No you're not I have a brother that absolutely loves plants and on this site alone you will find as many men as women into plants..mr subjunctive, very very knowledgable greattigerdane,you should see his slide show,,absolutely beautiful and hopefulauthor are a few that come to mind right off the top of my head..so how serious of a plant nut are you..I was ask by my ex please don't bring another plant in this house, but he did't understand I had to have them..they make me happy..the only thing in my life that has loved me unconditionally besides my dogs..welcome to the site

Hello Plantmasterm,

Ok. THat makes me feel better. I wouldn't say, that I was a "plant nut", although I did blow the budget last month with plants. I think they are cool and make a home look nice, but I really only like hanging type plants: philos, spiders, jews. Crotons are ok, too. You, however, sound like my ex. She HAS to have them and never has enough, so I buy her one here and there to her new husband's dismay.
My only other "big hobby" is learning German, which by the way, my screenname is German for "the wandering Jew". Thanks for the info.

hate to tell you der ewige jude but if you've blown one budget thats just the beginning..there will be more budgets broken..this is how it starts just ask any of the plantaholics at this site..what zone are you in

I don't think there's a big gender difference in the really hardcore people, the ones who collect hundreds of plants, though the casual houseplant owners do seem to skew female. Just judging by the customers I help, and how many plants they get, that is. Women are also way more likely to call the store and ask about what they're doing wrong, if they have a plant that's not doing well.

People who are looking for a houseplant to decorate a room are usually female, I think because decorating is coded as feminine in U.S. culture (wrongly, IMO), and is therefore the exclusive province of women and gay men. People who are looking for gifts tend to be men, probably for the same reason (I want to get a gift for a woman, women like decorating, plants are decorations, therefore.).

If you talk about plants as science, or as some kind of specialized technical knowledge, then men see no problem buying houseplants. And either gender, apparently, is permitted to collect plants and become big plant geeks.

Obviously all of this is a bunch of sweeping generalizations, but that's how it tends to work out.

Yes, this is a topic I've already given some thought to; why do you ask?

Also FWIW, hopefulauthor is a woman, albeit one with a sort of androgynous name.

I've been into plants since I was 18. My first job was in a Garden Center and I caught the bug. I'm 53 now.

Yep, I'm definatly a woman as is Greaterdane/Billy Rae. There's also a Randi and Stevi here on Gw who are females..Screen names can be misleading. I've thinking of changing mine, but don't know how it's done.
About men growing plants..Actually there are quite a few. The Citrus and Palm Forums are mainly men, so Jude, men who grow house plants is nothing novel. It's a hobby shared by both sexes.
Jerry Baker, (male) author and tv host, wrote a house plant book in the 80's. He dedicated one chapter to plants bought by men and women..In his opinion, (wish I still had the book) women are more likely to buy flowering plants, whereas men prefer cactus and succulents. I don't know if a study has been done, but IMO, millions of men and women enjoy similar plants.
Baker stated African Violets and orchids are feminine. LOL. I've talked to men who grow both, on the net and personally. On the other hand he says, cactus, particularly phallus-like and sucs are a 'man's' plant..lol. It's a matter of taste. How many flowering hybrids were produced by women? Not many. At least I don't think there were/are. Though more women are getting into it these days.
Enjoy your hobby, Jude. It doesn't matter what sex you are.
The world has changed. I remember a time when men went target shooting, now you see a good number of women walking in the shooting ranges carrying guns.
There are numerous men interested in outdoor gardening. When I worked at Home Depot, I dwelt with as many if not more male customers than women. So, don't worry if that's the case, and enjoy..Toni

my apoloy to hopefulauthor

I'm also a house-plant enthusiast.

But I can relate to what mr subjunctive says: "People who are looking for a houseplant to decorate a room are usually female, I think because decorating is coded as feminine in U.S. culture" But there's irony in the situation in our household.

I'm the one in our marriage who likes variety in house plants and learns the management details of soil, light, watering, and fertilization. My wife, a professional sculptor, has strong opinions on plant placement - but they're opinions based exclusively on aesthetics & visuals. She's the home decorator, but her plant-placement notions have virtually nothing to do with the light requirements of specific species. And therefore, because she often has put them in too shady a spot, a number of our house plants have languished and died, in turn causing her to be frustrated with house plants - and with me for buying them from time to time. [Groan...!]

