In a manner not entirely dissimilar to hermit crabs who, rather than creating their own exoskeletons, rely on empty mollusc shells to provide them with protection, some trees and plants have evolved to take advantage of the small pottery containers that are now so much a part of our gardens. Of course trees and plants do not generally create armoured exteriors, relying instead on the sheer amount of ground around them to bulwark their roots. Nevertheless, evolving to take advantage of pots has given them a distinct advantage over other more stationary species, allowing them greater mobility and therefore enhanced opportunity to seek out sunlight and the more sheltered spots away from the wind.

However, like hermit crabs, this developmental ‘choice’ is not entirely free of danger: as individual plants grow they will need to change their pot from time to time. This is always a tricky moment, and like hermit crabs, not all of them make it through that moment of extreme vulnerability between shells.