I only have one orchid and I can't make it bloom.

Rose people are definitely weirder. Rose people include Pete41, Karl, DiggerDave, Patrick, Cactus Joe and myself.

No other flower group could match that motley crew. Really, need I say more?

Harry - good point!

I'd probably do something illegal RE: roses if need be, lol. I have snipped where snipping wasn't allowed... just couldn't resist for a special, unavailable rose!

I killed my only orchid too, lol. I love them but have to stick with hardy plants or I'd be bankrupt.

Both hobbies can cost $$$. Both have insect/disease issues that are a pain to deal with and can threaten the plant. Both have the obsessed show groupies looking for hardware but with the AOS you get the honor of paying for that awarded plant. Both have the chemical groupies and my way of growing is far superior to yours. Both have the obsessed how do I get around the plant police for that coveted plant. Then there are those of us that just want to enjoy our plants and pastime and each other. I find both groups cover the traits equally IMHO. :)

Harry dear,

If that's your best examples of weird rose people, then rose people are not even in the same ballpark. :)

But, they try so hard!

Roses are it for me I just like taking pictures of Orchids once a year!!!!!!!!!! had a bud who turned his bedroom into an orchid growing zone and he took to sleeping on the sofa.

Meredith -- that's barely pale pink illegal compared to the CITES violations that some orchid folks get up to. We're talking about international smuggling of wild collected endangered rain forest species here, and so on. And obviously, the cost of an individual orchid plant is WAY higher than an individual rose plant -- even unawarded plants are going to cost a lot more. You can get just about any rose in production for under $30, right? Hahahaha! Orchids that are easy to propagate (meristem cloning) are expensive because the cloning technology is pretty expensive and takes fancy equipment. Then there are types that don't clone well at all and have to be propagated by hand division and such. Well, I'll stop there. You can see where it goes. Then, providing an environment for many orchids to live in is incredibly expensive and a lot of work in many parts of the world.

Labrea, yep, that's probably not that unusual. I bet he put really expensive sodium grow lights on the ceiling, on a timer that changes day length seasonally -- who wants to try to sleep under that! LOL.

So far, my private bet is still winning. :)