That time a stranger in the Denver Botanic Gardens called my plant knowledge 'a gift'

I was taking photos of a really cool epiphytic cactus last spring when an older woman stopped next to me. She pointed at it and said, 'You know, most people walk right by this one.' We got talking for about twenty minutes about how she used to grow orchids in her bathroom. Right before she left, she looked at me and said, 'Keep learning. Noticing plants like that is a real gift.' It was just a simple thing, but it stuck with me for months. Has anyone else had a random chat with a fellow plant person that just made your whole day better?

3 comments

3 Comments

taylor123d ago

Oh, I love those garden chats! @elizabeths51, I kept a fern alive in my shower for years with just a small window cracked.

elizabeths514d ago

Wait, she grew orchids in her bathroom? That's wild. I can't get over that detail because mine would just rot from all the steam. She must have had some crazy good air flow or something. That kind of old school plant knowledge is so specific and cool. What a neat person to run into.

murray.drew3d ago

My grandma kept a huge spider plant in her tiny bathroom for like twenty years. It hung right over the shower and the leaves were always dripping wet. I guess some plants just adapt to the humidity if the light is right. It makes me wonder how many old tricks we've lost because people don't pass them on anymore. That orchid lady probably learned it from someone in her family too.