:05:23.960 --> 0:05:27.520 even graced the cover of Men's Health UK. Mark actually 0:05:27.520 --> 0:05:30.479 studied horticulture and university and has been getting back to 0:05:30.560 --> 0:05:33.200 his green roots and figuring out how to grow in 0:05:33.240 --> 0:05:40.839 the challenging climate and soil of Texas during the pandemic. Hey, Mark, 0:05:40.920 --> 0:05:43.520 are you there? Yes, I'm there, I'm there. Hello. Hello, Hello. 0:05:45.240 --> 0:05:47.160 It is so nice to be chatting with you. It's 0:05:47.200 --> 0:05:50.080 lovely to chat with you too. So I know most 0:05:50.080 --> 0:05:54.039 of us had a really really hard with COVID and 0:05:54.080 --> 0:05:57.720 the pandemic and just life in general. But it seems 0:05:57.760 --> 0:06:00.320 like somehow you managed to have a few really nice 0:06:00.360 --> 0:06:03.400 things happened this year. Yeah, I had some really nice 0:06:03.400 --> 0:06:05.640 things happened. I mean, it was a huge different kind 0:06:05.680 --> 0:06:08.120 of game changer of a year. You know. Obviously I 0:06:08.200 --> 0:06:12.360 got married in the middle of part of last year, 0:06:12.560 --> 0:06:14.960 so that was really nice. But it was very socially distanced, 0:06:14.960 --> 0:06:17.960 and obviously, being English and my partner's American, we were 0:06:18.040 --> 0:06:22.280 kind of a very small intimate. It was just myself, 0:06:22.400 --> 0:06:26.320 him and the judge here in Texas. So yeah, so 0:06:26.360 --> 0:06:29.640 we did that, and you know, I permanently relocated over 0:06:29.720 --> 0:06:33.880 here and we bought a house and have a garden, 0:06:33.960 --> 0:06:37.279 and I'm kind of learning, you know, the difference between 0:06:37.360 --> 0:06:40.719 a very British garden and what you can do in Texas. 0:06:41.360 --> 0:06:44.520 So I'm assuming you grew up around plants, but then 0:06:44.560 --> 0:06:47.400 you decided eventually to study them. Yeah, and then I 0:06:47.480 --> 0:06:51.080 kind of just fell into going to university. You know, 0:06:51.320 --> 0:06:54.080 it was tough, but it was so interesting. You know, 0:06:54.360 --> 0:06:57.040 every week you'd be given a sample of plants. So 0:06:57.080 --> 0:06:58.520 it would be like, right, this week, we're going to 0:06:58.640 --> 0:07:02.560 learn narcissus. You need to know the species of narcissus. 0:07:02.560 --> 0:07:05.839 And they would line up twenty different narcissus bulbs and 0:07:05.920 --> 0:07:08.720 you'd have one week to learn the difference and then 0:07:08.720 --> 0:07:11.720 they would only put out ten or twelve of them, 0:07:11.760 --> 0:07:13.240 so then you'd have to go in, and you go 0:07:13.280 --> 0:07:15.240 in and this took for like five pc of your 0:07:15.240 --> 0:07:18.080 whole degree or ten percent, so you had to be like, Okay, 0:07:18.160 --> 0:07:23.320 that's narcissus tete, that's narcissus whatever. You know pheasants eye, 0:07:23.560 --> 0:07:25.520 and you'd have to know it just from the singular bulb. 0:07:25.520 --> 0:07:27.400 When they did it with roots, they did it with leaves, 0:07:27.400 --> 0:07:30.600 they did it with everything. So it kind of helped 0:07:30.600 --> 0:07:34.760 build up a good knowledge of plants. And you know, 0:07:34.800 --> 0:07:36.840 even after I walked away and didn't end up going 0:07:36.840 --> 0:07:40.440 into that field, I would always be walking along and 0:07:40.480 --> 0:07:42.160 I would see plant and I'll be like a less 0:07:42.160 --> 0:07:46.480 spectral apendula, or that's a moneage ponega or that, And 0:07:46.520 --> 0:07:50.400 I would continuously always be testing myself and yeah, I 0:07:50.440 --> 0:07:52.320 used to go to the Chelsea Flower Show every year 0:07:52.960 --> 0:07:56.920 and my my friend Gerd he we went to the 0:07:56.960 --> 0:07:59.080 Chelsea Flager one evening. I was walking around me and 0:07:59.080 --> 0:08:02.320 he looked at this plant. He's like, that is called 0:08:02.320 --> 0:08:05.040 fatcier japonica. And I'm like, yeah, what do you think? 