For lack of yards, many Kyoto houses and apartment buildings feature jury-rigged container gardens instead. These usually consist of rows of motley pots and crates lined up along the building walls, adjoining the sidewalk. This container garden had a different feel.
Remarkably uniform, coldly white and modern, these identical pots lined the fence of a corner lot in long rows, from one end to the other
Upon further inspection, the contents reveal some variety: little pansy faces of different colors and expressions. However, it’s not the coziest of gardens, I think. I’ll post some examples of more relaxed and characteristic Kyoto container gardens soon; curious to hear which style you prefer.
urban plant research 
These remind me of preschool shoe bins.
Oh! I don’t know those. I don’t think we had them at my preschool…
Here’s what they kinda look like: http://www.globalindustrial.com/c/office/school-furniture/preschool-cubbies
Oh, THOSE! That’s exactly what I imagined when you said “preschool cubbies” but I thought you might have had ones attached directly to the wall, like these flowerpots.
Oh maybe i’m thinking of those shoe hanger things people put in their closet. http://www.lnt.com/product/closet-storage/272285-1524/hold-n-storage-canvas-24-pocket-over-the-door-shoe-organizer-set-of-2-ri-80749-by-richards-homewares.html
Yes! I definitely see the similarities in the shape and feel.
Do you follow the Fixes blog?
http://a-small-lab.com/fixes/
Georgia, thank you! No, I did not know Fixes but it is awesome, as is a-small-lab. Looking forward to exploring it further.