My biggest plant disaster, courtesy of a bag of slow-release fertiliser…
I was out shopping with a friend, and one of the stores we visited was Plantagen. I honestly can’t remember if I bought anything else besides a bottle of their own-brand slow-release fertiliser granules.
The idea sounded brilliant. The granules were supposed to release fertiliser gradually over several months, meaning I could water my plants with plain water for a good while. Less work for me, right?
At the time, all my plants were growing in soilless substrate. I was using a two-part fertiliser and adding CalMag occasionally.
What could possibly go wrong? 🫣
Well, it didn’t take many days after the shopping trip before I started using the new fertiliser. And let me emphasise one thing right away: I followed the dosage and application instructions.
First, my Pothos. Then my Scindapsus. Then my Monsteras. Pretty much everything in my green room at the time, including the pots of my moss-pole Monsteras.
Systematic plant care at its finest 😅
Within a couple of days, I started noticing changes. Wilting leaves. BLACK patches appearing here and there 😳😨
What the heck was happening?!
My precious plants. My beauties grown from cuttings. My rare plants. My collection! 🤯
FULL PANIC MODE!
I can’t remember which plant I started investigating first, but I quickly discovered something alarming. The fertiliser granules had dissolved almost immediately, within just a few days.
So much for slow release.
And that was the beginning of an absolutely ridiculous rescue operation.
First things first: save the moss-pole Monsteras
I started with the plants growing on moss poles. Out came each plant, pole and all. I inspected the roots, removed the damaged parts and repotted everything in fresh substrate.
Thankfully, almost all of them survived. The roots growing into the moss poles had helped save them, and I’m grateful I dealt with these plants first 🙏🏻
But what about the rest of my jungle?
Black mush where the roots should be 💀
By this point, I was already devastated. I was trying to understand what had happened while facing the enormous amount of work ahead of me.
After the first rescue session, I was in severe pain. I’d pushed far beyond my physical limits, working for far too long in terrible positions. With my chronic health issues, that came at a very high price 😣
The green room was absolute chaos.
I had to stop and leave the rescue operation unfinished.
The following day, I continued. Still in pain, still feeling utterly miserable, I tried to organise my workspace better. I arranged a table so I could work in a less uncomfortable position, kept a rubbish bin nearby and gathered fresh substrate…
Of course, I had to mix more substrate several times as the work progressed. And naturally, I was running out of ingredients.
Then there were the roots.
I’m almost speechless even thinking about them. They had turned into black mush. Sometimes the entire root system was gone. In other cases, the damage had started at the root tips.
The leaves were developing black, damaged patches too.
I followed the same rescue procedure as with the moss-pole plants wherever there was something left to save. When there wasn’t enough healthy plant material to work with, I took cuttings instead.
I kept going, plant by plant, trying to save whatever I could.
And honestly? I felt utterly defeated.
I’d bought that fertiliser to make my everyday plant care easier. Instead, it had turned into a nightmare.
The cost of trying to save everything
The rescue operation went on for several days. I was in so much pain that I can hardly remember many occasions when I’d felt worse 😩
On an ordinary day, I might manage one to three hours of activity, depending on how I’m doing. During this disaster, I spent several times longer on my feet and working than my body could reasonably tolerate.
I paid for it dearly.
Looking back, there are so many things I’d do differently today.
I’d ask for help.
More importantly, I’d accept it when it was offered. Back then, I kept saying I could manage on my own…
I’d take breaks instead of pushing through the pain.
And I’d prioritise cuttings over trying to rescue every single plant. Sometimes, saving a little piece of a plant is the best chance of keeping it alive without destroying yourself in the process.
Most importantly, I’d never introduce a new fertiliser to dozens upon dozens of plants at once.
I’d test it on ONE plant first and observe what happened before using it on the rest of my collection.
Lesson learned. The hard way.
From green oasis to silent graveyard 💔
My green room had been a lush, thriving oasis. Suddenly, it looked more like a plant graveyard.
The sight was heartbreaking 🥹
I don’t even have many photos from that time. I think I just wanted to get through it rather than document what was happening.
It took a very long time to recover from the disaster. My collection lost both numbers and size, setting me back by roughly two years.
And the financial loss was significant too. Some of those plants were rare, valuable and irreplaceable in the short term.
But the worst part wasn’t just the money or the plants themselves. It was watching something I’d spent so much time and love building fall apart in a matter of days.
My plant community showed up when I needed it most ❤️
I shared the disaster with my Instagram followers, and the response was incredible 💖
Messages of sympathy and support poured in. People genuinely cared about what had happened, and I honestly can’t describe how much that meant to me 🥰
I received emotional support, encouragement and even cuttings from fellow plant lovers 🌱
That was something truly special 💓
Little by little, I also started searching plant-selling groups for plants I’d lost completely. Slowly, I began rebuilding my collection.
With the support of fellow plant lovers, I also started a complaint process with Plantagen Finland.
Unfortunately, that turned into a disaster of its own.
I didn’t want store credit because their selection simply didn’t meet my needs. I asked for financial compensation instead.
The process dragged on and on. And then came the news that Plantagen Finland had gone bankrupt.
And that was that…
No resolution. No compensation. Just another frustrating ending to an already awful experience.
A new jungle, one cutting at a time 🌿
Despite everything, I had cuttings rooting and the beginnings of a new jungle taking shape.
I had a wonderful community supporting me, and my love for plants hadn’t disappeared 💚
The whole experience was incredibly difficult, both physically and emotionally. Even now, remembering those days gives me chills.
But I rebuilt. Slowly, and with help from my fellow plant lovers.
And if there’s one thing this experience taught me, it’s that plant care isn’t just about knowing the right products or following instructions. Sometimes things go terribly wrong, even when you do what you’re supposed to do.
And sometimes, the most important thing you can save isn’t another plant. It’s yourself 💚