0:08:05.080 --> 0:08:07.160 I was just giving you some like Harry Potter Wizard 0:08:07.600 --> 0:08:09.880 names these whole times, and it's like I just thought 0:08:09.880 --> 0:08:11.600 you were making it up. I didn't think you actually 0:08:11.680 --> 0:08:15.920 knew what these things were called. So yeah, I kin't 0:08:15.920 --> 0:08:18.240 of surprised myself sometimes with like kind of what I 0:08:18.280 --> 0:08:21.720 know and what I don't know. So what do you 0:08:21.760 --> 0:08:23.880 get from being in your garden in the morning? What 0:08:23.960 --> 0:08:26.960 do you get out of you know, mentally and physically 0:08:27.000 --> 0:08:29.360 from from being in the space. I think it's just 0:08:29.400 --> 0:08:32.480 an opportunity to really switch off and like there isn't 0:08:33.600 --> 0:08:38.560 you know for me, gardening is kind of an ever 0:08:38.679 --> 0:08:40.600 changing thing. You're never going to get to a point 0:08:41.120 --> 0:08:45.160 where it's finished. Just being here in Texas is like 0:08:45.320 --> 0:08:49.000 completely different to the UK, like the soil, but I 0:08:49.040 --> 0:08:51.960 mean it's like what soil. I'm working on rock and 0:08:52.040 --> 0:08:55.079 stone and take about half a foot and you've hit 0:08:55.400 --> 0:08:59.320 bedrock and you're literally smashing in to try and even 0:08:59.360 --> 0:09:02.800 get into the So there's lots of like technique, you know, 0:09:02.960 --> 0:09:04.920 and I'm going to have I'm you know, setting up 0:09:04.920 --> 0:09:07.839 a compost system because I really need to start building 0:09:08.280 --> 0:09:10.480 more organic layer on top of what I've already got, 0:09:10.520 --> 0:09:14.200 because what I have got it is shocking, Like you know, 0:09:14.240 --> 0:09:18.440 it's not worth anything, it's useless basically. So yeah, so 0:09:18.440 --> 0:09:22.000 there's lots of it is it's like and you're so 0:09:22.120 --> 0:09:24.760 limited on the plants. Like being in the UK. Was 0:09:24.760 --> 0:09:26.679 saying this to someone yesterday. I was like, I feel 0:09:26.679 --> 0:09:30.000 like I've been spoiled because the climate in the UK, 0:09:30.160 --> 0:09:33.600 your your ability to grow pretty much anything is so 0:09:33.720 --> 0:09:36.280 vast and I don't really need to think about, oh 0:09:36.360 --> 0:09:38.800 it's going to get too hot, and what I'm noticing. 0:09:38.920 --> 0:09:42.439 It's like I'm putting plants in and a plant in 0:09:42.480 --> 0:09:45.640 the UK that would take you know, six months life 0:09:45.640 --> 0:09:48.960 cycle here because it's just so warm and humid. It's 0:09:49.000 --> 0:09:51.000 just sped up the whole time. But the plant is 0:09:51.040 --> 0:09:53.960 I want heype from my plants, but it's just it's 0:09:53.960 --> 0:09:57.680 coming into flowers so quickly. So I'm literally like taking 0:09:57.679 --> 0:09:59.920 the flowers off, trying to encourage a bit more gross 0:10:00.040 --> 0:10:02.160 it doesn't put his energy into producing these flowers. So 0:10:02.559 --> 0:10:06.120 but this is kind of my first full season gardening 0:10:06.120 --> 0:10:08.760 here in Texas, so it'll be interesting to see kind 0:10:08.760 --> 0:10:11.160 of how that pans out, and I'll learn a lot 0:10:11.280 --> 0:10:13.600 this year as to what I can kind of can't do. 0:10:13.920 --> 0:10:16.560 So what what what was the what was your thought process? 