D.C.'s Guerrilla Gardener Gets His Revenge

Many D.C. commuters were saddened to learn in July that hundreds of flowers surreptitiously planted at an area Metro station would be removed by officials. But has the city's "Phantom Planter" had the last laugh?

1 minute read

October 29, 2013, 5:00 AM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


"Early this summer, guerrilla gardener Henry Docter surreptitiously planted 1,000 flowering plants in the long, tubelike entryway to the Dupont Circle Metro station. He did it, he said, to beautify the prominent but shabbily kept public space. Metro officials waited a couple of weeks before yanking out the hundreds of morning glories and other plants in July, prompting more than 10,000 supporters to sign a “Let Our Flowers Grow” petition."

Seeking "artistic closure", Docter and a "young collaborator" suspended "a 6-by-6-by-4-foot boxlike artwork, which was covered with quotes about the July flower standoff" above the Q Street entrance of the Dupont Circle Metro station on Sunday. Docter's act of closure "wound up being a merger of performance art, civil disobedience and fodder for a bunch of strangers to have an impromptu Sunday chat about government power and the need for unexpected beauty," reports Michelle Boorstein.

Sunday, October 27, 2013 in The Washington Post

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight