You Grow Girl™

I subscribe to a Cactus and Succulents mail group. The list has only been active a few short months, and during that time there has been little activity. Today I contributed for the first time. Someone was asking for an identification of a specific plant. They had posted a photo to the group in hopes that someone on the list would know the botanical name. We do this on the forums all the time and it's no big deal. In fact I never feel uncomfortable posting in the YGG forums. But oh my god how I worried and fretted when I replied to the Cactus and Succulent group. I knew the name of the plant because I have one myself, yet I very reluctantly hit the reply button. That made me realise just how intimidating plant groups can be. There is this fear that you don't know enough and that you're not knowledgable enough to participate, or that if you make a mistake someone will snicker. It's especially easy to make these kinds of assumptions when you haven't met the people and the posting has been too infrequent to get a feel for the general vibe of the group. I'm not an insecure person, and I don't expect to know everything about everything, but for some reason the Cactus and Succulent group intimidates me. Probably because some of the list members work in the field professionally and I would guess that some have been growing cacti for as long as I've been alive. Hell, I still don't always know when it is appropriate to say cacti or cactus.

I think I need to get out and join a plant society. I'd like to start meeting with people in person. I'd like to start doing some real exchanges of plants, cuttings, seeds, and information. However I'm not sure if the local society is as laid back as I would like it to be. My other option is to join a community garden. That seems like the more appropriate answer for me as I tend to view community gardens as being more grassroots -- more my thing.

Well I have done one thing to get this idea started. We are going to have a YGG Plant and Seed Trade/Meet-up at this year's Seedy Saturday in T.O. If you're in T.O and would like to meet up let me know.