Rant: That guy at the plant swap who kept correcting everyone really bothered me

I went to a community plant swap last Saturday at our local park in Austin. This one dude, maybe 50 years old, walked around telling people their pothos were actually epipremnums. He grabbed my friend's monstera leaf and said she was overwatering because the speckles meant edema. I get that he knew his stuff, but he never once asked if anyone wanted advice. He just talked at people for 2 hours until half the attendees left early. Has anyone else dealt with a know-it-all like that at a plant event?

2 comments

2 Comments

jenny5801mo ago

Oh yeah, sounds like he was auditioning for "Plant Police: Southwest Division" or something... must be exhausting to know the scientific name for every leaf but not how to read a room.

the_william1mo ago

My cousin dragged me to one of those plant swaps in Brooklyn last summer and I saw the exact same type of guy. He spent like 20 minutes lecturing this college kid about why her snake plant had brown tips, even telling her she needed to test her tap water pH. What finally worked for me was just saying "Hey man, not everyone wants a science lesson today" real calm but direct. After that he cooled off a little and started asking people if they wanted tips instead of just dumping them. Still left a weird vibe for the rest of the afternoon though.