Last updated: October 23, 2026
We use AI tools to help make this site, and we think you should know exactly how. This page explains our process, in plain language.
How our content is made
Topics are chosen for reader value: a room people struggle with, a plant people keep killing, a question readers actually ask. Research for every guide starts from sources we trust — university extension services, the ASPCA plant database, and reputable horticultural references. Only after that research exists do we start writing.
Each published post carries a Sources list at the end, so you can check the same material we used.
How we use AI
AI tools assist with research summaries, outlines, and first drafts. That is all they do. AI output is never published as-is: it is a starting draft that a human then checks, corrects, and rewrites where needed.
Using AI this way lets a small team cover more topics. It does not lower the bar for accuracy — the fact-checking step below is what decides whether something is published.
Human fact-checking
Before a guide goes live, a human checks it against the original sources:
- Every care claim — light, water, soil, humidity — is compared with extension or horticultural references.
- Every measurement and quantity is verified, not copied from the draft on trust.
- Every pet-safety statement is checked against the ASPCA Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants list, by the plant’s botanical name, because common names can refer to more than one plant.
If a claim cannot be verified, it comes out of the guide.
What we never do
- No invented personal experience or “we tested this in our home” claims we did not do
- No fake author personas, credentials, or biographies
- No fabricated statistics, studies, or survey results
- No fake reviews or testimonials
Images
The plant photos on this site are real plant photos. Where an image is illustrative rather than a specific plant in a specific home, we do not claim otherwise.
Corrections
Mistakes happen. When we find one — or a reader reports one through the Contact page — we fix the error in the post itself, so the guide you read today is the corrected version. If you spot something that looks wrong, please tell us. Corrections make the site better for everyone.