Naivety of the innocent.

[landimad]

Innocent though things are in this world, a grown person should in theroy know where things come from.
OH friend asked if she was to plant a Pineapple top could she get a palm to grow?
Which got me to thinking of my family and the people they brought into it.
I have several brother-in-laws of which new nothing about veggies before joining our family.
One would say is that over grown grass or deformed cabbages growing. Another would say do potatoes come from a tin or whats a marrow.
Has anyone else had people with strange up bringings they would like to share?

[landimad]

[redcoat]

When I was reading a gardening mag at work, an intelligent 20 something lady looked over my shoulder and spotted a picture of a brussel sprout stalk.  She asked what it was and was surprised by the answer.

Even though she had grown up in Lincs, she had never realised how sprouts grew.

[lewic]

I have been asked several times by checkout assistants in supermarkets what swedes and courgettes are. And one woman came up to me when I was browsing the veg and asked if I thought that some purple-tipped broccoli had gone off.

[goodlife]

Work friend was moving to her her new home and she had baby on its way..she ask what she could do with the garden? I said..why don't you plant apple tree! It has beautiful flowers in spring..fruit in autumn that you can make into some lovely puree to feed baby later on... ;D ;D
She looked at me in horror like I've gone mad ???..."OHHH YUK! I'm not going to feed something to my baby that birds have had chance to s**t on! I'll get some clean ones from shop! " :o :o I tried to explain to her that apple trees don't grow in tunnels or under cover they are out in the open and the fruit in shops are washed. Besides..I cannot remember seeing bird *** on fruit and I eat fruit straight off the tree.... ::) ::) ::)
Although she liked the idea planting a tree for her daughter's birth..the idea of apples from outdoors proved to be too dirty.. ::) ;D ;D
Youngsters..some have lot to learn. ::)

[BarriedaleNick]

Gave some Toms to a couple last year and explained about pinching out etc..
Went round a month later to find that all the flower stems had been carefully picked off while the side shoots left to grow.  These people in thier 40s had never made the connection between flowers and fruit!

[goodlife]

 

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These people in thier 40s had never made the connection between flowers and fruit!  :o
Oh dear....did your manage to give them biology lesson after that..? ;D

[bridgehouse]

My sister loves to grow things ,she had a lovely row of sprouts , that is until her husband trimmed them for her, My other sister shelled the runner beans did not know how to cook them .
  Lol June.

[Chrispy]

Gave my OHs parents one of my Bon Bon winter squash to try.

They often buy butternut squashes from Waitrose, and even grow their own butternut squashes, so i was surprised a month later when my squash was returned to me, them saying they had no idea how to cook it!

The first time I grew a winter squash it was a butternut, as I did not know there were others, but I was new to growing, both of them have had home grown from birth.

[BarriedaleNick]

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These people in thier 40s had never made the connection between flowers and fruit!  :o
Oh dear....did your manage to give them biology lesson after that..? ;D

They don't have any kids!  Now I know why!!

[SueK]

I have been asked several times by checkout assistants in supermarkets what swedes and courgettes are. And one woman came up to me when I was browsing the veg and asked if I thought that some purple-tipped broccoli had gone off.

That definitely strikes a chord.  My FIL was once having number one son overnight and I gave him some purple French beans.  When we went to collect, he gave me them back, saying that they had gone off. To be fair, they were an exceptionally dark purple - almost black.

[antipodes]

 ;D ;D
I get an organic veg box (as my growing skills are not that good!!) and we get good variety, but i am surprised by the amount of people that don't know veg. And certainly don't know how to cook it. One week we had a choice between black radish and raw beetroot, a few people were scratching their heads they didn't recognize either of them. Anything leafy is also a challenge - what is coriander and what is parsley, what is mizuna leaves, what is rocket, what is sorrel, what is spinach!

Then again, many people on my allotment site did not know what a parsnip was and are amazed to see my squash and pumpkins!  Many people have also looked at my curly kale and wondered what it was!! I am also the only one to grow...gooseberries.

[Jeannine]

The one that gets me is the yam/sweet potato one. Rarly do I see yams in the shops but loads os sweeties called yams..if the folks selling them don't know which is which how can the customer learn.

I had a newbie  neighbour on my UK plot who said his plot had some early chard growing on it and he was going to pull it for the first time if I would like some..I went for it..it was rhubarb. He had seen Bright Lights in a catalogue and though it was that.

XX Jeannine

[goodlife]

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I am also the only one to grow...gooseberries. Really  :o? Aren't gooseberries eaten/common over there?
You know, over here it is always talked in media how French "eat this and that" and how little health problems they have because of their good diet. But do their diet have that much variation with veg?

[BarriedaleNick]

I did once come across a chap serving in my local supermarket who was, shall we say, new to the country.  He may have recognised a yam but he seemed completely incapable of recognising any English veg at all.
Every thing was met with "wad is dis?", but when we got to the potatoes I almost lost my calm explaining that the spud was the singular most popular vegetable in the country and suggested a training course in veg recognition.  Luckily my OH was there to step in before the rant fully developed..

[Jeannine]

I rtied explaining in the Oriental supermarket once. they told me they were Oriental yams..What makes me laugh is the fact that they truly are so different.

XX Jeannine

[gp.girl]

Spiders in the bath climb out of the plug hole because there isn't any other way for them to get in the bath. How about the 2 by 5 foot hole in the top? Sure, oh I give up  ::)

[antipodes]

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I am also the only one to grow...gooseberries. Really  :o? Aren't gooseberries eaten/common over there?
You know, over here it is always talked in media how French "eat this and that" and how little health problems they have because of their good diet. But do their diet have that much variation with veg?

To be fair, the French eat a lot of veg in quantity, they almost certainly get five a day, as with most meals some kind of raw veg is eaten, like lettuce, radish, grated carrots etc. But for growing, they are a bit shy about variety, they stick with the true and tested stuff! When I grow blue/green pumpkin, they are always amazed! And I think I am the only one that grows rocket. But for the most, the others grow lettuce, tomatoes, cabbage, leeks, peas, beans, quite a lot of broad beans, courgettes, carrots, radish, beets.  This is partly why I get my seeds from the UK by mail! Much cheaper and the variety is completely different.

But no, gooseberries are almost never eaten here, and after having picked mine and ripped my hands and arms to pieces, I don't exactly blame them!!  ;D ;D