Berlin: Incidentally observed Friedrichshain plants (or, Instaplants)

Taped-off scene of destruction: urban plant carnage at Boxhagener Platz in Berlin.

Now that Urban Plant Research has an Instagram feed in addition to this here blog, some plants I see wind up landing only one on platform or the other – it’s hard to keep tabs on them all. Here’s a trove of Berlin summer plants that I’ve recently posted on Instagram.

Looking back through the past few weeks’ worth of photos, I realize that I’ve been too busy to seek plants outside my own district of Friedrichshain – but not too busy to find a lot of interesting flora on while going about my daily business.

I found this baby tree of heaven at the pub Abgedreht while enjoying a typical Berlin outdoor soccer viewing event (Euro 2012 group round, Germany vs. Holland). It appeared to be challenging the solidity of the famous Karl-Marx-Allee Stalinbauten by springing up through a crack that seems only visible to members of the Ailanthus altissima species.

This pretend topiary, pretending to be grand, caught my eye while I was taking a lunch break on the very not-grand Boxhagener Straße, a street that’s jumbled full of tram tracks, construction sites, bars, currywurst shops and goth stores.

While starting off on a long walk to the lively district of Neukölln, I was sad to see this badly pruned blackcurrant bush in a public green space, Comeniusplatz, not far from where I live. It has just barely managed to grow a few fruits.

Surprisingly, back on Boxhagener Straße, I spotted an absolutely thriving pot of spearmint outside a grungy corner pub. Perhaps it lives in a symbiotic relationship with the mojito-mixing bar owners.

If you want to see more ‘Instaplants,’ you can look for us on Instagram. It’s available for smartphones running Android or iOS. We’re @urbanplantresearch and you can contribute your photos to the group Urban Plants pool by tagging them with #urbanplants. Of course, you’re always welcome to send us links to your favorite photos by email, too!