0:10:16.559 --> 0:10:18.280 When you got to Texas, did you look out your 0:10:18.320 --> 0:10:20.400 backyard and decide there has to be a garden here 0:10:20.720 --> 0:10:24.480 or how did you decide to tackle the yard? Well, 0:10:24.520 --> 0:10:28.960 I mean there was kind of some kind of garden here, 0:10:29.840 --> 0:10:31.400 but I mean the first thing I did, like when 0:10:31.559 --> 0:10:34.240 we moved in the where the vegetable garden is now, 0:10:34.440 --> 0:10:38.959 it was like a skateboarding half pipe there. And then 0:10:39.040 --> 0:10:41.360 when we moved in, they were like, would you mind 0:10:41.440 --> 0:10:45.000 if we took the half pipe? And We're like, yeah, 0:10:45.040 --> 0:10:49.720 by all me, you really do I look like a skateboarder. 0:10:51.440 --> 0:10:56.120 So as soon as that went, then, um, I got 0:10:56.160 --> 0:10:58.800 to work and I built the built the raised beds 0:10:58.800 --> 0:11:01.160 from scratch. I was looking everywhere and I couldn't find 0:11:01.160 --> 0:11:02.720 any so it's just what I'm just going to go 0:11:02.760 --> 0:11:04.880 down to loads and buy some wood and kind of 0:11:05.000 --> 0:11:06.840 buy myself a band sore, and I kind of just 0:11:06.840 --> 0:11:09.160 started making it all. So it's just things like that. 0:11:09.320 --> 0:11:11.720 Learning that and the vigetable gardens the first thing, and 0:11:11.760 --> 0:11:14.600 the kind of just been working around with the kind 0:11:14.640 --> 0:11:17.520 of loose structure we had in the back garden and 0:11:17.559 --> 0:11:20.040 just kind of filling the beds out, seeing what works, 0:11:20.040 --> 0:11:23.360 what doesn't work, and then eventually I'll tackle the front. 0:11:23.400 --> 0:11:26.160 But the fronts literally like building on Mount Everest. It's 0:11:26.200 --> 0:11:28.679 just rock essentially, So I don't quite know how I'm 0:11:28.640 --> 0:11:31.840 going to tackle that one. But you can just put 0:11:32.160 --> 0:11:35.920 skateboard ramps all over it. Oh yeah, just or a 0:11:35.920 --> 0:11:41.959 toboggan run for when it snows again. Oh my god, 0:11:43.200 --> 0:11:47.280 it's ludicrous. Everyone was like, if it snows here, it 0:11:47.320 --> 0:11:49.200 just snows for a day and then it melts. It 0:11:49.280 --> 0:11:52.600 never gets cold. And you know, luckily we weren't in 0:11:52.679 --> 0:11:55.880 town when it happened. But beforehand, I'd like, I had 0:11:55.920 --> 0:11:58.559 all these Dailier tubers and I'd like potted them all up, 0:11:58.600 --> 0:12:00.760 and you know, I just left. We bought all these 0:12:00.760 --> 0:12:04.240 citrus trees and I just potted them all up and everything. 0:12:04.360 --> 0:12:05.880 And then as soon as we left, it was like 0:12:06.080 --> 0:12:08.760 winter storm coming in. So you know, I had to 0:12:08.760 --> 0:12:11.000 try and get it wrapped and see what survived. And 0:12:11.000 --> 0:12:13.120 I pull the potatoes in the ground already, and I 0:12:13.160 --> 0:12:14.680 was like, oh my god, it's going to go. And 0:12:14.720 --> 0:12:17.280 then we just We've got so many like cedar trees 0:12:17.600 --> 0:12:20.080 around here, and they were just like falling left Bryant 0:12:20.080 --> 0:12:23.400 Center and the I was just getting fed back pictures 0:12:23.679 --> 0:12:25.240 of the