Mike,
I often wonder how people can be /not /interested in plants....
Structured programs like those you mentioned are a lot of work and I
find that often there are one or two very engaged persons behind such
offerings, who I very much respect (same as people volunteering for
organization of bulb and seed exchanges). Traditionally, flower shows
would be the way to attract people, but even the current situation
aside, there are not so many in Germany, and several societies in our
area have stopped organizing them as memberships declined. Things are
different for more specialized societies, especially international ones,
as the member density is low. I have read about botanical gardens
working with plant societies to educate people and attract members;
maybe if there are such courses in your area, it would be possible to
offer help, information or plant material?
I assume that most of us found the PBS either through personal contacts
or online? I first read about it in an older post in Matt Mattus' great
blog and I assume those of us who have a plant-themed website will
spread the word about PBS and the other societies we are in.
As our town has only a small park which is labeled "Botanical garden"
with little impact, and I am not maintaining a website, I try to
interest people around me in plants. I am teaching students of Biology,
and I assume they are more likely to be attracted to plants than many
other groups of people, but those really interested in specialist plants
at that current time in their lives are just a few. But in my experience
and judging from the story of my own interest in plants, many people who
later grow a lot of plants have started when they were quite young, and
took it up again when time and other resources allow it. I like to use
specialty plants as examples in my courses (mentioning several Specialty
Plant Groups, maybe someone remembers later on). At home, I encourage
and try to help other parents to grow at least something with their
children, and I find those "easy to flower at least once - bulbs"
(Paperwhites and other Narcissus, Hippeastrum, Tulips ...) perfect as
first plants (regardless of age, for that matter). Great gifts, too.
I believe "plant connections" to be quite personal: It matters who gave
you a bulb, a cutting, etc.; this is reflected to some extent in the
group's discussions ("I got it from ..."). When someone asks me about a
plant, I try to share it (great gift as well). I have a Dahlia tuber
ready to give to a five year old girl, because she commented on it last
year. I hope that growing more unusual geophytes will lead to more
people asking about them, or asking for a cutting/offset/seeds. I got
Hippeastrum bulbs from the EU bulb exchange, which opened their flowers
today (Sonatini Eyecatcher; thanks, Vlad!). If someone visits during the
next days, they definitely will ask.
Nils
Am 11.05.2021 um 20:48 schrieb Mike via pbs:
> Nils,
>
> I find your thoughts about the diversity of plants and attracting new
> people who have an interest into specialty plant groups etc. A great area
> of discussion.
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