We didn’t plan any of this.
We had a city apartment, regular jobs, a regular life. Then COVID locked everything down and gave us too much time to think. What came out of that thinking was a decision most people would call reckless: sell the apartment, leave the city, buy a house that needs a full renovation, and figure it out.
The house was a wreck. Leaking roof, cracked walls, a yard that looked like nobody had touched it in years. But it had land, old fruit trees, and the kind of quiet that a city apartment never gives you.
We renovated everything. The garden taught us the rest.
We spent the first year fixing the house. New roof, new floors, new everything. But the garden wouldn’t wait for us to be ready. It grew around us while we were still carrying bricks.
Somewhere between pulling weeds and replanting the fruit trees, we realized we were learning faster than we expected. Christina started collecting plants she’d only ever dreamed about. Alex figured out how to grow tomatoes without killing them (on the third try).
Family Botanics is what happens when you write all of that down. Christina on the flowers, houseplants, shrubs, and trees. Alex on the edibles, the tools, and the occasional soil disaster.
We should probably mention: we’re not experts. We’re two people who started DIYing everything the day we moved in and haven’t stopped since. Some things we got right on the first try. Most things we didn’t. If we make a mistake in something we write, that’s not a bug. That’s the whole point. You learn, you fix it, you’re better the next time. That’s gardening. That’s life. That’s this blog.
“We plant what we want to eat, look at, or smell. Not what’s trending. We kill things regularly and write about it honestly.”
Alex & Christina
Meet the Team
Two gardeners, one shared notebook.
The Curator
Meet Christina
Co-Founder · Flowers, Houseplants, Shrubs & Trees
I’m the one who turns every empty corner of the yard into a project. A bare fence becomes a climbing rose. A dead patch becomes a flower bed. Since we moved, I’ve gone from “I like plants” to propagating, pruning shrubs, and trying to keep way too many things alive at once.
My philosophy: If it’s beautiful and hard to kill, it belongs in the garden.
Quick Facts
Toxic Trait: Starting a new garden bed before finishing the last one
Favorite Tool: A pair of pruning shears that have seen too much
Current Obsession: Shade-loving perennials that actually look good
The Grower
Meet Alex
Co-Founder · Edibles, Tools & How-To
I started with one basil plant in a city apartment and managed to kill even that. But once we moved and I had actual soil under my feet, something clicked. I picked up a string trimmer, pruned everything in sight, and haven’t stopped since.
My philosophy: Do it once, do it right. Measure twice, plant once, and if it dies, write down why.
Quick Facts
Toxic Trait: Saying “I’ll just trim this one branch” and pruning the entire tree
Favorite Sound: The first tomato coming off the vine
Nemesis: Slugs. Always slugs.
The yard that started it all
Peacocks, fruit trees, a cat who thinks she runs the place, and two small humans who mostly supervise.
Our Philosophy
We garden slowly. We plant what we want to eat, look at, or smell. Not what’s trending. We kill things regularly and write about it honestly. We don’t use anything on our plants we wouldn’t want our toddler pulling off a leaf.
We’re planning to homeschool our girls, so the garden doubles as a classroom. Counting seeds, watching things grow, learning that not everything survives. That’s the kind of gardening we write about.
Everything gets updated when we learn more. When we’re wrong, we fix it.
Come garden with us
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