Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
The return of the geraniumnappers
That time of year again? When your geraniums start to bloom and then suddenly they are gone, victims of the geraniumnappers of Harringay.
We lost two from the communal planters yesterday afternoon. At 4 o'clock I was admiring the startling pink of a new flower, by 6 o'clock there was nothing but a hole in the ground where once the little plant had been. Then, sadly, I noted that a scarlet beauty that had been hiding under the hollyhock has also been unceremoniously hauled from her shady bed and made away with.
Truth is after 5 years of street gardening, I've learned not to get (too) cross and not to plant geraniums. We try to outgarden the beggars, but these plants were a donation from a neighbour and it is discouraging for them when the nappers take things that they've given.
Anyway, more to the point, if you've got geraniums in your front gardens, keep an eye on them. It seems now they are starting to show their pretty faces, the geraniumnappers get to work.
We've left notes in the holes. Scrawled on exercise paper in coloured pencil, I'm hoping the pathos will appeal to the better nature of the nappers and they'll leave us be (or they might nick the signs). Plus, I spy a good excuse to publicise the Friends of Harringay Passage Gardening Group.
Tags for Forum Posts: geraniumnapping, geraniums, plant thieves
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by GillianM on
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Thanks Lauren - they're wooden right? Handmade window boxes sound lovely but unfortunately most unlikely to get funded at the moment! I was wondering how you would do it with clay pots.
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Permalink Reply by Lauren on
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Yes wooden ones - probably not that expensive as he uses leftover wood from his carpentry jobs or reclaimed wood. I think those ones in pic are old scaffold boards he found out on the street!
I don't know about the clay pots - maybe you could attach them through the drainage holes?
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Permalink Reply by Justin Guest on
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Alan has done some great things with his reclaimed wood, so if you need any planters do have a chat with him- they are not works of art, so will not cost the earth (I am sure).
I should say, I worry about drilling into the window sills. They are often quite soft and porous sand stone based materials, and introducing an ingress for water could start a slow process of degradation (freeze thaw) that will see the sill damaged or worse crumble. Just bear this in mind!
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Permalink Reply by Liz on
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We've had ours for quite a while now and, as yet, no problems *touches wood*
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Permalink Reply by Mark Smith on
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Luckily the geraniums I had in my window box survived last summer unscathed. I've got plenty of spare ones that overwintered this year, so if you want some replacements let me know.
I'm growing some drought resistant osteospemum that I'm planning to plant around the tree outside 106 Pemberton, so hopefully these won't prove as tempting as your geraniums when I put them out.
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Hi Mark,
I'd appreciate a couple of spare geraniums please.
I've popped some petunias at the base of a tree outside my house, so far so good. Also planning to put poppy and nasturtium seeds in the bases of some others on my road as they like a bit of a rough environment.
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I'm around most of the weekend. I've sent you a message.
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