I am new to southern TX, and for about a year I have been very much admiring the Devil's Trumpet plant in my neighbor-up-the-street's front yard. This plant is a very pleasantly fragrant night bloomer, and has slightly psychoactive properties. I just caught her outside and quickly walked to her house to ask if I could, "harvest a few seed pods when the blooms fall away"?
She laughed and said "no way... you have to come and steal them!!"
In conversation I learned that it is considered extremely bad luck in Mexican Tradition to 'give' a plant to someone, and just as bad to sell anything to your neighbor. So the only way to share things like houseplants and yard plantings is to actually steal them. AND its TOTALLY expected and acceptable. Before I knew it, I was surrounded by three more lovely crones
from nearby homes, all with glasses of wine and faces full of laughter and kindness, who dottered and flirted and chided the new 'gringo' on the block. And forthwith I was inundated with announcements of their now fully developed plans to come to my house to steal many of the giant elephant ear plants in my front yard that they had all been admiring all summer. After a glass of front yard wine with my new friends, I left with a long list of vulnerable-to-theft plants in all of their front yards that wouldnt be missed or cause surprise to be found gone.What I learned today; "Walk up the street and say hi to old women, whenever the proposition presents itself"
