Comments on: Fake plants: Erin’s secret timesaver

By: RV

RV — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:51:43 +0000

Lighten up, people! I’m not a fan of fake plants myself, but that doesn’t give me a reason to attack someone else who has them. And Donna needs to lay off the defensiveness and ultra sensitivity. I see Erin’s point about the audience of this blog being “middle class or higher.” She’s just stating the demographics…sheesh.

By: Molly

Molly — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 23:13:04 +0000

Upon returning home after a 3 month hurricane Katrina evacuation, I was sad to see the large boxwood topiarys dead on my porch in their olive jar containers. I sprayed painted them green, knowing I would not be able to return home again for months. Four years later, they still look real and not a soul has noticed. Most people don’t even believe me when I point it out.

By: Donna

Donna — Sat, 30 May 2009 18:59:40 +0000

Oh, Erin. Your defensiveness really turns me off to your blog. There are many working-class American households that own computers. The latest data I’ve seen shows that 41% of households making $40,000 or less own personal computers. That figure doesn’t include those who have access to computers at school, libraries, or work. I don’t know if you’d consider that income middle-class or not, but I’d be willing to bet that most of those people don’t have the means to order high-end plastic flowers from France.

I’m not even sure that I fit into your model. I’m just a lowly teacher making a teacher’s salary. If you are intent on only speaking to a middle-class community, that is fine. But do you really feel the need to state that on your blog?? How rude.

My suggestion to you is to allow your readers to state their opinions without feeling the need to be so defensive. I have a blog as well, and just as in the classroom, I enjoy a good debate. Good luck to you.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Sat, 30 May 2009 18:47:48 +0000

This post made me smile. I like your solution. One of my neighbors up the street in my old neighborhood has fake flowers in her garden. Or she’s just exceptionally talented and can grow daisies and tulips year round.

We recently moved to New England and I thought of those fake flowers often during the long winter. I’ve got a couple of flower boxes and I’m thinking of planting some fake flowers in them for the winter to give me a bit of color and a smile as I’m washing dishes.

By: Erin Doland

Erin Doland — Fri, 22 May 2009 13:49:28 +0000

@Donna — This is not a progressive blog. We’re non-political, or at least try to be. If I took a poll of staffers, we’d probably all turn out to be apathetic libertarians. But, it’s against the law for me to ask them, so I’m just making a guess.

Our data indicates, too, that the vast majority of our readers are middle-class and higher. To read our website, you have to own a computer and internet connection or have regular access to a computer and internet connection (such as through a library or school). These are signs of moderate income and/or living in a community with resources. If someone were living on the streets and having difficulty finding food and shelter on a daily basis, clutter wouldn’t be an issue. So, we write our content to reflect the majority of our readership.

By: Donna

Donna — Fri, 22 May 2009 06:05:30 +0000

I’ve read this conversation with interest, and I applaud Erin for maintaining humor throughout. I am neither an avid gardener nor a planter of fake plants. So I stand on neither side of the divide. I just thought I’d add a quick analysis to this discussion. When I read a blog about de-cluttering, I expect it to have a progressive politics. Part of progressive politics has to do with sustainability. Buying and planting plastic flowers is not sustainable. So I think this may be the disconnect between Erin and her readers on this particular issue.

I also think there is a hint of elitism in the advice to buy “high-end” fake flowers that also does not follow progressive politics. This also may be a reason for the missed humor in the “public transportation” joke.

I hope the readers don’t judge Erin too harshly on this one, though. It’s a really nice blog and she is entitled to her opinion.

By: Erin Doland

Erin Doland — Wed, 20 May 2009 00:40:12 +0000

@Shana — I was trying to be funny about the whole plane thing. I need to find a way to indicate to people that I’m intending to be humorous without saying “I’M BEING FUNNY NOW.” Maybe I could record all of my comments as video clips?? I’m really funny in my head

By: Shana

Shana — Tue, 19 May 2009 23:46:46 +0000

“Additionally, since I fly a major carrier it’s “public” transportation, as opposed to say chartering my own jet to go there.”

Yeah, you need to look into that. It’s like saying wasting 3 million gallons of water totally is okay, since it’s not 5 million. Air travel is…not environmentally okay, no matter HOW many people on the plane. I think you’re rationalizing. Like I said in an earlier comment, being un-green is one thing if you cop to it, but pretending it’s okay? Uh-uh.

By: Erin Doland

Erin Doland — Mon, 18 May 2009 00:50:33 +0000

@Maurice — I have family in Paris. It’s a trip I make every other year no matter what. So, for my life, it’s not a net increase in environmental impact. Additionally, since I fly a major carrier it’s “public” transportation, as opposed to say chartering my own jet to go there.

