Don’t buy a flower taller than you

15 Aug

Don’t buy a flower taller than you.

Because it will just cause you grief.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you, don’t plant it beside a tree.

Because that looks dumb.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you and plant it beside a tree, don’t lose the tag.

Because you’ll obsess over the mystery.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you and plant it beside a tree and lose the tag, don’t look through your archives for a photo.

Because you won’t have one.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you and plant it beside a tree and lose the tag and lack a photo in your archives, don’t Google “giant mystery flower” to find the name.

Because that’s not effective.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you and plant it beside a tree and lose the tag and lack a photo in your archives and ineffectively search the name, don’t fall off the ladder while you’re looking at the blooms.

Because that hurts.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you and plant it beside a tree and lose the tag and lack a photo in your archives and ineffectively search the name and fall off the ladder, don’t think you won’t sacrifice a couple of toilet flushes to water it during the record-breaking drought.

Because you will.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you and plant it beside a tree and lose the tag and lack a photo in your archives and ineffectively search the name and fall off the ladder and sacrifice a couple of toilet flushes, don’t feel disappointed when you realize it’s a 6FT coneflower.

Because you will.

And if you do buy a flower taller than you and plant it beside a tree and lose the tag and lack a photo in your archives and ineffectively search the name and fall off the ladder and sacrifice a couple of toilet flushes and feel disappointed that it’s a 6FT coneflower, don’t be surprised to stare up at it one day and think that you should buy another one.

Because you will.



15 Responses to “Don’t buy a flower taller than you”

  1. Heather August 15, 2009 at 1:10 PM #

    Too funny!

  2. Linda August 15, 2009 at 1:57 PM #

    I was just working on a post earlier today for next week about my vegetable garden being too tall. My post, however, is not nearly so clever as yours. Love it!

  3. Jen August 15, 2009 at 8:58 PM #

    Love it, beautiful.

    We know this baby as a Mexican Sunflower, they grow on the roadside.

    Jen

  4. Lornet August 16, 2009 at 7:19 AM #

    F
    U
    N
    N
    Y
    !

  5. Anna August 16, 2009 at 8:07 AM #

    :)

  6. Auntie Shirley August 16, 2009 at 1:07 PM #

    These are growing along the roadside – highway 39—right behind our house. They are tall and beautiful ! Hope it was a short ladder !

  7. Helen at Toronto Gardens August 16, 2009 at 4:01 PM #

    It’s such a funny post, it seems a shame to tell you. I think it might be Rudbeckia laciniata ‘Herbstsonne’. Have a look at this link:

    https://appserver1.kwantlen.ca/apps/plantid/plantid.nsf/lookup/01D1AD5F809B846E88256F020061726D?OpenDocument

    But promise me you won’t climb a ladder to do so.

    • sorrygardener August 16, 2009 at 7:52 PM #

      Having just (seriously) climbed down from the ladder after trying to take a better photo of the blooms, I think you are correct, Helen. Thanks for the link.

  8. lynnsgarden August 16, 2009 at 5:16 PM #

    ROFL! Kelley, you always trip me up with your words! So did you plant the new one in a different spot???

    • sorrygardener August 16, 2009 at 7:56 PM #

      Lynn, I’m scoping out a new location for them where they can stretch tall and proud.

  9. fairegarden August 17, 2009 at 9:12 AM #

    This is indeed Rudbeckia lanciniata, nearly 12 feet tall in my garden. Love your prose to explain the ups and downs of growing such a majestic plant. Ours seeds all over the place, those seeds left by the hungry goldfinches that is. :-)
    Frances

  10. Lori August 18, 2009 at 3:12 PM #

    Love it, yet another wonderfully clever post complete with stunning pictures!!

  11. Carol, May Dreams Gardens August 31, 2009 at 6:04 PM #

    I want one.

  12. sorrygardener August 31, 2009 at 6:41 PM #

    Okay, with garden blogging goddesses Frances and Carol both leaving comments on this post, I proclaim that pain-in-the-ass flower worth every bit of grief.

  13. Herb and Nancy September 6, 2009 at 10:14 AM #

    Just realized that our comment on this did not work…too late to re do…we are’t savy ..we loved this one too