Ep 24. Mary Richards and the Incredible Plant Lady

Mary Richards and the Incredible Plant Lady is the 24th episode of season 3 of the classic television show The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The episode was first aired on March 2nd, 1974, and was directed by Peter Baldwin.

The episode starts with Mary attending a party hosted by one of her colleagues, Sue Ann Nivens, who is a famous television chef. Mary is surprised to see that all the guests at the party are plant enthusiasts and have brought along various types of plants. As Mary struggles to make small talk with the guests, she overhears a woman complaining about the lack of space in her apartment to store all her plants. Mary offers her the use of her own apartment to keep her plants, and soon the woman happily accepts.

The next day, when Mary returns to her apartment, she is shocked to see that the woman has filled her entire apartment with plants. Mary is worried about what her landlord, Lou Grant, will think when he sees the plants, but the woman assures her that she will take care of everything. As Mary soon finds out, the woman is not just any ordinary plant enthusiast, but an "incredible plant lady" who is an expert in horticulture.

However, Mary soon discovers that having an apartment full of plants is not as easy as it seems. She finds it difficult to move around in her own apartment and is constantly bumping into plants. She is also unable to sleep because of the noise made by all the plants at night. The incredible plant lady assures Mary that it is just a matter of getting used to it, and suggests that Mary decorate her apartment with plants as well, which would make her feel more at home.

As Mary starts decorating her apartment with plants, she finds that she actually enjoys it. She even starts talking to her plants, much to the amusement of her friends and co-workers. However, things take a turn for the worse when Lou Grant finds out about the plants in Mary's apartment. He is furious and threatens to evict her if she does not get rid of the plants.

Mary is torn between her love for the plants and her need to keep her apartment. However, when she finds out that the incredible plant lady is about to leave the city and has nowhere to keep her plants, Mary decides to help her out. She convinces her friend, Rhoda, to let the incredible plant lady keep her plants in her apartment, and in return, the incredible plant lady offers to help Mary get rid of the plants in her apartment.

With the help of the incredible plant lady, Mary manages to get rid of all the plants in her apartment just in time to avoid eviction. She even manages to keep a few of her favorite plants as a reminder of her time as a plant enthusiast. The episode ends with Mary talking to her plants one last time before bidding them farewell.

Overall, Mary Richards and the Incredible Plant Lady is a heartwarming and funny episode that showcases Mary's desire to help others and her willingness to embrace new experiences. The episode also highlights the importance of having a sense of community and the joy that comes with sharing one's passions.