 Hi! So you're thinking about bringing plants to your place? That's such a great idea! After two years of taking care of plants, I've learned some things that I wish I knew before I started. But don't worry, today I'm gonna share with you the four things that I wish I knew before I started, so your plant journey is more enjoyable and way less challenging. The first thing I wish I knew before I started collecting plants is that quality is better than quantity. Let me tell you a story. When I started thinking about collecting plants, it was such a romantic thought in my head. So I just wanted to go to the store and buy as many plants as I could and that's what I did. But then it was too many to care for and I was just learning. On top of that, every plant has their own care requirements and we need time to learn these. So being honest, I actually killed many of these plants. So if you are thinking about starting your plant collection, I would recommend that you start it with one plant. That way you really have the time to really enjoy your plant and you get to really get to know her, what she needs, what is good for her and the various specific requirements for your plant. Once you're a pro with this plant, I would recommend that you bring the next one. I wish I did this because I can tell you in the beginning it was a learning curve for me. So I was very excited with many many plants, but then I couldn't enjoy them. So yes, my recommendation is that you start with one plant and then go from there. The second thing I wish I knew before I started collecting plants is that our space is very important. So before you start your collection, really know your space. How much light do you get in your place? How is the air inside your home? Is it dry? Is it very humid? So for example, if you live in a house that gets lots of bright sunlight and the air is on the drier side of the spectrum, I would recommend that you get a Calacia for example. These plants love high humidity and lower light conditions, but a succulent or a cactus may be better for you. So it is very important to get to know our space and what we can provide to our plants because each plant has their own care requirements. So we know what we can provide to these plants. It will be easier for us to maintain them happy and healthy. Number three, and this is very important, is pests. Again, when I started thinking about collecting plants at home, for me, I really romanticize it. And I can tell you having plants at home is a beautiful thing. The house plants attract bugs, so it is important that we understand this and acknowledge it and that we learn ways to prevent these. That way our plants will be happy and we will be happy. There are various ways in which we can prevent pests on our house plants. And it even starts before we buy our plant. The first thing that I do know before I buy a plant, and I learned this after I bought one with pests, is to really check the plant at the shop. So you can check the top of the leaf, the back of the leaf, the stem and also the soil. In this way we give our plant the first inspection and make sure that we don't see any bugs before we buy it. Of course, if you're buying your plants online, you cannot inspect the plant physically, but there are other ways. You can look at the reviews of the vendor and see if many people are satisfied with their purchase, or if many of them are saying that they got pests after buying from this vendor. If this is the case, you can go to another vendor just to make sure. Once you bring your plant home, treat her as soon as you arrive. So after having experience bringing a plant with pests to the house, and then other plants got the pest so I had to treat all of these plants, I learned my lesson. So now after having a plant home, I always clean the leaves and the stems with my normal cleaning solution that I use to prevent pests. This one includes castile soap, water and peppermint essential oil, which is great to prevent pests. Then I place a plant in quarantine for a week or so, just to observe her. So this plant is not going to be close to the other plants of the collection, just to make sure that she's healthy and free of pests. And after I make sure that she doesn't have pests and she's healthy, I place her with the other plants. Then I continue checking regularly. So every week or every two weeks, I check my plants and I clean them with the same solution, castile soap, water and peppermint essential oil. This is to check that my plants are free of pests and to prevent any infestation and it has worked. And the last thing that you can do to prevent pests is to learn the specific requirements about your plant. So that's why I always recommend that you start with one plant or two plants. So you make sure that you really learn what they need. Every plant is different, so it's good that we learn specific requirements for each one of our plants. And this is important because pests actually tend to be attracted to struggling plants. So if your plant needs lots of humidity, but you put her in a place that is dry, she will be struggling and pests will more likely be attracted to this plant. So I strongly recommend that you take the time to learn the specific requirements for your plant, not only to prevent pests, but also because it's so rewarding to see them grow and thrive. The fourth thing that I would have loved to know before I started my plant collection is the beautiful community that exists around plant care. For example, there are many Facebook groups with people that share what issue they may be having with their plants and they help each other. Of course, there are YouTube channels such as this one and many other YouTube channels that are put in the description below with many people that have their own plant collections and share tips and tricks of plant care. I will also make sure to share some podcasts that I follow as well as Twitter accounts and Instagram account. These have helped me so much in my plant journey and I'm so happy that I can share them now with you. If you have any other tips, make sure to comment below. I can assure you that the whole community was appreciated and as always, I will see you in the next one. Okay, ciao!