Daniel Prince wrote:
This year we bought a pot of cucumbers that were supposed to be
lemon cucumbers and a six pack of eggplants that were supposed to be
American type. The cucumbers turned out to be pickling type and the
eggplants turned out to be Japanese eggplants.

Last year we had the same problem with the eggplants. A few years
ago, we bought a six pack of cucumbers that were supposed to be
lemon cucumbers and they turned out to be Japanese cucumbers. One
year we bought a pot with three plants that were supposed to be
yellow crookneck squash and one of the plants was a scalloped type
squash.

Has anyone else had this problem?

Why does this happen? Are customers accidently switching the ID
stakes? Are children deliberately switching the ID stakes as a
prank? Are the companies that grow the transplants careless?

If it is customers or children switching the ID stakes, is there any
way we can get the stores/producers to use glue on ID labels on the
pots/six packs instead of the stakes? Thank you in advance for all
replies.
--
I know that if you grow fruits or vegetables and sell them they
are called produce. If I grow fruits or vegetables and give
them away are they amateurduce?

It sometimes happens that customers will deliberately switch labels or
plants. Pick a pack up and look at them than place back in the wrong
tray. Sometimes, the growers are careless, particularly those using
generic names on thier plants. I think that you mean by American
eggplant, you expect something like Black Beauty, (big oval shape) and
that you are getting Japanese ( long skinny fruits) Unfortunately
eggplants vary from big round oval to long skinny types with lots of
intermediate types. All the types are available from American,Chinese,
Dutch, Israeli, Indian, Japanese, and Thai companies. While it would be
worth your while to learn the variety names for the type that you are
looking for, it is faily easy to differntiate between the plants of the
Black Beauty types and the Ichiban types. Most of the oval ones like
Black beauty will have green foliage and stems. Ichiban, Millionaire
and the like will have a purple tint to both the foliage and the stems.
The latter are hybrids and are usually more expensive also.
Don't know any way to distinguish between cucumber plants at that
stage. It is much easier to start them from seeds anyhow.