Pretty funny. !-)

If she'd learned the basics of all this, I might not have taken the lead with house-plant purchase and nurture. Though I'd still enjoy looking at them and having them around.

Joel

I've been collecting and growing plants since I was 6 and got my first cactus. I worked in at lawn and garden center as well as a pet and garden center, and am 34 now. The "gotta have it" bug for plants is still as strong in me as when I was a child. But, I am a gay male, so fit the stereotype of the "younger" male plant enthusiast...

I just turned 24. Male.

.....Any females my age near me? 8-)

.....

I have noticed that women seem to be taken to plants more than guys, but not for the plant in and of itself. joel BC has it nailed down.

I like growing exotic tropicals out of zone because I like the plants, not because it looks good on a certain coffee table. In fact, it probably doesn't....lol.

Hi, I'm a 26 year old male, and I have a house plant problem. At least, that's what they tell me. It didn't start off so bad. My girlfriend and I had a couple house plants in the old apartment, then we bought a house, and suddenly our house plant population started multiplying at an alarming rate. We'd be out at a hardware store (Kent's, the Canadian equivalent to Lowe's) looking for housewares, and we'd pop into the garden center "just for a look". Our front sun porch started filling up, but that was just the beginning! It wasn't too bad until last winter. In the dead of the Canadian winter, I think I turned to houseplants to stay sane. We discovered that the local Co-op grocery store sold small cuttings of plants (leftovers from gift baskets, I believe) for only a few dollars each. Each week, we seemed to bring home a couple of plants. We had to rearrange furniture, and bring in more shelves, in order to fit everything.

I've been a house plant collector for about a year now, and I'd say I know a quite a lot about the common ones, and a few odd ones. Discovering Mr Subjunctive's site definitely helped to resolve several of the plant problems we had, and to learn about interesting plants to track down. A major turning point in the health of our plants was when I learned not to use "just any soil"! ;)

To get on topic, though, I'm definitely the obsessive one in the house, but my girlfriend likes having plants around, too. I think the stereotype does seem to apply: she likes them as decorations, and prefers the flowering ones. I'm interested in learning about the plants, particularly "different" ones: their names, history, care, propagation, optimal growing conditions, etc. I do the potting, care, and maintenance; she enjoys having pretty/interesting plants around.

der_ewige_jude, if you like hanging plants, I'd suggest you check out hoyas. They're definitely my favorite! They have very attractive leaves (often thick and waxy, with highly varaible shapes and patterns), and under the rights conditions and after enough time, they'll have incredibly unique flowers. Of course, if you're already blowing your budget, stay away from hoyas - they're highly additive and can be expensive at the big stores. They're very easy to grow from cuttings though, so try to find people that will give you a piece.

Thank you all for your support and advice. Yes, I'm sure, I will blow more budgets on plants in the future. Why I asked the question in the first place, I'm not sure. Perhaps, I fell for the stereotype. I assumed, that most single, straight guys wouldn't partake in the hobby, but in the end, it's all my ex wife's fault. She started it. Thank you all, again!

Randy

The issue with flowering plants being feminine is kind of interesting to me: I'm slowly, I think, getting over my aversion to flowers (Murraya paniculata and Anthurium andreanum are, I suspect, mostly responsible for that), but I still have a kind of irrational dislike of anything that's too ruffly and pastel and girly-looking, e.g. Saintpaulia spp. Makes me wonder if I don't like them just because I don't want to be regarded as any girlier than I already am.

I did, for what it's worth, try a Saintpaulia, and once it decided it liked me well enough to stay alive, I decided I liked it well enough to keep it going. Then I wound up getting another one (though the second one has cool foliage: it's a 'Lillian Jarrett' type). But I don't see myself becoming a Saintpaulia obsessive anytime soon.

