Photos Timelapse Videos Updates Excursions Ideas About Archives

Join us on Flickr, Facebook, and Twitter.

Plantgasm - I love plants too much. By Derek Powazek.

Plantbombing!

In Ideas on 19 August 2011 tagged , , ,

plantbomb1

plantbomb2Life in the city can get kind of bleak. Why not add a little extra life?

My wife loves to knit and I love to plant, so we decided to combine our passions to create these plant pockets. She knits them up, I fill them with soil and plants, and we’ve started leaving them around town.

Plant-wise, the trick is to plant them with things that are hardy enough to thrive in neglect. So in these photos you can see an Echeveria and an Aeonium – two plants that do quite well unattended in our climate.

The acrylic thread should pick up water from rain and fog, but there’s so little soil in them, I’m not worried about rot. And these particular plants are happy to grow in shallow containers, and fine to go for long periods of drought.

If people leave them alone, they could grow for quite a while just fine. I hope they bring a smile to the face of anyone who encounters them.

pockets

If you’re a knitter and would like to make one yourself, Heather’s posted instructions.

See Also

17 Responses

You may actually want to use wool yarn for this as it holds 30% of its weight in water and will not rot even when buried for years. I raise Suffolk sheep and Jacob sheep, spin the wool and sculpt with it.

I LOVE this idea!!!

Posted by Laura C Frazier FarmGirl Arts on 19 August 2011 @ 7am

absolutely fantastic. i would get so much joy from stumbling across one of these!

Posted by Krista on 19 August 2011 @ 9am

!!! How wonderful! And so utterly perfect in it’s conception!
In all honesty, if suddenly I walked down a side street and saw one of these attached to a fence – I’d cherish it. And a shame to anyone who neglects them as well! Keep up posted on these wonderful projects – They look great!

Posted by Donna B. on 19 August 2011 @ 12pm

Love it! What an awesome way to brighten someones day, You guys rock! When I was a kid I would pick flowers from our yard and drop them on the sidewalk on my path to school. The path was traveled often.. I like to think that someone got a kick outta my hansel and gretel flowers.

Posted by Tamara on 19 August 2011 @ 3pm

Oh you guys!!!
Just fabulous!! Just seeing the picture makes me so happy!!! I can only imagine coming upon one in person..
My heart would fill with such happiness!!! :D I love the wonderful colors of the yarn and how it accentuates
the plant and vise versa!! Your ‘Woolly Pockets’ are more fun & colorful ;) Anyone who sees them would have such a positive reaction and hopefully leave them where they are ‘planted’! :) But… then there are always the jerks out there like my neighbors who
“steal the beauty” to take to their house so only they can enjoy it :( I hope that good prevails and your beauty remains!! :) And that you and your wife might come upon a copy cat ‘Beautification Engineer’
who leaves some beauty for you guys to stumble upon!!
Good Karma is such a good thing and you guys are sure
spreading it!! Cheers-

Posted by Roberta on 19 August 2011 @ 3pm

I saw a pictures of something similar on flikr recently (might have been yours even!) and absolutely loved the idea! I’ve seen some shoddy yarnbombing around but these little delights really raise the bar when it comes to urban graffiti! Keep up the beautiful work!

Posted by Another Yarnbomber on 19 August 2011 @ 3pm

I love this idea!! Thanks for sharing. It would be so much fun to come across one of these in person. I hope they stay put for years, how fun!!

Posted by Amy (Get Busy Gardening!) on 19 August 2011 @ 3pm

This is right up my alley! Kudos and thanks for sharing it. I’ll have to try someting like this with moss!

Posted by David Spain on 21 August 2011 @ 10am

My daughter knits and I plant. I love this. A perk for urban gardeners. Look to see some soon and next year in Brooklyn!

Posted by Ross on 22 August 2011 @ 12pm

That´s beautiful! Congratulations. I´m still not sure if there is a can inside.
Myriam

Posted by Myriam on 22 August 2011 @ 4pm

Myriam: Nope! Inside the pocket is just soil.

Posted by Derek on 22 August 2011 @ 4pm

I love this idea love to knit and felt thought maybe a felted pocket might work well. What type of plants would you suggest for upstate ny?

Posted by Lisa on 23 August 2011 @ 4pm

I love this! What a creative idea, though I’m curious how they hold up in the heavy rain. Also, can they be put indoors?

Posted by Morri on 25 August 2011 @ 3pm

Thanks, Morri! You could put them inside, but they’ll definitely leak water and soil dust, so put them someplace you don’t mind getting dirty.

Posted by Derek on 25 August 2011 @ 4pm

These are beautiful, I want to make some for my deck, in fact I am going to make some for my deck! Starting today.

Posted by violet on 26 August 2011 @ 5am

I have just put down my knitting needles to respond with a big thank you. As soon as I saw the plant pockets on your wife’s sit I went to find my Red Heart Yarn. I also propegate succulents, so this project is just right for me. Can’t wait to leave one around town here in SoCal.

Posted by Sharon on 30 August 2011 @ 3pm

Derek & Heather: My husband found your pockets and showed them to me, as I love to knit and he knew the plantbombing aspect would really appeal to me. However, I’ve also been searching for a meaningful way to say goodbye to my sister, as we are scattering her ashes this weekend at the lake where she used to live. The plant pocket will hold my letter to her and her favorite flower. Thank you for this special way to say goodbye.

Posted by Mary on 31 August 2011 @ 10am


Plantgasm

Plantgasm is where Derek Powazek chronicles his botanical antics and misadventures. More.

Search the Archives

© Copyright Derek Powazek, all rights reserved. If you like something here, link to it, don’t copy it. This site is powered by WordPress and expertly hosted by Media Temple.