garden. I was like, oh my god, I've 0:12:25.240 --> 0:12:28.960 lost of the garden. And then then you know, after 0:12:29.040 --> 0:12:31.120 a couple of weeks and you know, as soon as 0:12:31.160 --> 0:12:35.040 the sun comes out, I'd say we've probably lost my 0:12:36.160 --> 0:12:40.880 kind of guests probably turned into more like so you know, 0:12:40.920 --> 0:12:42.959 the plant's kind of surprised that you know, they just 0:12:43.040 --> 0:12:44.800 kind of gone all the way back to the ground, 0:12:44.840 --> 0:12:47.679 but they were still actually like you know, little life 0:12:47.720 --> 0:12:49.760 forms under the ground ready to kind of come back. 0:12:49.800 --> 0:12:51.520 I mean, we lost a lot of the height and 0:12:51.600 --> 0:12:54.079 scale and the bushiness of a lot of the plants 0:12:54.080 --> 0:12:56.040 that would take probably a good year to kind of 0:12:56.440 --> 0:12:59.880 come back. But in terms of you know, the structure 0:13:00.280 --> 0:13:03.160 of kind of having the plants, you know, we've managed 0:13:03.200 --> 0:13:06.079 to retain them, and you know, financially, I mean it's 0:13:06.080 --> 0:13:07.960 a huge thing, like the amount of plants that there's 0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:10.760 so many people that had giant palms, Like you're driving 0:13:10.760 --> 0:13:13.320 around and these huge palm trees that people have gotten 0:13:13.320 --> 0:13:14.920 they're just like, I don't even know they're going to 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:18.320 come back. They're like three four or five thousand dollar 0:13:18.480 --> 0:13:20.960 trees that people have everywhere, and you're like, you lost 0:13:20.960 --> 0:13:23.199 ten twelve of them and I'm like, you feel a 0:13:23.200 --> 0:13:27.160 bit sorry for them, So it's a learning curve kind of. 0:13:27.200 --> 0:13:29.760 I'm just kind of gauging what survived, and I'm like, okay, 0:13:29.800 --> 0:13:32.920 well I'm going to you know, bulk up that, you know, 0:13:33.040 --> 0:13:36.040 air towards that side of planting, because in case it 0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:38.439 ever happens again, you never know what the climate is 0:13:38.480 --> 0:13:41.520 going to be doing in the future. So um yeah, 0:13:41.559 --> 0:13:44.959 that's kind of my goal essentially. Well, I do want 0:13:44.960 --> 0:13:48.040 to ask you about the resilience of plants, and you know, 0:13:48.120 --> 0:13:51.720 you talked about this storm that came and it really 0:13:52.360 --> 0:13:55.360 hurting a lot of the garden and plant life. Was 0:13:55.400 --> 0:13:58.319 there anything you were surprised by that it bounced back 0:13:58.440 --> 0:14:00.920 or or surprised by the resilience of any certain plants. 0:14:01.160 --> 0:14:03.679 I mean, I thought my potatoes I put in the 0:14:03.679 --> 0:14:06.200 ground before I left were gonna even though they were 0:14:06.320 --> 0:14:09.160 under the ground. I was just like, this is cold, 0:14:09.679 --> 0:14:11.920 and I'm I don't even know if I don't know 0:14:11.920 --> 0:14:14.120 if they're going to rot under the ground or but 0:14:14.160 --> 0:14:16.040 you know, they came back and they were absolutely fine, 0:14:16.080 --> 0:14:20.720 and like some of the palms, you know, they were 0:14:20.880 --> 0:14:24.040 they were like just a bronze color. They were they 0:14:24.040 --> 0:14:26.720 were gone. But you know, and this is the thing 0:14:26.720 --> 0:14:29.440 about gardening is all about patients. I'm a strong believer 0:14:29.520 --> 0:14:33.520 