Personally, I don't care what others think. If it brings me peace of mind to be so absorbed in this hobby, a way to escape my stress and worries, even if I should go bust, so be it. The more I surround myself with plants, indoors or out, whether flowering or not,I consider it a cheaper way to be in the Carribeans...:-). I especially like the smell of Citrus.. Those that know me well know what I am all about..
Enjoy your hobby, men and women alike. We all have diffrerent reasons why we like them, but in the end, they keep our minds off our problems, and make us feel like we occomplished something great, when they survive at the mercy of our own hands!! Overcoming the challenge of keeping them healthy can make us men, feel like men...Which one of us has the greenest and healthiest lawn in our neighborhood can do same..lol
What a great post!!! I actually use to hide the fact that I liked plants too, especially from my macho friends!.. I have actually wanted to ask the same question, since most of my male fiends are only into sports, and I into both. The funny thing is, they like to come to my home and watch the sports channel, surrounded by my plants..lol. That is there favorite room in my house, especially in the winter! Heck, they even put in orders for the next crop of fresh oranges I grow, before they are even born!!
I to, fell right into the american culture stereotype thing,that men are femine and plants are only for the ladies. but, no more..:-) Some of my male friends own their own greenhouses and nurseries..I envy them...
The most important thing is not whether we are feminie or not for liking plants, but the joys we receive from , and the peace we feel from, this challenging and fullfilling hobbie:-).
My mother once said.."A man who understands and likes plants is more likely to to understand a another persons needs..." Not sure of that, but hey, my mother is usally right in most things!

Meyermike I think your mother is right again.I had never thought about it.After reading your last sentence that sounds like my husband he is a lawn, outdoor plant, and flower person I am the indoor plant person.He is very perceptive of the needs of others.

I became interested in plants when I was setting up a planted aquarium habitat for some fire belly newts. One book had a list of suitable plants for the terrarium or vivarium. Next I discovered the website Blackjungle.com and my interest in plants really took off. I began researching and collecting interesting houseplants to make my own interior living space more green, natural and healthy. There is nothing feminine or decorative about that!

I am a man (despite the screen name), and heterosexual. And I love plants. Always did: my mother started me on those, and I have been growing since I was 18 and at university. I had breaks (due to moving around EU for work), killed many plants, and learned a lot in the process. When the web came, I met Mr. Subjunctive, who's become my guru; and all of the posters on this forum. (It is important to know one's not alone in fighting spider mites.) Now I am more or less settled and there's no stopping me... ;-) What I do not spend on plants, I spend on books about them, or about the people who first collected them, and so on...

Some men (especially in Southern Europe, where I originally come from) think growing/gardening a bit feminine. Evidently though they haven't ever come home exhausted, discouraged and tense from work, and set their minds at peace repotting, or misting, or admiring the leaves or flowers of a plant one had given up on and which has revived.

It takes me just half an hour, and I am a new man, ready for a conversation, a glass of wine, music... My wife knows this and she leaves me pottering about. (Or with Japanese tact she gets me going with a "what's up with the Alocasia?" is she sees it is one of those days.)

No yoga/zazen/vipassana for me, gimme an ailing plant anytime... LOL

I know many gay men who would be unable to grow a Fenestraria in the Kalahari or a Ctenanthe in the state of Amazonas, or a Caladium in Florida- you get the picture. Women who are serial plant killers.

So in my opinion (a very personal one, of course) there is no correlation between sex/sexual preferences and growing- what about Christo Lloyd, Alan Titmarsh, and the myriads British gardening freaks (all right it is not really houseplants...). However, to follow up on Mr. Subjunctive's post, I must say I always found flower plants a bit disappointing and vulgar- too short their beauty, and too showy at that. I seem to be inclining more towards flowers as I age though- bought my first Saintpaulia one year ago, and I this morning I was happy to see some blooms on my Aeschynantus... so there's hope for me, I guess. Or getting over 40 makes all the difference, who knows...

Is meditation on natural shapes, engaging with the evolution of living organisms, getting in touch with the natural rhythm of the seasons in any way feminine or masculine? That is, IMHO, *not* the problem...

One and a half things:

1/2) A guru? Really? Not sure I'm comfortable with that. . . .

