I’ve never considered myself a green thumb, nor did I really have a lot of interest in testing the theory until the last few years.

While I was growing up, my grandparents had a greenhouse and landscaping company my mother would often help with. We would go shopping for plants, potting soil and everything else she might need for the nursery nearly every weekend in the summer. I hated it. I pitched a fit almost every trip.

Despite my best efforts, something must have stuck because I now call my mother nearly every weekend to ask planting questions, how much sun each plant should get and how often they need water. I’ll even send her pictures and call her from plant stores for a second opinion.

After a whirlwind trip to California and Hawai’i with my mom back in April, I got to see a different side of her plant love. She wanted to bring home a bit of the West Coast and Oahu, so she bought a redwood tree seedling and a plumeria bulb, already growing in her backyard in New Jersey. I, of course, told her not to (pitched a fit), not knowing how TSA would feel about live (though, small) plants, but she did it anyway.

And I probably will, too, next time I’m away.

— Angelique Platas, associate editor