"For myself I hold no preferences among flowers, so long as they are wild, free, spontaneous. Bricks to all greenhouses! Black thumb and cutworm to the potted plant!"

Edward Abbey's quote celebrates the untamed beauty of nature and reveals a clear choice for the natural and the spontaneous over the controlled and the cultivated. By specifying, "For myself I hold no preferences among flowers, so long as they are wild, free, spontaneous", Abbey highlights his gratitude for nature in its rawest, most unrestrained forms. Flowers, despite their kind, deserve appreciation as long as they embody the spirit of the wild. The emphasis here is not on the particular types or private charm of flowers however rather on the quality of being unconfined and self-sustaining in their natural environment.

The latter part of the quote, "Bricks to all greenhouses! Black thumb and cutworm to the potted plant!" utilizes vivid, defiant images to highlight Abbey's contempt for the artificial adjustment of nature. By wishing "bricks to all greenhouses", he suggests that structured, human-made environments-- designed to safeguard and control plant life-- are contrary to the genuine experience of nature that he values. His expression mean a specific destructiveness or rejection towards these made enclosures.

In addition, "Black thumb and cutworm to the potted plant!" extends this sentiment by metaphorically conjuring up failure and decay towards cultivated plants. In gardening, a "black thumb" is the reverse of a "green thumb", or a lack of ability in plant care, while cutworms are bugs that harm plants. Abbey utilizes these signs to reveal the concept that plants constrained in synthetic settings, such as potted plants, do not embody the same vibrancy and self-reliance as those growing in the wild.

In essence, Abbey's words are a homage to the liberty and credibility of the natural world. They review human efforts to manage and domesticate nature, advocating for an appreciation of untamed appeal and a rejection of synthetic restrictions. Through this quote, Abbey aligns himself with an ethos of environmental liberation, valuing the intrinsic worth of nature in its purest kind.