We’ve done it again. For the second year in a row, the bushes in our large wooden porch planters died from neglect. Chalk it up to miscommunication: Sherry thought I was watering them, I thought she was, Clara had no clue, and Burger was busy “watering” other plants. By the time we noticed it was too late—Sherry even tried pouring five cups of water on them daily for weeks with no result. So yes, we’re equally to blame and a little ashamed. Picture us looking contrite and promising to do better next season.
With fall approaching, we followed last year’s solution and picked up two yellow mums from Home Depot and set them in the planters. They were inexpensive and instantly brightened the porch. But when we started the swap, we noticed something else hiding in the planter—something large and decidedly unfriendly.
Yep. A huge spider. It’s the kind of bug that makes you check twice before sticking your hand into a planter. Those long, pointy legs and the way it crouched gave it a pretty menacing look. We don’t use the front door often, so who knows how long it had been living there. Internet searches aside, we weren’t planning to get close enough to find out whether human faces are on its menu.
Quickly and carefully, I removed the dead shrubs from the planters and then set the mums—pots and all—right into the leftover soil. It was a fast, tidy planting job and the new mums instantly made the porch look happier and more welcoming.
These mums are hardy, so after the season we’ll plant them in the yard so they’ll come back next year without another last-minute porch rescue mission.
Best of all, the spider didn’t leap at my head while I worked—so small victory for both of us. I snapped an “after” photo and started thinking about other porch improvements: a new doormat, framing the columns, painting the wood siding, and staining the concrete floor.
But I wasn’t about to let a spider win prime real estate right at face height by our front door. Using a broom, I gave the web a quick sweep to encourage the occupant to move along. In a twist I didn’t expect, the spider simply jumped into one of the new mums and seemed perfectly content there.
So if you stop by to sell Girl Scout cookies or drop off a package, be warned: our eight-legged roommate has claimed the left mum for now. We’ll probably relocate him later to a less front-and-center spot.
Pssst—Sherry did a short phone interview that just went live on the site. Also, check out this week’s Ikea gift card winners on the blog.