CO-Horts

CO-Horts Blog

Monday, March 21, 2016

Hort Peeves: Wrong Plant, Wrong Place

Posted by: Alison O'Connor

I saw these trees today (I think they are serviceberry) leaving a restaurant near the CSU campus in Fort Collins. I was with fellow horties Mary Small and Tony Koski and we all stopped dead in our tracks to gawk and take photos.
As seen in Fort Collins...
Wow. Just wow. Talk about a "concrete coffin".
Sniffle. Poor roots.
I'm just at a loss for words...and why don't you just add insult to injury with the rock mulch!
At least the bike wasn't chained to the tree.
What really gets my goat is that they were nice trees...really nice trees. Good quality trees. I'll keep an eye on them to see how they do over the months/years. I won't argue that something green would is nice to plant near the wall to break up some of the hardscape...but maybe a taller ornamental grass would have been a better option or a decorative container? A tree is just a bad choice. The branches are already touching the wall. Any other thoughts/comments?

4 comments:

  1. For these conditions, I always suggest decorative pots to be replanted yearly, or another "art" installation. Trees, shrubs, or grasses won't thrive so will be unacceptable by year three. Why waste the trees, when there are other sustainable options?

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  2. I really like the idea of other artwork, Jana! Something that could be bolted to the wall...that would add a little pizzazz and be a much better option. Great suggestion!

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  3. Makes me want to cry-it's shocking how many folks think a plant's life isn't 'real life'!

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