By: Maurice

Maurice — Mon, 18 May 2009 00:26:09 +0000

I think it’s funny that you claim the environmental damage of buying real plants from nonlocal sources is worse than flying to Paris to buy fake plants. Not sure I understand the logic.

By: Tabatha

Tabatha — Sun, 17 May 2009 22:06:49 +0000

wow, people are getting so angry over your choice to have a few nice looking fake plants in front of your house.

if i could afford it i would probably landscape my entire property with AstroTurf and fake plants b/c i don’t like doing any yard work and i hate dealing with bugs.

By: gerette

gerette — Sun, 17 May 2009 02:26:56 +0000

Funny, I just went to JoAnn’s yesterday and bought some lovely fakes for my flower boxes. Unlike Erin’s, they’re not structural, but they are on the second floor, which makes watering a b*tch, especially since one of the windows has an a/c unit in it all summer long. Yes, I would prefer to have real flowers, but spending money year after year on annuals that last less than a month seems pretty wasteful to me.

By: Teri K

Teri K — Fri, 15 May 2009 21:45:57 +0000

@Lori Paximadis – I went to a gardening workshop last night and the issue of deer eating plants came up. Any chance you have a dog or cat? Gather up some animal fur (maybe Erin can send you a bag of her cats’ fur) and spread in on top of the soil around the plants. The deer won’t come near them.

Regarding the topic of the post, I’m torn. I would prefer to have natural, living plants but I have a hard time keeping them alive. I’ve managed to kill a cactus! I’ve considered fake plants but just can’t bring myself to buy them. I have two plants I’ve been able to keep alive for about three years now so I’m holding out hope that I won’t need to resort to fakes.

By: Erin Doland

Erin Doland — Fri, 15 May 2009 13:27:12 +0000

@jfb3 – Fair point. Mostly what was running through my mind was that I didn’t want to create any extra work for myself. They all have personalized plates and I didn’t want any of them calling me to complain after seeing their cars flashed across the internet. A few of them read the site. Might as well keep community relations low-key.

@Shana – I honestly DON’T think it’s tacky. I probably wouldn’t do it if I thought it looked tacky.

By: jfb3

jfb3 — Thu, 14 May 2009 20:43:11 +0000

Why are you worried about showing a neighbors license plate? He doesn’t keep it a secret when he drives.

By: SimoneG

SimoneG — Thu, 14 May 2009 09:36:54 +0000

more REAL PLANTS! that’s what our World needs and take care of them is what we need; I truly disagree this post as it is so trashy and against the thinkGREEN way >:-\

By: Malcolm

Malcolm — Thu, 14 May 2009 07:08:15 +0000

L: fake grass can look pretty good, where I live we are immersed in a 10-year drought and what with hot dry weather and watering restrictions to conserve the city’s shrinking water supply, the only grass that looks any good is the fake stuff. One or two houses in our street have some old green carpet laid on the ground – now that DOES look second rate – but the plastic grass is the best lawns in town. And it probably doesn’t use any more petroleum over its lifetime than a lawn which needs mowing using a powered mower. Oh dear, I hope that idea doesn’t set all the purists off….

By: Louise

Louise — Thu, 14 May 2009 05:53:47 +0000

I have to laugh at how outraged some of the commenters are about “fake” plants. We all have artificial enhancements in our lives. Do you wear makeup? Why? Isn’t your “natural” beauty good enough? Do you propel yourself along the streets using vehicles? Why? Isn’t the “natural” locomotion of walking the only proper way? Do you grow all your own food, or do you purchase some of it, wrapped in plastic packages to transport them home?

Oh, and about that home: it is just a pile of leaves and twigs, right? Nothing artificial like paint or fire-proof roof shingles or a concrete driveway?

One person’s fake is another’s time-saving convenience. “Horrified” seems like a bit of an over-reaction, but perhaps my “bemusement” is just another fake thing…

By: Shana

Shana — Thu, 14 May 2009 02:33:10 +0000

Odious. Erin, you seem particularly defensive (”I’m more environmentally conscious than 99% of you, so there!”). Just because most of the commenters disagree with you doesn’t make us wrong. Perhaps you might acknowledge that the idea is, in general, tacky, and admit that you don’t care? I think we can all agree that we would not be in favor of large-scale replacement of living plants with plastic ones, and one enduring true test of whether something is appropriate is to consider how we’d feel if everyone started doing it.

I just don’t subscribe to the idea of “high-end” fake plants. Plastic plants are plastic plants — yeah, they’re low-maintenance, but so is replacing your lawn with Astroturf. Do you see a significant difference between the two? I don’t.

By: L

Wed, 13 May 2009 23:54:05 +0000

I hate gardening too so this idea is so perfect! Thanks!! Now I wonder how fake grass would go for the lawn!!