I wish to apologise to anybody I have offended. I do not mean to; I am young and still have a lot to learn. I am truly sorry if anything I have said has hurt any of you.
huh? what's all this about? you're such a sweetie!! ALWAYS pleasant and helpful and always polite...how could anyone be offended by that?!
Beth, not to worry. We all sometimes respond in ways that was not our intention. I've done it more than once! I see UBC as an excellent forum for everyone to learn and there is much to learn, especially about aroids. I've been studying these plants for many years and don't know 1% yet! But every day I read something new, ask tons of questions to my mentors, and bug the blazes out of people much smarter than am I! Fortunately, every one of the people I consider a mentor loves to teach! And do they teach. Dr. Croat writes to me as if I am a botanist and I then yank out the "big books" to figure out what he just said! But he is a professor of botany at a university! So does Pete Boyce in Singapore, Alistair Hay in Australia, and Eduardo Gonçalves in Brazil. I would expect nothing less of any professor were I in their class. It isn't their job to put this into "plain" language. It is their job to teach! I've just made it one of my personal goals to "translate" so people who don't want a degree in botany can understand what I am trying to explain and use it. No one is ever going to want to understand all of this, after all, most who read what we post are plant collectors, not botany students. You are an excellent student as is obvious by your eagerness to learn. I just wish I had started at your age instead of waiting until I was 50 (and I'm way beyond 50 now)! Keep questioning what you don't understand, but at the same time understand that there are people on this forum that know more about aroids than do either you or myself. In this case, I often consider some of the regulars on this forum more knowledgeable than am I! I ask questions every single day of people I know read this stuff, they just rarely respond to posted questions. And I would have to include Mic in Australia, LariAnn in Miami and Windy in Hawaii in that group! But don't stop asking those questions! You have the potential to be smarter than any of us given some time and experience. After all, you live right where all of us as aroid collectors would love to study!
Beth, There is no need to apologize, you haven't done anything wrong. Certainly not to me! I enjoyed our correspondence on a subject we both are enamored with. I am excited to have a new aroid friend in you, and hope we can continue to discuss the Anthurium family. I think you are so fortunate to live in the land of Anthurium discovery, and hope to learn with you about new plants on your hikes there in Ecuador. I really enjoyed the photos you share of the jungle, as I have never been to Ecuador or any country where Anthuriums grow native. For me it is very interesting to see where and how they grow and feel this information is extremely important to cultivate a well grown plant. I basically have to do a 'hit and miss' approach with the Anthuriums I acquire and grow, because many come to me without any data of where they were collected or how they were growing in the wild. Sometimes if I am lucky enough to have two or three of the same species I will place them under differing exposures and conditions in the greenhouse until I see one is doing better than the others, then I will move all of the same plants to the area where the responding one is thriving. Unbeknown to me, sometimes I do get a higher elevation species that doesn't like the warmth we have here in Waimanalo, and I will try to keep it going, only to loose it in the end. I do trick some, though with special methods that seem to work to keep their roots cooler and although they don't grow well they do grow OK. I am looking forward to your next Aroid of the week! Please post a message so I will know it's up. I seriously hope you continue with your interest in the Anthurium family and do some field and lab work that we all can benefit from in the future. Your youth is to be considered very special as this is the best time to accomplish feats that will seem impossible as you get older. Again, I look forward to the next posting of your experiences and continuing education that you discover along the jungle's path. Su Amiga, Windy
