Comments on: Gentian-izing and Bitterroots https://gardern.co.za/2006/04/gentian-izing-and-bitterroots/ Horticulturist Matt Mattus shares gardening expertise, research and science from his home garden and greenhouse. Thu, 13 Aug 2020 23:37:18 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 By: Anonymous https://gardern.co.za/2006/04/gentian-izing-and-bitterroots/#comment-5172 Sat, 29 Apr 2006 03:36:00 +0000 #comment-5172 Your blog is great Matt, keep it up. I am heartened by your conservation-mindedness, and that of others. I’m moving back to MA in a year or so and I’ve got some family land waiting for me to indulge my gardening interests. I’ll keep reading here for inspiration.

dimitri

]]> By: Matt Mattus https://gardern.co.za/2006/04/gentian-izing-and-bitterroots/#comment-5171 Fri, 28 Apr 2006 16:44:00 +0000 #comment-5171 Thanks for the comment Dimitri, this is a very good question, and very important since it brings up a truly critical issue : collecting in the wild.
First, let me respond by simple saying that I do not collect any plant material in the wild. When I use the word “Botanizing”, I mean identification through keying and not through collecting. At this time, I do not even believe in collecting seed in the wild, but I know that others do. Perhaps I may collect soem seed in the future, but at this time, I am still just photoraphing and sketching plants, I don’t see a need for collecting wild seed, unless it is of a new species, such as an epimedium in China, or something that has not yet been ‘introduced’, but I still have not put alot of thought to those practices either. I know many of us grow plants that have previously been collected in the wild, it’s hard to avoid that,and a part of my believes that this is a good thing. But another part of me remains skeptical of the impact wee humans have on our planet. A dangerous place to go, I know, morally, since it is just abput impossible to not impact anything when one really starts to think about these issues. (Plane fuel, the plastic and gasses used to create this computer, and the electricity…it all is overwhelming when you really start tho think about it! But, backto your questions…… I do not ever collect in the wild, although I am opem to careful seed collecting that is responsible at best….I do however believe against government laws and support the relocation of endangered or CITES list plants in areas that are to be destroyed, (i.e. freeways in Borneo-type-of-thing) and in New Hampshire, I would be looking for alpine plants in the higher zones of Mount Washington, where there are some Silene acaulis growing.
Blog on!

]]> By: Anonymous https://gardern.co.za/2006/04/gentian-izing-and-bitterroots/#comment-5170 Fri, 28 Apr 2006 09:55:00 +0000 #comment-5170 Curious… when you botanize, are you actually harvesting plants, or simply collecting seeds, cuttings…? And what kind of plants would you be looking for in NH?

dimitri

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