有意栽花花不發，無心插柳柳成陰

有意栽花花不发，无心插柳柳成阴
yǒuyìzāihuāhuābùfā,wúxīnchāliǔliǔchéngyīn
  1. lit. you plant a garden and the flowers do not bloom, you poke a stick in the mud and it grows into a tree
  2. fig. things do not always turn out as one would expect
  3. well-laid plans may fail, and success may come where you least expect it

CEDICT

Entry Composition

1 有意 yǒuyì
  1. to intend
  2. intentionally
  3. interested in
2 栽 zāi
  1. to plant; to grow
  2. to insert; to erect (e.g. a bus stop sign)
  3. to impose sth on sb
  4. to stumble; to fall down
3 花花 huāhuā
  1. (dialectal) novel; new; original in an interesting way
  2. (literary or dialectal) child; kid (person who has not yet reached adulthood)
  3. (literary) bustling; lively; filled with activity
  4. (literary) good-looking; beautiful; pretty
  5. (literary) sing-song girl; woman whose profession involves singing and dancing
  6. bustling; lively; filled with activity
  7. child; kid (person who has not yet reached adulthood)
  8. good-looking; beautiful; pretty
  9. novel; new; original in an interesting way
  10. sing-song girl; woman whose profession involves singing and dancing
4 不 bù
  1. no; not so
  2. (bound form) not; un-
5 發 fā
  1. to send out
  2. to show (one's feeling)
  3. to issue
  4. to develop
  5. to make a bundle of money
  6. classifier for gunshots (rounds)
6 無心插柳柳成陰 wúxīnchāliǔliǔchéngyīn
  1. lit. idly poke a stick in the mud and it grows into a tree to shade you
  2. (fig.) unintentional actions may bring unexpected success
  3. also written 無心插柳柳成蔭