that it is about patients. Like just leave those let 0:14:33.600 --> 0:14:35.520 them be and see what the plant's going to do, 0:14:36.000 --> 0:14:38.640 you know. And and some of you know, some of 0:14:38.640 --> 0:14:41.240 them are starting to reshoot again. So whereas before I 0:14:41.280 --> 0:14:43.040 would have you know, could have got trigger happy and 0:14:43.040 --> 0:14:47.960 just pulled everything out and started again, you know, actually 0:14:48.000 --> 0:14:52.320 just leaving it and letting it recover. You know, you 0:14:52.400 --> 0:14:55.560 are kind of amazed by kind of what what can 0:14:55.640 --> 0:14:59.880 pull through. Um. Yes, so that's kind of that was 0:15:00.040 --> 0:15:02.520 kind of the thing, kind of the palms that kind 0:15:02.520 --> 0:15:05.720 of grew the bamboo as well. I mean around us 0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:07.600 a lot, there's a lot of bamboo, and it is 0:15:08.120 --> 0:15:11.800 it was just it was dead above ground, really, you know, yes, 0:15:12.160 --> 0:15:15.200 like funny, I wouldn't imagine it seems like such a 0:15:15.200 --> 0:15:19.840 sturdy plant. It was obliterated. You're driving it just looks 0:15:19.880 --> 0:15:23.160 like a desolate war zone kind of driving through where 0:15:23.160 --> 0:15:24.480 we were. When we came back, it was just like, 0:15:24.480 --> 0:15:27.840 oh my god, cedar trees had fallen down everywhere, and 0:15:28.280 --> 0:15:31.280 you know, bamboo was just this golden dead, like all 0:15:31.280 --> 0:15:36.240 of the leaves dead and so but now, like you know, 0:15:36.360 --> 0:15:38.520 those stems, you know they need to be cut off, 0:15:38.600 --> 0:15:41.400 but people are keeping it for like screening for their houses. 0:15:41.520 --> 0:15:45.600 But you know, underneath it, it's just like you know, 0:15:46.200 --> 0:15:50.080 it's firing up everywhere. So the resilience of that is 0:15:50.440 --> 0:15:53.440 quite amazing. I didn't think that would pull through, but 0:15:53.520 --> 0:15:55.680 you know, you just give it a month and you know, 0:15:56.080 --> 0:15:59.120 see what happens. Yeah, I mean I know one person 0:15:59.360 --> 0:16:03.240 on this um this podcast said, um, their plants want 0:16:03.280 --> 0:16:04.760 to grow, and you just kind of have to remember 0:16:04.760 --> 0:16:07.320 that there's like there they want, they want to grow 0:16:07.360 --> 0:16:10.440 and and and and so um you can do less 0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:14.320 and be patient and and and they will they will 0:16:14.360 --> 0:16:16.240 for you. I guess I think that that's the thing. 0:16:16.640 --> 0:16:22.120 It is all about patients, you know. And you know, 0:16:22.240 --> 0:16:24.400 I always think if someone hasn't got a lot of patients, 0:16:24.400 --> 0:16:27.040 then garden is a good way to learn. How can 0:16:27.040 --> 0:16:32.120 I learn patients? Garden? Because you cannot push a plant. 0:16:32.200 --> 0:16:35.960 A plant will grow at whatever rate it you know, 0:16:36.600 --> 0:16:39.520 wants to grow out. There's no there's no way of 0:16:39.640 --> 0:16:42.840 you you can help it long. But you know, at 0:16:42.880 --> 0:16:44.280 the end of the day, you're at the mercy of 0:16:44.320 --> 0:16:48.120 that plant, and you know, you just got to nurture it. 0:16:48.200 --> 0:16:50.800 And it's just kind of like the same as you 0:16:50.840 --> 0:16:53.000 know a person. You kind of have to nurture it 0:16:53.640 --> 0:16:56.360 and you know, look after it and it will kind 0:16:56.360 --> 0:16:58.880 