Looking for simplicity

[Robert]

30-40 years ago there were many small specialty nurseries in the U.S.A. Most of these small specialty nurseries were “a labor of love” or a retirement hobby as there was little or no profit in the business. The owners just enjoyed growing different, hard-to-find plants or they were breeders offering their innovative creations. Over time a few new nurseries have appeared, however many more have disappeared.

Today, if someone wanted to source seeds or bulbs of species and miniature Narcissus or Galanthus species in the U.S.A. where could they find such plants or seeds? A search-engine brings up the usual large commercial businesses with the same offerings. How does one go about finding small specialty nurseries without having to join something, get involved in some questionable deal of any sort, and avoid importing, permitting, and the other nuisances?

[MarcR]

Robert,

Your best approach would be the resources tabs on the websites of various horticultural societies.

NARGS, PBS, and HPSMAG might be good places to start if you don't want to import.  You might also rely on seed exchanges if you are willing to join the clubs offering them.

[Robert]

Hi Marc,

Thank you for the suggestions. I have been working on this issue for at least 10 years now with some, but limited, success. My old methods do not work now as all my friendly contacts have died and are in another realm. This was all pre social media, pre internet, pre computers. It was amazing how it all worked spontaneously. I have tried most of your suggestions with minimal success, however you got me thinking that maybe there is a way to take aspects of your suggestions and combine them in some new way with what worked and was mutually rewarding in the past. Your suggestions are a catalyst for something good. So, thank you again. I will keep working on this issue, now in refreshing creative new ways.

[Diane Whitehead]

Flower shows can be enjoyed without having to belong to the club putting one on.  They usually include a plant sale.  They sometimes also include some unusual plants in a "silent auction", where people write what they are willing to pay, and the person offering the highest amount at the end of the show wins.

[Robert]

Hi Diane

Thank you! Your suggestion is spot on perfect!

Back in the 1970’s a variation of your suggestion worked perfectly for me without any purposeful effort on my part. Back then I attended meetings of the California Horticultural Society on a regular basis. Spontaneously, without making any outward effort, I became horticultural friends with many members of the Horticultural Society. It just came naturally, without conscious effort on my part, to visit their gardens, spend hours talking about plants, visit these precious friends when they were in the hospital, then grieve the loss and attend their funeral when they passed on to the other realm. During this time I could accomplish more in an hour than I can accomplish now in 10 years. And this is despite being socially awkward and dumb!

As I stated, over time these friends transitioned to the other side of reality and the Horticultural Society changed. I guess I have become stuck in the past and do not feel completely comfortable with the new age of electronic gismos, social media, for me mostly awkward virtual acquaintances and a new social horticultural world that is still, after many years, very alien to me.

Whatever the case, the new horticultural order does not work for me and I am struggling to find a horticultural solution that is right for me. Maybe the Zen “do nothing” is the best way for me to proceed. Do nothing and the right things will happen naturally without effort on my part, as they did in the past.