"3-4 feet" can also be listed as "36 to 48 inches".
In theory, maybe, I can imagine a kind of database field that is neither checkbox nor pull-down, yet might be searchable.
A "numeric range" field that could, with a lot of extra software, still be searched in some ways.
Its properties would include units (like inches, not feet).
Then it would have a lower limit (like "the plant height reaches 36 inches or more").
Then it would have an upper limit (like "the plant height reaches 48 inches but not more").
(Or it might be implemented as two normal numeric fields, "min height" and "max height"
A search might allow one to enter a single value like "40 inches", and the search would report plants with
(lower limit <= 40) AND (upper limit >= 40)
Or an even more complicated search would allow the SEARCHER to enter TWO numbers: say a search for "40-60 inches".
Then the search would report any overlap between the data field range and the search field range:
(lower limit <= 40) AND (upper limit >= 60)
or
(min height <= 40) AND (max height >=60)
I've hardly ever seen "numeric range" fields like this in online databases, or "numeric range" search fields. I suspect it's a lot of code, and also more complexity for the user.
The American Bamboo Society is the closest I recall, but it only has the range on the database numeric field, not the search field.
It has an "EITHER less than, OR greater than" search option. That probably does meet most people's needs most of the time.
http://www.bamboo.org/BambooSo...
I think one problem with using hard numbers on plants, is that even measurable things are somewhat subjective or variable. Soil, climate and other variables can affect plant dimensions by a factor of 2 or more.