of reward you in the end, be at one with it. 0:16:59.120 --> 0:17:03.000 I mean that makes me like, really hippie it is. 0:17:03.080 --> 0:17:06.760 It's just like, just take a step back. What's the rush? 0:17:06.920 --> 0:17:10.320 What is what's the immediate kind of rush for it 0:17:10.359 --> 0:17:13.439 to be there? Now? It's just like, you know, go 0:17:13.600 --> 0:17:17.640 with it. Let's see what happens. When you came to Texas, 0:17:17.720 --> 0:17:20.800 did you did you sort of enjoy the challenge of 0:17:21.040 --> 0:17:24.439 like figuring out what does grow here and what native 0:17:24.480 --> 0:17:28.359 plants are or or um? Did that just feel like 0:17:28.400 --> 0:17:31.240 a like a bit of a hurdle. No? I mean 0:17:31.320 --> 0:17:33.199 I love I love the challenge. And you know, I 0:17:33.200 --> 0:17:35.479 came in a little bit blind thinking I can just 0:17:36.000 --> 0:17:37.560 you know, do what I did back home and kind 0:17:37.560 --> 0:17:39.440 of do whatever I want. And you know, the longer 0:17:39.480 --> 0:17:41.399 I've been here, I have kind of learned that do 0:17:41.840 --> 0:17:45.320 I can't just bulldoze and do whatever I want. But 0:17:45.480 --> 0:17:47.639 you know, walking around some of the guns and some 0:17:47.720 --> 0:17:50.240 things that are like house plants in the UK, I'm 0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:52.640 like Oh my god, I can grow that outside here. 0:17:54.240 --> 0:17:58.639 I'm like, yes, right, we're changing No longer I gertru 0:17:58.720 --> 0:18:02.600 g coal with your herbaceous yes, a tropical house plants. 0:18:02.760 --> 0:18:06.520 We're bringing them outside, you know. Um so yeah, that 0:18:06.520 --> 0:18:09.120 that's been a fun thing to kind of learn and 0:18:09.320 --> 0:18:11.920 adapt from. And I think that's the thing. It's all 0:18:11.960 --> 0:18:14.840 about adaption. You know. I'll be able to kind of 0:18:14.880 --> 0:18:17.960 gauge kind of what is right and what is wrong. 0:18:17.960 --> 0:18:20.639 And I'll make loads of mistakes this year, but it 0:18:20.640 --> 0:18:24.600 doesn't really matter. I like that you said that's not 0:18:24.680 --> 0:18:27.040 my vision because I feel like that's my entire experience 0:18:27.040 --> 0:18:31.639 of gardening. It's like a garden that's not my vision. 0:18:32.240 --> 0:18:35.080 But um, but that, but that, but that gives you 0:18:35.280 --> 0:18:37.800 always think that's the best. Like whoever, whoever has a 0:18:37.880 --> 0:18:40.720 first idea and that's the perfect idea. I always think 0:18:40.760 --> 0:18:43.080 it's the second or third kind of idea that you 0:18:43.119 --> 0:18:45.399 may have. I mean, when you get to idea twenty seven, 0:18:45.480 --> 0:18:49.440 then your change tack. But you know, when you have 0:18:49.520 --> 0:18:51.480 the first idea, you're always been like, but then when 0:18:51.520 --> 0:18:54.960 you kind of evolved that idea, you know, I think 0:18:54.960 --> 0:18:56.480 that's when you get the best ones and that's when 0:18:56.480 --> 0:18:59.120 you learn, like, you learn by mistakes, and those mistakes 0:18:59.480 --> 0:19:02.800 creates something far better than what you probably would have 0:19:02.880 --> 0:19:05.080 envisioned the first time. Oh I like that. I'm going 0:19:05.119 --> 0:19:07.080 to carry that with me. That makes me think about 0:19:07.080 --> 0:19:09.840 this belief that we can adapt, even you moving from 0:19:09.880 --> 0:19:14.480 London to Texas, right, it is adapting exactly. I think that. Yeah, 0:19:14.480 --> 0:19:17.440 that's it. It's like this year has been a bit 0:19:17.440 --> 0:19:21.720 of a crazy year of change. But you know, I 0:19:21.760 --> 0:19:25.400 don't believe changes are wrong, a bad thing. It's it's 0:19:25.440 --> 0:19:28.560 a good thing. And you know, who wants to stagnate 0:19:28.640 --> 0:19:32.439 and just be the same forever, you know, very caution 0:19:32.520 --> 0:19:35.280 to the way and do stuff you know, make may change. 