1) I probably should have found some way to say, earlier, that it's not like there's anything bad about being feminine, and my gender-related aversion to flowering plants isn't something I'm necessarily proud of. You don't do yourself any favors by suppressing feelings or interests just because you think someone else, somewhere, will think you're a sissy, and that applies to men as well as women. (What's always puzzled me, from a gay man's perspective, is why straight guys on the one hand seem so fond of women, and talk about how awesome they are, and how they couldn't live without them, but then make up a bunch of names for one another that have to do with calling each other female. If women are so great, then why is "girly-man" a bad thing to call a guy? And let's not even get into the more off-color insults.)

Mr S,

1) You'd be surprised how much of my plant buying has been influenced by one or the other of your encyclopedic posts. Besides, instead of trudging through the literature- often so badly written it makes me puke- to learn about a plant, I usually check whether you have written about it and learn from your entertaining posts. That is the "guru" part.

2) Of course there is nothing bad about being feminine- re-reading my own post I realize that also my choice of expression was not the most felicitous one. We agree on the fact that basing one's choices, small or big, on the opinion of others is neither intelligent nor conducive to happiness.

That said however, and going back to flowering, it has always seemed a bit funny to me that the large amount of effort people put in having flower plants flower, is made vain by the fact that said flowers do live for only a relatively short time. (Or maybe that is part of the fascination: very Japanese, hanami point of view.)

Only now that I am older and wiser (more the former than the latter I fear) am I able to appreciate more the flower plant philosophy. However much I am impressed by an Amaryllis though, the patterning of the foliage of a Calathea or a Caladium has always appealed and continues to appeal more to me- a sort of ton-sur-ton subdued elegance in place of look-at-me assertiveness.

No offense for the flower plant lovers though- there is hope for me... ;-) I went from "all green, architectural shape only" (say Pandanus) interest to "texture" (say Calathea Rufibarba) to "colour" (Caladium) foliage plant, so there seems to be a movement there from colour blindness to some degree of colour awareness... I'm reading the holy Christo Lloyd on color and on exotic gardening these days, and the photos are breathtaking- yes, in a splendid midsummer day with crisp English air, even I can appreciate color splashes!

Oh, we are all are just a bunch of horto-sexuals.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

That was a good one rhizo_1!!!!

hahahahahahhahahahahahah.......That's the best I ahve heard!!! Rhizo!I needed a good laugh today!!

I am a 50 year old man and have always been a plant nut. Inside and out. It's a great hobby and really relaxing. I am a total "horto-sexual"! LOL!

Only with female plants of coarse!

Good one, Rhizo! :D

Mr. subjunctive said, "Women are also way more likely to call the store and ask about what they're doing wrong, if they have a plant that's not doing well."
I'd imagine that has more to do with the level of willingness to ask for help than it has with basic growing ability. Men are known for being more reluctant to ask for directions than are women; asking for instructions is probably much the same thing. (My Dh and I take the opposite path from the usual gender role when it comes to asking for directions, though. He's the more sensible one, and I'm the one with the stubborn pride...have to figure it out myself.)

My dad was an outdoorsman-- his job was manager of a National Wildlife Refuge. He went boating and fishing, rode a motorcycle, did much of the mechanical work on our vehicles, built our family a lakeside cabin, all sorts of "typically masculine" stuff. He was also a houseplant addict, and his favorites were the softest, fuzziest of them all- Gesneriads.
It's funny-- because I grew up with those gorgeous blooming plants around me all the time, I pretty well took them for granted. Although I've had many, many houseplants of my own since I was a pre-schooler, I didn't really appreciate how beautiful Gesneriads were until long after Dad was gone (and Mom had killed off his plant collection.) Now I grow a number of them myself, though I think I'm still a bit more drawn to those (like Episcias) with jaw-dropping foliage than I am to those with gorgeous flowers (though I like them, too!)
In the orchid clubs I've visited, there've been more men than women, especially among the serious growers. It may well be that a higher percentage of male than female houseplant-growers excel at what they do. If so, I'd say that it's because among guys, many would-be casual growers are scared off by social pressure, and those who stick with it are, for the most part, more serious (though I'm sure a few are just real OK with themselves). That fits with what Mr. Sub. observed about casual growers skewing female.

