Unsure if I’m being over sensitive

[BetterLatteThanMatcha]

Years ago I was diagnosed with OCD (and anxiety) I manage well, go to therapy regularly etc. I moved a few months ago and my granny bought me a plant - a string of hearts. I’m not green fingered at all, never had plants or even fresh flowers in my homes and I had to look in to caring for it. Water weekly and keep in a bright spot.

Easy right?

No! It’s driving me crazy! I spend sooo much time every week detangling the thing! My granny asks to see regular photos of it and I think she deliberately bought it to mess with me. She doesn’t believe in & I quote “in all those alphabet nonsenses” I want to give the plant away but she’ll be upset. I can’t just leave in the corner and water it once a week as I think it looks messy. My mum thinks I’m over analysing her simple ‘gift’. It’s just a plant but I don’t know.

Why are you detangling it? How is it getting tangled up in the first place?

I think, in the kindest possible way, you are overthinking it a bit. It's a plant, it's natural, it's not supposed to look neat and perfect.

From what I’ve seen online string of hearts are prone to tangling due to the way the grow and the structure of leaves, hooking onto other vines.

Yes I am aware I’m being stupid over a plant, my granny is very much into gardening and will know how these plants grow. She would have known that the tangling would bother me.

Where do you keep it? Surely it wouldn't get tangled if you have it hanging up so the stems dangle down.

OP I’ve had a string of hearts for 40 years. I took a cutting from a friend and it’s been going ever since. It’s thrived anywhere I’ve put it - sun, not sun, inside, outside in summer in northern England ( ie not warm). I’ve practically forgotten it at times, and don’t water it anywhere near once a week.

It’s very difficult to detangle the stems though, because the leaves hook onto each other. And actually you’ll make it look more, not less messy because if you detangle then the leaves drop off and you’ll have a lot of bare, mixed-up stems.

Let it grow as it wants to and now and again, if it’s getting too long or untidy just cut some length off the stems. It will get fuller and that will hide the tangles quite a bit.

If you really can’t bear it though, perhaps it’s time to make a stand with your granny?.Gifts are meant to be enjoyed by the recipient, not stress them out!

Can’t you just regularly take cuttings and disperse them to people so you have a smaller plant?

It lives on a high shelf and I use a little ladder to water so don’t ever move the pot. It has a mind of it’s own.

I didn’t realise until a month ago the detangling had become a weekly routine, a habit. A friend visited on watering day and asked me what I was doing to the plant!

I guess it’s a good test. I just need to refocus, it’s a plant - part of nature, wild, uncontrollable and quite pretty! I’m going to try to let it do it’s thing.

@Keepingongoing I did actually speak to my granny earlier and lied that I had given the plant away. She laughed and said she knew it would wind me up.

With that response you don’t need to feel overwhelmed about the plant anymore. You’ve given the plant too much emotional energy. Give yourself a break.