Houseplant update

The monstera I bought in May is loving its life (left). The begonia (middle) and the hibiscus are surviving. The hibiscus has aphids occasionally. I sprayed them off with water in the shower the first time, but a few come out of hiding every once in a while. Soon I will trim a few branches back so it can have some time to recover before it goes outside in May. 

This jar of basil in water has survived since I cut a few stems to use for cooking in the fall. The roots are looking good, so I took one healthier stem and put it in a separate pot, cutting back the flower. It's struggling, too, but I'm hoping the roots take and I can plant it outside in May. I'll still grow basil from seed, but maybe this will become an earlier basil harvest. Maybe. I find I have lots of hope in March, even as everything struggles as winter drags on (including my gardening self). The tiny little petunia seedlings I found in the fall are growing into plants, and the strawberry mint has an incredible root system, filling the tiny pot. I don't want to move it to a bigger pot until it's closer to the last frost. 

The basil is still flowering. I never suspected that the basil would survive this long indoors.

I cut some leaves from the begonia and put them in water. The leaves are showing some stress, so I'm not sure those cuttings will root. Then I took stem cuttings and placed them directly in soil. I'm more hopeful with this technique. Hope seems to be the theme of this post--hope that small, positive acts will make a difference.