California: suburban plant research by Phoebe

Do you see urban plants in this picture? What about graffiti?

My sharp-eyed sister Phoebe did. She observed some interesting sidewalk phenomena during a recent visit to our childhood home:

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Chicago: Christmas tree stood up, in November

Yesterday, artist Matt Maldre published this photo of an enormous Christmas tree jumping the gun, standing to attention over a month before Christmas. He wrote on his Instagram feed:

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Dandelions around the world!

Photos in response for our call for dandelions, to wrap up the week! This dreamy close-up is from Sarah Parker, aka @sparkler on Instagram, as is the following trio…

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San Francisco: Urban slants, urban plants

On the sloping streets of San Francisco, local plants are interacting with the local architecture, growing against all odds. Phoebe Kuo sent in the above photo, reporting, “An intrepid urban plant seeks refuge on a steep San Francisco incline on Hayes Street, facing Alamo Square park (home of the famous Full House ‘painted ladies’), inside a nice, wet rain gutter.” Let’s take a closer look…

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Brighton and Hove, UK: Primulas in the urban jungle

“Some gangsta primulas hanging tough in the urban jungle of Hove,” as described and captured by new contributor Alberto Schiannini.

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Near Washington, D.C.: Spring blooms by streetlight

Today’s springtime urban plant beauty was captured at nighttime, by Sarah Parker, in a Home Depot parking lot near Washington, D.C. I’ve always found blossoming spring trees to be most beautiful at night, glowing under the streetlights, but have never gotten a good shot of them. I’m so glad Sarah captured this sight for us all to enjoy. It’s so beautiful that I’ll leave my usual worries about light pollution and plant insomnia aside. You can check out more photos on Sarah’s Statigram page. Have a great spring weekend, everyone!

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San Francisco: Flower blooms in flatland

Sometimes plants erupt right out of solid pavement, as we have documented in the past (Sara’s feather-weed stem and my asphalt-defying plant). This blue-headed beauty appeared at the Alamo Elementary School in San Francisco this Tuesday, where it was documented by Drew, who goes by @artnok_a on Instagram. Thanks for sharing this beautiful urban plant, Drew!

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UK, US, DE: Plants love laundromats, around the world

I’ve decided that plants love laundromats. I used to think I was just projecting my own feelings onto them, as I happen to adore both plants and laundromats. But whenever I’ve seen a plant within one of these bustling, fragrant and white-tiled spaces, it seems to be thriving in its warm, humid habitat. Now that I’ve met another photographer who’s documented the same thing – Nicolas Cook, who took the above picture in Birmingham, England – I’m sure we can’t both be wrong.

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Austin, TX: She spots plants in low places

These two urban houseplants have very unusual pots. The photograph, entitled “pisspots,” was taken by Alana Mandel in Holy Cross Hall at St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas. Read on for the logical explanation behind this situation…

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Germany: the fate of Christmas trees in January

What’s this? Could it really be a polar bear getting ready to eat a discarded Christmas tree? Indeed, our friend and faithful Urban Plants reader Phyllis alerted us to a strange and amazing January urban plant tradition that takes place each year in zoos all around Germany.

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