What's the stupidest thing a non-gardener has said to you?

[newgardengirl]

The other week I took a spare tomato plant to someone's house. A few people on the bus were giving me funny looks, and the woman sitting next to me crossed herself!

Then someone asked me if it was cannabis, and about five people then turned round and glared at me!

*rolls eyes*

So just incase anyone was wondering:

1. The leaves are a different shape
2. If you smell a tomato plant, it smells of tomatoes
3. I'm not growing anything illegal, but even if I was, would I take it with me on public transport at 4pm on a Saturday afternoon?!

[zebedee]

Two ways I would possibly have dealt with such stupidity.
1) Said (having made my eyes go all dreamy "I sure hope so! I just spent £50 on it!" or'
2) Leapt out of my seat and screamed, hysterically, "Who put THAT there?"

[newgardengirl]

As it happens, it has since been pointed out to me that I missed out on a money making opportunity. I could've sold that tomato plant for a lot of money

[zebedee]

But only if you had done it in a furtive, sneaky little way, you minx you!

[yoanbob]

my mum thought the carrot i was growing in a small pot on the window when i was 9 was canibis, i didnt know what she was talking about!

[OverWyreGrower]

I think it's just general disbelief that you can *grow* fruit and vegetables in your garden, and don't have to buy them from the shops...

I've had people look at my vegetables and seedling and ask if I'm actually going to eat them...

I've started to say "no, I'm going to look at them and throw them away"...

Like you'd take one of those plants on the bus! If you had one, it'd be safe under it's heat lamps in a secret hydroponics lab in your attic/basement... whoops, giving the game away there!

[seasprout]

I once had a woman ask me what all those 'little white flies' were on her plant.

Answer Er.. White Fly.

She thought I was taking the P***.

[NOG]

I have this problem....I can't kill a good plant so every year I plant 20-30 tomatoes incase some fail then I have loads over. and theres the chille, cucumber and all the others so I take them to work and give them away.

Last year I sent out an email saying free plants: Tomato, Chille, Strawberry, ect.....

This bloke then trotts over and says I don't want any of the plants but I have a bag of strawberrys and a cuecumber??

[bubblewrap]

Cannabis make nice POT plants!

[Hazel at the Hill]

Partner-in-grime Jane's husband was astounded when I said I'd planted some garlic - 'gosh - do you grow them, then?'

I've no idea where he thought that they originated!

[rustylady]

My colleague at work (won't name her) has got the message that I'm a keen gardener. Now she keeps asking advice - trouble is she knows absolutely NOTHING. She went to a local shop or garden centre and bought a "daisy bush" to put in her garden - didn't even keep the label - and then asked me how she should look after it. Couldn't even describe the flowers except that they were like daisies. Suggested a few names, hoping she would remember but she couldn't. Short of going round to her house and having a look I can't help. Same colleague bought her daughter a sunflower growing kit. Sowed the seeds, popped them in the airing cupboard and threw away the instructions. Told me about them on Saturday and I suggested she have a look to see if they've germinated, and if so she needs to get them into the light and pot them on. Saw her at work today - Sunflowers have germinated (maybe quite some time ago, cos she's potted them up but is complaining that they look like mini triffids (very tall and spindly but with only a little hooky thing at the top!!!!!!!!) She's lovely, but I despair she will ever really get anything to grow.

[Flummery]

I think that olearia is called 'daisy bush' so you could at least google it and pretend to be dead wise!

[Snadger]

A lot of people think that growing Nicotiana..tobacco plant is ilegal.

Whereas I know that ilegal is a sick bird!

[muckdiva]

"Why do you need an allotment when you already have a garden?", of course it's a silly question......

[MrsC]

i did a gardening project with the children when my son was in pre-school, my aim, for them to plant fruit and veg and teach them the process etc etc, and for each of them to take home a little bit of what they had grown and try it! the big day arrived, children very excited and proud of their produce, only to hear one of the mum's say after picking up her child and listening to him tell her exactly what fruit and veg was in the bag and how he had grown it etc, ..... '......don't be don't silly garlic doesn't grow in the ground and what the hell do you expect me to do with that bag of veg you brought home?' it took all my strength not to say anything! she obviously still thinks potatoes grow in bags on the supermarket shelf!!!! i help to run a gardening club at the school where i work and the kids love it! they get really involved and i always send them home with plants to put in their own garden, they love telling me all about their plants on a daily basis! rant over lol