plants

I used to believe that we had to be really quiet when we went mushroom hunting. Otherwise the mushrooms would hide. (My Dad told us this to keep us in line) I think it was jr high biology when I learned the truth.

mark

When I was little I was afraid to cross a field with dandelions in it because I thought the dandelions were real lions and that they would attack me.

Jessica

My brother, sister, and I had a HUGE climbing tree in our front yard. We named it Ms. Hokewell (I have no idea how we came up with that name). We would talk to the tree and "spend time with Ms. Hokewell". If any of her branches came off or someone hurt Ms. Hokewell, my brother, sister and I would get upset, and try to tape the branches back on or wrap any "injuries" up in bandages. We really thought that "she" had a mind of her own.

Lydia

An aunt of mine told me that laburnum could kill me (because of its poisonous seeds/flowers). She didn't specify *how* it could kill me though, so I thought it... radiated deadly gases or something. I'd get horribly panicky if I had to walk past a laburnum tree in someone's garden or something, ever.

C.

When I was little I used to thing poincettias were called placentas. No one told me otherwise until I was about 12. I just remember being so happy to see so many placentas around Christmas time.

Justin

I always wanted to play in the lawn sprinkler when I was little, but my mom knew I would track mud and water into her clean house. So she told me grass is very sensitive when it is wet and if you walk on it you will bruise it and kill it. For years I carefully stuck to the sidewalks after every rain, and chided people who walked on wet lawns.

Anon

When I was about two or three, or so the story goes, I'd seen a bit on Sesame Street where they'd shown a time-lapse film of grass growing. The sight of those tendrils wiggling their way out of the ground so terrified me for a while I refused to walk on grass at the park. I though that the grass would grow so fast it would grow through my feet.

Arkonbey

My parents used to tell me and my sister that broccoli was baby trees. So we would think, "Wow, we're eating trees! Just like giraffes!" and would eat all the tops and leave the stems on the sides of our plates. Hey, at least we ate some of it.

And although we never believed it, we still refer to cauliflower as "albino rabbit brains."

Dragonfly

When I was little I believed that trees were already completely formed under the ground.They pushed themselves out of the ground and when only the tops were showing it became a bush or hedge.

Thea

My father had an invisible jelly-bean tree in our backyard. Only he could find it, at night, and pick the beans.

My brother and I were so upset when we found the bag of jelly beans one year when we were looking for Christmas presents.

Hannah

I was convinced for years that if I didn't brush my teeth, the trees would laugh at me. When their leaves rustled I thought they were whispering to each other, passing on the word that I had sufficiently passed their daily oral hygeine exam.

Meg

When I was younger, I believed that "Forsythia" bushes were "For Cynthia" bushes, so I naturally took to them as a favorite flower.

Cynthia

i used to think that when you smelled dafodils, if you put your nose in the middle bit, it would close like a venus fly trap and bite your nose off

rab1993

Once my parents were taking me on a walk through a forest and my dad mentioned something about "the power plant is right over there". I immediatly began running up to every tree in sight, asking him if this was it and how does a plant make electricity?

Rachel

I used to believe flowers just grew and developed out of nothing into something pretty that had a bonus of smelling good. I was so disappointed to learn about pollination in middle school science class.

Anon

That the talking trees in the Wizard of Oz were real and out to get me.

A belief cultivated by my father who used to wait behind tree trunks and shout ' Who's been stealing my apples!' when I walked past.

Anon

I used to think that dandilions were marshmallows on grass

Vernon D'Souza

It was common "knowledge" where I lived that if you picked dandelions then you would wet the bed.

Holly

when i was about four, i remember being at my grandparent's house eating a hamburger. and i got the brillant idea that if i planted the seseame seeds from the bun in the ground, that i would have a hamburger tree!!! however, a hanburger tree never grew....

marisa

My father told me that cotton grew inside aspirin bottles. I believed it for a long time. I still think of him when I open up a new pill bottle and pull out the cotton.

Harry