I think Mike said it best..It doesn't matter if someone is gay, straight, or just landed from another planet..growing plants is a relaxing hobby.
What sux is, any man who enjoys plants, whether straight or gay, should NOT have to worry what people think when shopping for something they love. Toni

I agree with hopefulauthor. Men should not have to worry about what people think about them growing houseplants.

It is funny that there are so many different stereotypes out there. I never considered growing houseplants as a "feminine" hobby. I know with me I prefer growing foliage plants and I grow them because I enjoy them not for decoration purposes. I place all of my plants in spots where I know they will grow well, which is not always where they would look the best. If an interior decorator were to see how I have some of my plants arranged he/she would have a heart attack ; ) So I guess I break the stereotypes of women growing houseplants for decoration and preferring flowering plants

Growing up, nothing was more boring than listening to my mother talk endlessly about her Ming Aralia.

But then my wife and I bought a house with a garden (which I had told her I didn't want). And I loved gardening. And then the plants started coming into the house...I don't see anything effeminate about taking care of living things, whether it's houseplants, pets, or children.

Although I am worried my kids will be bored when I talk about the houseplants... :-)

By the way, der_ewige_jude--I don't think "Der ewige Jude" is a nice thing to say in German (it literally means "the eternal Jew"). It's the title of a rather infamous Nazi propaganda film. I appreciate your botanical pun but there might be others who look askance at it. Just wanted you to know.

The plant we call "Wandering Jew" is called either Dreimaster ("three sails") or Gottesaugen ("God's eye") in German (because of the shape of the flowers, which we rarely see when we grow it indoors).

OT, but I have to say I agree w/ the very last post above abt the German Jewish handle. I might not have said so, but since someone brought it up, I have to agree.

I am a Jew of Eastern European descent & tho' my last name is German, my ancestors were not German, but all of Ashkenazic descent. Right or wrong, the mere mention of 'Jude' creeps me out w/ Nazi overtones & the handle just makes me think what bad judgment. I am the most secular of Jews, esp. since I was raised in a Roman Catholic country, but it just makes me feel really creeped out even tho' you may have had the most innocent of motives.

To the topic at hand, I remind folks of Jeff Harris who posted regularly at C&S & sometimes here, 'til a couple of yrs. ago when he moved from San Diego & undid his beloved C&S Garden (& sold or gave away). For those to whom this might ring a bell, he shared his property w/ TGWOJWKL, aka "The Great Wall of Jade Where Kitties Lurk". Remember him? Tall & lanky w/ strawberry blond hair & one of the furriest cats in creation who I nicknamed "Yak Cat". His Great Wall of Jades was usually a foot taller than he was (6 ft.) until he did its annual trimming w/ a machete No less.

He was a superb C&S man, locally known as Aloe Boy who was also the fellow who ran the Great Succulent Giveaway every year when he'd usually give away abt 75 boxes of C&S cuttings he'd trimmed for just the price of postage. He specialized in his beloved Aloes, w/ Crassulas a close 2nd & w/ the great micro climate of San Diego he was able to bloom many things: from his beleoved Great Wall of Jade (truly a site to behold as many of you may recall) to Aloes, Crassulas, many diff. Echeverias & Dudleyas, unusual Sansevierias, Kalanchoes, Graptopetalums, Pachyphytums, all kinds of stuff! One of the most masculine men I've ever known -- I still miss him & his extraordinary garden, much of which he shared w/ me; I still have Sans., Kalanchoes & Haworthias, Pachys & Graptos he shared w/ me & of course, some Aloes!

Funny you should mention it, but I get weird looks when I say the English name, "Wandering Jew." People are hyper-sensitive these days and assume the mere mention of the word "Jew" must be in negative context. Just as aside...

Anyhow, I'm another man in the hobby, and I'd say I inherited my botanical interest direct from my family -- my grandfather, Ted Green, is deeply involved in hoya and orchid cloning, and my own father has been a gardener all of his life. I've naturally picked up the greenthumb with so much enthusiasm and advice around me.

A childhood of jumping stumps in the redwoods of Humboldt county, indocrination with the concept of Eden, along with a fantastical notion of wood and stream spirits, led me to a particular kind of communion with the wilds - the unwalled, open nave of the Green Chapel (thanks, sir Gawain ;) ).

