Thursday, May 14, 2015

WWTT #20, How to plant for certain failure...

Last Thursday evening I flew up to Spokane, WA, for a long weekend at home with my parents. Our first stop was an old favorite hole-in-the-wall for take out dinner. We were quite shocked to see it had suffered a remodel and lost all character, welcome to just another unremarkable, chain-like, pizza joint...

As if that wasn't bad enough there was this...WWTT?

Perhaps they were thinking: "Hey, let's not plant those bushes in the ground (cause you know non-plant people don't call them shrubs), they'll just get big. Let's just sink those plastic pots into the gravel..."

Folks, it gets HOT in Spokane in the summer. And it doesn't rain all that much. And can you say "root-bound?" Certain death awaits. Well, that is if they even stick around. This particular planting is in the middle of a heavily traveled street full of student housing for Gonzaga University, oh and there's a popular bar just across the street. Drunk college students aren't exactly known for their love of nature.

Good news though, at least the Hostas made it into the ground.

All material © 2009-2015 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

26 comments:

  1. Maybe they were unsure and wanted to see the plant in situ for a while before committing.
    It's also possible that quite substantial roots will escape and the plants will do fine (and anchor those pots solidly forever).

    ReplyDelete
  2. They ran out of budget to do the planting properly perhaps? ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Perhaps, but really...how long does it take to dig a hole?

      Delete
  3. Oh, that is ugly. And sad. Maybe the plants were so root-bound already that they couldn't get them out of the pots without cutting? So they just skipped that step.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. With any luck Alan is right and a few roots will escape.

      Delete
  4. What ever were they thinking! Do you find it difficult to resist the urge to find the owners or manager and tell them what a bad idea this is? If not for my dear husband telling me to simmer down I would have done it many times : )

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The person running the counter was obviously not in charge, otherwise I might have. Much to the embarrassment of my dad.

      Delete
  5. Oh, for pete's sake.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How did you know?! (Pete's is the name of the restaurant)

      Delete
  6. Really? Sorry for the remodel/loss of character!

    ReplyDelete
  7. An affront on all fronts...time to find a new hole-in-the-wall. My kids and I are still mourning the loss of King's Second on NW Glisan where we would drink beer and play pool.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nothing can ever replace dives with history though, can it?

      Delete
  8. Ohh, too bad they changed that place. The first time I heard the expresion a hole-in-the-wall was from you last july, hehe. I wonder if they ran out of time and just put those pots there in the ground? it is weird...is not that much work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh gosh, what was I describing that I used that expression?

      Delete
  9. I'll take a wild, stab-y guess: "installed" by interior landscape folk, or professionals otherwise accustomed to flood irrigating and switching out material regularly? Someone needs to drop them a warm and very discreetly-worded postcard.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Perhaps, but isn't that more costly than just planting them right the first time? Oh...but maybe it's one of those business that takes the sick back and nurses them to health and then cycles them back out to the next place? Good call.

      Delete
  10. AnonymousMay 14, 2015

    Terrible! I actually had that happen on a residential project, with several *shrubs*. Then the owner came outside, as I was showing the contractor how I wanted the front tree pruned (it never was, all 10 years of its life)...he had no idea he had a tree, and was getting ready to remove his 15' bush, or shape it into a ball.

    Still not sure why people like that make more money than I...both of them.

    Hostas in rock in Spokane? NM is even smarter than that...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh my. You need to write a book about all your LA misadventures!

      Delete
  11. You're giving them more credit than I would. I doubt they even but those plants in themselves. It was probably the contractor that did the remodeling. And you know how those people pride themselves on their horticultural ability.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Well they're "just plants"...anybody can do that!" (that sort of mindset?)

      Delete
  12. OH MY, Hostas in rocks in Spokane. Those are going to look really special in August if they make it that long. Hope they are on the shady side of the building. Great blog as usual Danger! And may god help those poor plants in their pots cuz I bet no one else will.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I hope their pizza is better than their horticulture.

    ReplyDelete
  14. The humorous part of all this is the comments. ;)

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to comment. Comment moderation is on (because you know: spam), I will approve and post your comment as soon as possible!