I think it is only fair to speak up, the person posting may not know the plants can not be propagated via cuttings, OR that it may not survive outside the normal environment it is accustomed to, OR they do know and don't care because they ae looking for something specific and know what they are offering is highly sought after and folks will go all gaga over it. Same goes for sterile seed, not everyone is a expert on plants and seed an in general may not have knowledge the plant can not be started from seed. I think the people who DO have this knowledge should let other members know they can not grow from the seeds/cuttings offered. BUT I also think the person who will be posting these facts should send a message privately to the person who is offering either offers in these situations and gently tell them the facts about the offered items BEFORE posting publicly about them. This gives the original poster a chance to close the post themselves. IF they choose not to close the offer, THEN something should be said. WITHOUT slamming the poster. It can be done with tact and grace. I for one would want someone to tell me the facts about an offer IF I did reply to either kind of offer mentioned above simply because it is not fair for those responding to the offer not to get what they think they are getting. It would upset me to know I got something that would be impossible to make grow especially if I gave something really good for it! When there was someone who could have told me not to make the trade. Plantwise postage is too high to lose on plants which can not be propagated via cuttings. It just isn't fair. It is our responsibility as good GWbers to help out our fellow members I would definitely say something if I knew the offer is not going to come out good for the ones receiving. Just my 2 cents on the subject, :)Aqua

Once I cut the underground sprinkler line, a couple of weeks after laying it, in the same spot where I remarked to my wife that I would need to remember not to dig through it. When I dug the new rose garden in front of our new house, I knew roughly where the water main was. So I gently dug down to find it and followed it from one side to the other. After that I broke up the hard, red clay with a mattock. Being greedy, I wanted to loosen the dirt right up to the water main. I took aim about a foot away from the main. When I tried to pry the dirt up a large area moved. I thought, what a large rock. I took another shot further down -- same thing. I repeated this, trying to find the end of the rock so I could dig it out. Suddenly it occurred to me: another water main! It turns out I had found the old water main and a new one had been laid alongside it (it's a 50-year-old house). I had come within an inch of severing it. This time I covered it pieces of old concrete block and concrete that had been dumped in the back corner of the lot and put about a foot of dirt over it. We grow herbs in that part of the garden, and so far it has performed well.

I've had plenty of courtesies and chivalrous gestures shown to me over the years of living in the Midwest and East Coast, (even in NYC), so I don't think it's strictly a southern thing. It is a matter of manners, and manners need to be taught. I was taught them by my bubbe, who grew up in a small town in Poland and probably never left there until she came to the US and then she lived in my hometown for 60 years. She couldn't afford to have any enemies, manners were the glue that held her life together. How I used to HATE Bubbe making me talk to people I didn't know and do things for total strangers, and now I am so very grateful for all she taught me. And on the flip side, I've had plenty of disrespect dished up with a "Yes M'am" in front of it. And men offering me seats on buses and then expecting that it was now OK to hit on me. I think the bottom line of all manners should be respect for the other person, regardless of gender. Having said that, I also agree that since women are "the weaker sex," it is very nice when men help us out in some situations. Sure, I can shelp my luggage thru the airport all by myself, no problem, but it sure makes my day when some nice person holds the door open for me or helps me get my bag up on the luggage rack, etc. Bubbe called that "being a mensch" which means "true human being." How many times I heard, "Go be a mensch and get Mrs. Schulman some punch," or "Go be a mensch and help that lady take her laundry to her car," or "Go be a mensch and give your seat to Mrs. Guttman while we're waiting for the bus," etc. And I'm a girl. And I think it is very SAD that parents aren't doing this, even parents who are trying to raise good, thoughtful kids. Manners need to be taught like conditioning, kids need to be made to DO the stuff, not just understand the principle behind it. Then it becomes second nature to them. And it has to start when they are young. But then don't get me started on all the things that we are neglecting by not spending more time and resources on our young ones! Now days, it's likely mom, dad, grandpa and grandma all need to be working just to keep food on the table and the roof overhead.

I'm with barnmom, anything made just for me is romantic. I'd never had a man that cooked for me until I met Elery, now he'll surprise me with soup for lunch or pita chips and hummus when I get home from work, if he's here. I love it, just knowing that he's thinking about me and cares enough to make anything for me is good. Our usual evening is sitting on the couch with the Food Network on, looking at cookbooks. Last week it was the seed catalogs, LOL. Of course, he does clean up the mess himself. He's a "clean as you go" kind of cook, while I tend to clean up everything afterward. As for food, I vote for something light, not a huge heavy meal, and definitely dessert. Anything you can eat with your fingers (or HIS fingers) is even more fun..... Annie