Josh

It's not the mention of the word "Jew," it's the mention of the legendary figure of the Wandering Jew, who mocked Jesus en route to the crucifixion and was then cursed to wander the earth until the Second Coming. It's, you know, a little anti-Semitic (the story), 'cause it only makes sense if you assume that the Christians are the ones who are right. There's a whole history there.

'It's not the mention of the word "Jew,"'

In my case, it is. Most folks don't know the story of the Wandering Jew, but their ears do prick up at the sound of the word "Jew." Some are expecting to be offended; others are expecting to hear a joke.

Thanks.

Josh

Cool thread!

In the 70's or 80's, when my boss started his interior landscaping company, he called it "The Wandering Jew". I laugh every time I think about it. Now it has a more politically correct name.

I've never been a fan of gender stereotypes. I was a (female) only child, raised to be smart and assertive, which did not make me a very popular teenager but otherwise has served me very, very well.

My husband is warm and nurturing, a very involved parent, and lousy with mechanical things. He likes to grow trees and azaleas and lawns. I prefer flowers and indoor plants. So it's worked out to be a good division of labor.

My grandfather tended an amazing rose garden. My grandmother on the other side of the family had a huge collection of houseplants on her sunporch. My mom likes houseplants but is limited in what she can grow because her home is quite shady. But my daughter could kill a plastic plant from neglect!

When I was a teenager in the 70's, I collected african violets, I probably had around 100 when I went away to college. I must have overdosed on them, because I really don't like them now. But I do like the challenge of making indoor plants bloom. Currently into orchids. Also into any foliage that is something other than solid green.

In my limited experience, men seem to prefer bonsai, cacti, and orchids, all of which are rather stark and architectural looking. Women seem to prefer flowers. But I'm all in favor of anybody growing whatever they like, and whatever does well in their environment, regardless of gender stereotypes.

The world would be a much saner place if we were all gardeners.

I'm a guy! I got into plants when I got my own dorm in college last year and it was really depressing looking without any plants. Now I keep a bunch in my dorm, because they get humid, which the plants like, and it makes it look less like a large, emtpy, and completely white storage closet. This is actually less a matter of decorating and more a matter of me being really, really lonely.

I also tend to like foliage plants more but I think that's more for practical reasons. A lot of flowering plants you can get around where I live don't flower constantly, except for like, anthuriums and bromeliads (which don't really count in this sense). So if the plant has awesome flowers, but really boring foliage, you don't really have much to go with for most of the year.

Very interesting thread! My dad was a dedicated gardener, especially roses. My mother was also more interested in gardening than your average 'sane' person, so I was lucky to be 'warped' from a very early age. I've belonged to a number of local and much larger gardening organizations, and men play a large part in most of them. We have men in our garden club, tho not as many right now and I think they have to be kinda brave, and also able to skip work for a day-time meeting. Some of the best growers in African Violet clubs are men--some have wives who are also growers, and some have wives who come along to keep them company but aren't as involved. Same for most the other organizations dedicated to plants I've been in or know about. Lots of very enthusiastic men, and often among the better growers, or hybridizers, or---- And has been said, we're all better for the contact with what my daughter referred to as her 'green friends'.

My Dad was the gardener in my family when I was growing up. I, his only daughter, took after him. Later on, as my career developed and I was teaching various horticulture classes, men and women were about evenly divided. In any community I've lived in, there have been extremely active men's garden clubs, too. I always enjoyed being asked to speak to those groups. Not for the obvious reasons (heh heh) but because they really had a different mind set about the subject matter.

Dorie (aka Rhizo)

I am a man, a scientist, and a plant-hoarder- orchids, roses, cacti, clematis, and a koi pond keep me busy. It is funny, though reading the posts, since the stereotype is there and there is some truth to it. In any case, I have a gay friend who likes cars, so since I am straight and garden, the rules don't always apply. Funny story, I was at Home Depot looking at new arrivals, and my overly macho straight friend was there buying begonias, we were both to embarrassed (high school at the time) to ask what the other was doing there....Now we exchange garden ideas and complain about beatles where my other friends complain about the Cubs. I look at growing plants a science experiment, a little Calcium/magnessium for yellowing leaves, a little aluminum sulfate for teh hydrangeas, etc. In fact, my dream is to work in medicinal chemistry/pharmacognosy to analyze new drugs from plants and marine sources.

