A new lease on life

[dedicatedenglish]

I wonder if you think this sentence is a natural/appropriate use of the phrase "a new lease on life" in US English.

After months of neglect, my plants are now on a regular watering schedule, getting a new lease on life.

 

[Tarheel]

It's OK. However, if they are indoor plants and you didn't water them for months how are they still alive?

 

[emsr2d2]

You can neglect houseplants without completely failing to water them. My houseplants are a case in point - about every three weeks, I realise they're all looking sad and droopy and pale, so I frantically water all of them. They come back to life and then I ignore them for another three weeks or so. I'm pretty sure that if I managed to stick to a regular (weekly, maybe) watering schedule, my plants would have a new lease of life too!

 

[Tarheel]

Yes, but there's a difference between weeks and months, isn't there?

 

[emsr2d2]

Yes, but there's a difference between weeks and months, isn't there?

Yes and no. I've been neglecting my plants in that way (only watering them when they're almost dead) for about four years!

 

[dedicatedenglish]

Thank you, all. Certain species of succulent can be extremely drought tolerant.

 

[emsr2d2]

Thank you, all. Certain species of succulent can be extremely drought tolerant.

They can indeed. One of my houseplants is a succulent so it survives my general neglect. The rest aren't so lucky!

 

[tedmc]

Apparently, "a new lease of life" is used more often.

Google Books Ngram Viewer

Google Ngrams: new lease on life, new lease of life, 1800-2022

books.google.com

 

[Tarheel]

I never heard of that one before.

 

[tedmc]

I never heard of that one before.

It's probably another AmE-BrE difference.

 

[emsr2d2]

I used "a new lease of life" at the end of post #3. I was waiting to see if anyone would pick up on it!