Even though the third bud was forming again, I still snapped it. I don't seem to be so obsessed with getting them to bloom anymore; maybe I was never going to be able to get them to flower profusely anyway. I want them to look good together. Anything that tries to stand out and disrupt the formation is an eyesore to me. World peace. [Winking face]

A friend has a large yard and said he's recently taken a liking to watching fallen petals, asking if I do the same. I don't. My yard has lost all its romanticism. Before the rain, I cleared away all the withered and nearly withered flowers. Because a heavy rain would inevitably scatter them everywhere, not following the natural order of parachutes to land precisely on the charming brick and stone. If my yard were smaller, they'd be sticky everywhere. It's like pear blossoms wiping away tears and then carelessly throwing a tissue in someone's face. Disgusting and prone to bacterial infection.

Let's talk about whether it's okay for a newbie to lose some makeup.

I haven't been a complete newbie for about three or four years. Back then, @飞猫乡舍's houye had a garden full of flowers. She was giving away lots of lucky money back then; that's how flower-loving tycoons are—they're giving away huge European rose seedlings all over the yard. Late at night, a bunch of flower fanatics would drive up to her house. I was just watching the fun. She was giving things away to everyone, and when it was my turn, she glanced at me and said, "You, wait a bit. They're all seasoned veterans." [Haha][Sad face]

I really had no interest in growing flowers back then. Otherwise, I definitely would have kicked her. Mei played with Chinese bonsai and gave them away, and I, being my professional instinct, went to watch. Mei said she'd give me one, and let me choose. After looking for a while, I picked a small plant. Now that I think about it, it's probably called coriander. She looked at me and said, "That's fine, it's everywhere in the ground. It's no loss if it dies." [Haha][Sad face]

I'm just a complete newbie like that.

How I fell in love is a long story, too long to tell, I'm too tired to type it all out. But one thing I want to say is that I don't like to ask. I mostly rely on listening.

I belong to the group of people who just want to show off. Hou Ye's garden is full of people during her May blooming season, and I can basically remember all the varieties she talks about after just one listen. The next time people come, I tell her I can be the garden's tour guide. Everyone applauds and says I'm smart, beautiful, and generous. In my excitement, I decide I not only need to remember the names but also understand their history, so I can show off even more next time.

This is when we have to praise our wonderful era. It's amazing! All the questions you can think of come up with just a few keywords on WeChat and Weibo. So many talkative pioneers, without asking for payment, thoroughly explain everything to you, from A to D. There are also countless heartfelt comparisons of pros and cons. These are all lessons learned through their own hard work and experience! [haha][haha] I still remember a Weibo video by @米米mimi-童 about repotting a plant. It was so clean, efficient, and incredibly insightful—it was a real eye-opener! From then on, I ditched garden soil and started using potting mix. Aren't they amazing? Anyone who can read can learn. No entrance fee, no tuition. I've carefully read through all the Weibo posts of many gardening bloggers. Although we've never met, I'm very grateful. When I don't understand certain terms or methods, my first reaction is to write them down and look them up!

The second step is listening. Some casual or intentional remarks can open a new door for you. For example, many of Tianlang's recent videos have changed from last year's rambling style; there's so much useful information that it's impossible to remember it all. In one episode of Photosynthesis, a horticulturist casually mentioned that climbing roses with nowhere to grow can be tied up in a dramatic, explosive way. I tried it this winter and it worked wonders! My Newman roses, which never bloom in the shade, were bursting with color and trembling all over the branches. Hou Ye once came to my house to see me pruning my maple tree and said, "You can't keep climbing up there to 'give it a haircut.' Try squatting down and removing branches from below until even sunlight shines down from above."

I don't know what others think, but I try to highlight the key points in every conversation. Hearing a pivotal moment, like gaining supernatural insight, is like a thief successfully stealing something they've been eyeing – I remain calm, but my heart races. However, if you don't highlight the key points, I gradually lose track of what you're saying.

When I was in high school, I used to love asking my Chinese teacher about the meanings of words in classical Chinese texts during breaks, even though I genuinely didn't know them, and the teacher wasn't handsome either. But after asking a few times, he said, "Don't you use your brain?" I was thunderstruck! This wasn't the engineer of the human soul I had imagined! My fragile heart shattered. From then on, I rarely asked others questions, relying on myself to make things up, and somehow managed to join the ranks of intellectuals. It wasn't until I started learning to grow flowers that I realized how right my Chinese teacher was. High school students shouldn't be at the age where they're being fed. Using their mouths is the last resort. For example, I was embarrassed to ask @喜子_NanJing recently why most of my bulbs died this year [haha][tears]. Actually, I already had an answer in my mind and wanted confirmation. @狗子猪, who has an amazing self-learning ability in the flower-growing world and graduated with a master's degree in two years, once revealed: You guys are just adding granules to peat, but he's adding peat to granules~

Therefore, it's best to knock on the door when you're at your wit's end.