For NYC plant lovers, where there’s a will, there’s a way!

On a recent trip to New York City to visit my daughter, I literally walked miles and miles throughout Manhattan. Of course, I noticed all the lovely plants along my walks. NYC is certainly a major city with millions of people, but it’s definitely more than an urban jungle. Most of the plants I saw were grown in containers and raised beds. As you know, that’s how I garden at my condo so my vacation became a scouting trip for container gardening.

I stayed in a lovely apartment in Hamilton Heights on a tree lined street of charming brownstones. It was less than a block from Broadway. At this location, the street has a very wide esplanade between the four lanes, two in each direction. It’s really a park with plants, trees and benches. The trees and plants live in a large raised bed made with concrete curbs.

New Yorkers are very resourceful with their containers. A cute restaurant used rain gutters mounted on 2 x 4s as their herb garden. A family used the stone banister and secured 2 x 4s to their house to form a charming flower bed. In mid-town, a large, dramatic container garden was planted in basically high- end trash bins.

The adage, “where there’s a will, there’s a way” certainly applies to people in NYC who love and want to grow beautiful plants. I plan use their ingenuity to find more creative ways to grow plants at my home.

Until next time,

Melanie

P.S . My next blog will feature one of the many secret gardeners in NYC.