I know this will seem petty, but three or four weeks ago, our HR Manager had someone in our warehouse empty our planters out front and buy new dirt. That dirt has been sitting there for this period, the pots empty and some of the dirt turned upside down with old roots showing. I took the initiate Friday to plant the pots. Yesterday, our HR Manager came up and was rather curt with me about this and how she's responsible for the outside. (Mind you, I am somewhat of a back up for her and when the person reporting directly to her was let go, I absorded some of those duties.) She emailed my boss that she "counseled me" about this when in reality she came up and in this counseling said I was hiding behind a member of the management team opened the door to my office and charged out... and it was about the pots, a lunch I was asked to order from a member of management team, funeral flowers that my own boss asked me to order... about how she's responsible for the outside etc... I was told by email, from my boss, that it was rude of me to finish something someone else had started.

Last Christmas we had another employee bring in some floral Christmas decoration for the front foyer. I don't believe she was counseled about it. In fact she was happy about it. We had a manager here ask me to order a glass case for the front foyer and she didn't go counsel him.

Is it wrong to have initiative at a job? Is it wrong to go above and beyond you job description (which was emailed to me from our HR person) It was ten minute job and they had been sitting there for weeks.

Welcome to AMHD. Sounds as though you may have stepped on some toes; you may have shown-up someone, which isn't good. As an employee, you should be mindful that your 'job' is to make your boss look good. Next time, run your idea by your supervisor before acting alone. Over the long run, what you have done is good, IMO, but sometimes there are those others who may envy your effort.

In larger companies, if it is not your job duties, you always ask permission of a supervisor or other boss before you do any duty that is not within your job. Yes, they have a right to "cousel" you about it, and no it does not matter who they do or do not cousel in the past or future

But I wasn't what she said "counseled." Her being HR, glossed it over using the word counsel. In fact when she left my office, she opened the door and stormed out... to the point where, I was ready to cry and the man in the next office came to my door. She was just snotty about it.
If she is HR, shouldn't there be some protocol for her behavior. Additionally, if she was that displeased shouldn't she have gone to my boss first about it, before me.

She's not my boss. I just support her if she needs it.

And now that my boss, emailed from Sweden that it was rude of me to finish something she never started, she is being fake nice to me. Like what my boss said is a flag in her cap.

I'm not saying I was right. I know her feeling were hurt. I know she was shown up. What's getting me is that she was snotty when she charged into my office, then she turns around and gets all nice saying counseling me is part of her duties?

It makes me feel like I don't want to do anything over and above because I'll get it for it.

Sounds like she is very protective of her duties. In my experience, when fellow employees were worried that someone else would do their work it was because they were in the process of trying to get a pay increase based on their vast duties.
Usually then, after they get the increase they disown those vast duties as quickly as they can. It was callled reclassification where I worked. The only way to get upgraded was to prove you had taken on more important duries than were in your job you were originally hired to do.

DMS111, don't let this incident prevent you from taking the initiative in the future. That's one of the ways that you will stand out from the crowd and put you in a position for better performance reviews. I would caution you to be smart about how you demonstrate initiative. If you want to finish a job that someone else started, especially if that person is manager, you should review your plans with your boss before taking action. Finishing the pots may have seemed like a small thing to you but clearly, the HR manager saw this action as a sign of you moving into her territory.

It also seems that she has assumed some responsibility for you because your manager is not local. You should find out from your boss what role the HR manager is expected to play as it relates to your work direction and counseling. I would suggest you get this in writing via email so that there is no confusion.