Gratuitous in Nature

When I was younger, I did not understand the concept behind cut flowers. As someone interested in the sciences, their purchase made no sense whatsoever. They appeared to have no practical value and to be a poor investment, dying only days after purchase.
I did not appreciate their beauty enough either - they may have been fun to identify or interesting from the perspective of analysis and study, but buying them was anathema to me.
But I have since learned the value of nature's extravagance and exuberance. In a place like NYC, where utility rules and problems abound, beautification could be seen as a low priority item and a frivolous use of monetary resources. But as I wrote recently in my article, Let's Have a Parade, not everything should be reduced to practical terms - see my posting Practical. Quality of life has been a recently articulated public policy and efforts to make the city more attractive are welcome.  
So a display like that in today's photo, taken at the Hudson River Park, is true eye candy for New Yorkers. And although flowers maybe gratuitous in nature, that's a good thing :)