0:19:35.280 --> 0:19:38.360 And yeah, I think that's that's that's a good thing. 0:19:39.680 --> 0:19:41.840 So Mark, before I let you go, is there anything 0:19:41.880 --> 0:19:44.720 else you want to add about the resiliency of plants 0:19:44.720 --> 0:19:47.240 and what we can kind of learn from plants? I 0:19:47.280 --> 0:19:49.040 don't think so. I think it is just mainly that 0:19:49.119 --> 0:19:52.040 patience thing. Just just don't be in a rush, you know, 0:19:52.359 --> 0:19:55.320 look at them, you know, you know, and if they're hurt, 0:19:55.600 --> 0:19:58.440 help them. You know, if a branch is hanging off, 0:19:58.800 --> 0:20:00.959 would you want someone to passed you with your arm 0:20:01.040 --> 0:20:05.399 hanging off. No, like get in there, like look for 0:20:05.400 --> 0:20:07.399 that kind of safe point to cut it back, to 0:20:07.520 --> 0:20:11.000 cut it back, stop that disease getting in, you know. 0:20:11.040 --> 0:20:13.040 And that's kind of vice aversa. You're going to help 0:20:13.080 --> 0:20:15.120 the plant, and but then also take that lesson and 0:20:15.440 --> 0:20:18.240 help someone else if you see someone, help them the 0:20:18.280 --> 0:20:21.199 same way you would help plant. And just remember that 0:20:21.520 --> 0:20:25.960 plants are the masters of adaption. You know, they will adapt, 0:20:26.720 --> 0:20:28.600 but it's kind of if you want the best out 0:20:28.600 --> 0:20:31.119 of them, it's probably best just to kind of just 0:20:31.200 --> 0:20:33.720 look up its origin and then kind of just be like, 0:20:33.760 --> 0:20:37.040 even if you don't know like anything about Spain, you 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:40.720 might know something about the Mediterranean. It's hot, it's dry, Okay, 0:20:40.720 --> 0:20:43.040 well I'm gonna it's this bit area, this sunny area 0:20:43.080 --> 0:20:44.800 is going to be good for it. Then you know, 0:20:44.960 --> 0:20:47.800 you can kind of use it's kind of origin as 0:20:47.880 --> 0:20:51.040 your kind of the idea of what you should do 0:20:51.119 --> 0:20:53.920 with it. You might get it wrong, but it doesn't matter. 0:20:54.280 --> 0:20:58.640 You can move it well. Mark, thank you so much 0:20:58.640 --> 0:21:01.119 for spending time with us and talking plants with me, 0:21:01.280 --> 0:21:03.840 and and it was it was a real pleasure. It's 0:21:03.840 --> 0:21:05.320 been a pleasure for me. Thank you for having me 0:21:08.680 --> 0:21:12.040 humans growing stuff will be right back after a short break. 0:21:20.640 --> 0:21:23.840 Plants are incredibly resilient, but they also know a thing 0:21:23.920 --> 0:21:26.800 or two about being flexible and adapting to the resources 0:21:26.840 --> 0:21:30.399 around them. Take the venus fly trap, for instance. Charles 0:21:30.440 --> 0:21:33.159 Darwin was such a fanboy of the plants that he 0:21:33.200 --> 0:21:36.520 wrote the venus flytrap is the most wonderful plant in 0:21:36.560 --> 0:21:39.960 the world. He even dedicated an entire book to them. 0:21:39.960 --> 0:21:43.199 But the tiny toothy plants are carnivorous for a reason. 0:21:43.680 --> 0:21:46.960