With Valentine's Day just around the corner matchmaking ideas for the single person abound - and they usually involve online dating sites. Yet we're all tuned in to how effective they are at snaffling the perfect match and wouldn't want to wish that experience on any normal human being.

Yet gardeners are such special people and it wouldn't be wise to dilute the gardening gene pool by being matched with any ol' Tom, Dick or Sally. Far from it, we should be encouraging young (or not so-young) single gardeners to start searching for their prospective partners from within the gardening world.

Who do you think gave the world the phrase, "the birds and the bees"? An observant gardener, of course. We were destined to be in sync with other gardeners so that "our love could BLOSSOM." It's no coincidence these cliches exist.

So, rather than searching for the nearest Introductions night, here are six matchmaking possibilities for you to explore and hopefully scour the land to find your perfect love.

• #1 - Take a walk though your local Botanical Gardens - Guys: borrow a friend's child (the younger the better) - chicks dig a guy who *appears* to love children. Girls: borrow someone's dog (provided it's on a leash) - guys love interacting with animals before we have to engage another human being. And what better backdrop for meeting your perfect match. The kid and the dog are just props until you can start conversing about the real things in life like plants, gardens, compost and worm wee.
• #2 - Join a Gardening Group - Here's the big tip - find a gardening group that matches your age level. The Orchid Society is probably less likely to cater for young people than the Native Plant Group. If you're looking for a contemporary prospective spouse make sure you find a garden group that offers contemporary interaction and a desire for the new and upcoming.
• #3 - Volunteer to help at a Garden Show - volunteering is the key term here. Once you've spotted a likely candidate you can easily ditch the show and commence your date immediately. You'll have no awkward strings to hold you back (like a paycheque) but keep in mind this method will probably only work once. So choose wisely.
• #4 - Get a job at a Garden Nursery - if the volunteering failed then something a little more permanent may be needed and where better to find good gardening stock than within your local nursery. Gardeners have to buy plants at some stage, or at least peruse the nursery in search of inspiration and who better to inspire them than you.
• #5 - Visit some plant garage sales - this is a great way to meet the prospective guy/girl in their own environment. The big tip is scouring the garage sale adverts in the local paper and dismissing the ones selling hydrangeas, jade, or geraniums - they're possibly a little too old for you. Find ones that are selling succulents, gerberas and potted annuals.
• #6 - Take a botany short course - the final suggestion is to bite the bullet and enrol in a horticultural short course. Lots of young people take up these courses as a way to better themselves and to meet other people *nudge*, *nudge*. And who knows, you may have to do some project work with a partner.

If none of these matchmaking ideas prove successful you could always drop your standards and look for a landscaper...;-) ROFL.