Gardeners are crazy in the spring...In St. Paul Minnesota, there's a plant sale each spring, put on by "The Friends School", a Quaker school in St. Paul. About 90% of the students are non-Quaker. This plant sale is so huge, it's held at the State Fairgrounds...and even then, it's totally packed...hundreds of crazy gardeners show up with wagons, carts, and wacky contraptions to hold the plants they plan to purchase.
Luckily, the organizers have developed a very smart system of lining people up, using wrist bands, and moving huge crowds into the sale, but even with all that, I waited with my mother for 1 hour in line before even going inside. It was my Mom's idea to check out this sale...and I have heard about the long lines...but an hour waiting outside was too much for her. She has a bad knee, and metal plate inside her leg...in addition to being over 70. So, we just had to leave without even getting into the sale.
It is a very impressive event, and I'm sure a lovely school, but I don't think I'll go again. Shopping for plants should not be an experience like that. I have only waited that long for Prince tickets. There are many other nice little plant sales around town where you don't have to subject yourself to cattle herding. If you go next year, bring a folding chair, and a picnic lunch. Do not bring small children-- they would freak out waiting that long.
10 comments:
Looks like, from the photos, it was like two-thirds gray-haired-brigade, and one-third Gen X? I have a gray streak, but am solidly Gen X and am always scoping out young garden buddies.
Yeah, I don't think I would wait that long to get into a plant sale. At least you tried right!
It's for events like this that I am now a big eBay fan. But sometimes its fun to get out and be around other people equally obsessive about plants.
More than an hour to get into a plant sale. What were they selling rare orchids found nowhere else on earth. Goodnes.
It is an amazing sale, but like that nightclub in the Yogi Berra one-liner, no one goes there anymore because it's too crowded.
I find that going later in the day helps. But this year, I had to stay away. I can't be tempted like that.
Wanna peek inside? Check out the 3 minute video.
love the blog absolute genius! and good to see the hothouse flowers are still getting a mention.
slán
peter
About the screaming trees in your sidebar - it's not really on the same tack (I don't think) - but do you know 'The Iron Woman' by Ted Hughes?
Esther Montgomery
Thanks Neza, I guess I'll just wait then. I sure hope it chooses life over death as I want to try the fruit pretty bad!! They call it the fountain of youth for it's rehabilitational( I think I just made that word up, sounds good though! ) properties. Thanks again!! Have a great weekend!!
Sounds like a great idea but that would be a complete pain in the *** to have to wait and be amidst a gob of people for one zinnia.
Loved the Prince comment!
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