The lady with the Texan plant was probably thinking along the right lines!

A woman I used to work with used to say to me quite regularly:

"You know about plants, don't you? Well, I've got this house plant and I think it's dying"

me: "Well, I'm interested in botany but I'm not all that hot on horticulture. Anyway, what type of plant is it?"

woman: "It's green with big leaves."

me: "It could be anything - do you water it when you do your housework?"

woman: "Yes"

me: "How often do you do your housework?"

woman: "Once a week."

me: You're probably watering it too often. Let the compost dry out and then give it a soak."

She would then look at me as though I was mad and a couple of months later we would have exactly the same conversation all over again. There must have been an awful lot of soggy compost and dead plants in her dustbin!