But my girlfriend and parents have forbidden me to get any more plants. My dad says his house looks like a funeral home (my apartment doesn't get good light) and my girlfriend won't let me bring plants to her apartment anymore. I have tried sneaking perennials into the garden and planting them when my parents are away or in the middle of the night, and I usually wake the neighbor's dog and get caught. So far we have a dozen clematis, five hardy cacti, 40+ orchids, countless perennials, and 4 types of water lilly. The 40+ goldfish and koi, a marine aquarium and a upcoming Japanesse garden, all warrant botanical status for the house. Also, the peaches and limes are ripenning and I am trying to build a greenhouse, if my parents and girlfriend will let me.

Also, one interesting side note, after the wanderring Jew discussion: clivia miniata's common name Kaffir lilly is a derogatory term for black South Africans in Dutch/South African dialect. I learned that recently.

Yeah, that 'K-word' bothers me since I learned that too. It is, I've been told, even more virulent than the 'n-word', which now I think is used mostly among young black males for each other--but they've told me 'you can't say that!' But then sometimes they call me one and I take it as a compliment.

I've never heard that about kaffir. I thought it only refered to the type of lime that's common in Thai food.

Anyway, gender stereotype or possible observation: Like how some people are saying men tend to prefer architectural (?) plants and men tend to prefer flowering plants, I'm SORT OF getting the impression that women tend to keep their plants smaller and men don't really see a problem having a twenty-foot tall cactus in their living room.

Not implying a genetic link to ones preferences, of course. This is more of a "What gender stereotypes do we subconciously buy into because they've been programmed into us?" sort of thing.

If I were feeling really naughty, I just might make an observation that perhaps men like big plants so that they can to play "mine is bigger than yours"?! But that would be off-color, so I won't! ;)

I've been obsessed with plants to varying degrees since early high school (I confess, by that time I'd already been obsessed with all manner of animals for at least a decade by then; does that make me a late bloomer?). Hadn't really pondered the stereotypical aspects, but hmmm... I've always favored the unusual, both in plants and techniques. So I prefer Aristolochia over morning glories, variegated leaves over green, C. orchidastreum over spider plants, hydroton over dirt, etc. I favor foliage plants because they're easier indoors, and flowers that are intricate or bizarre. How gender-related this is, I don't know. Interesting!

I have wanted to respond to this thread for quite awhile but have not had the time. I am also a guy who is very interested in plants. I am also a man who is interested in flowering plants. Because I have a soft almost feminine voice and enjoy growing African violets and their cousins I have more than once had someone conclude that I must therefore be gay. I assure you that this is not the case. I do however have a very good guy a friend who unfortunately passed away from AIDS. He also had a similar love of plants and this was partially the basis for our friendship. We traded leaves and cuttings to increase our collections.

Larry

not a rarity at all.. I'm a complete nut!

I thought of this story when I shared this in the Orchid forum.. I am of Greek background and remarked that Orchids are derrived from the Greek word for testicles, since the psuedobulbs resemble them and they were used medically for sexual ailments.

Anyway, a few years ago, my grandmother used to laugh whenever they wanted to know where I was. Since "out in the backyard, playing with his orchids" was the usual answer, my grandma told me..."you better get a girlfriend, or you'll go blind"

It took me years to finally figure out what she was saying. Anyway, for some reason I thought ofthis thread, so enjoy.

Hi Bradarmi,

Great story!

Larry

Hey Brad,

That IS a funny story!! So is THAT why there are so many men in orchid collecting? They just can't keep their hands off their orchids huh -- hahahaha!

LOL pirate girl

Pirate girl.

It's not there orchids they can't keep their hands off. ha ha ha ha ha of!!!

Tsk, tsk, tsk (ha ha ha ha)!

The zebrina was looking nice today...

{{gwi:90009}}

Josh