I have neighbors that follow everything that I do. :-) If I cut the grass, later on they are cutting grass and so on and so on. I just enjoy gardening and it relaxes me. I have planted several dwarf glads, daylillies a few elephant ears in the front and some hydrens on the side I am so excited to see everything coming up okay. In the back I am trying tomatoes and strawberries and 2 blueberry bushes. My neighbor (city boy) told me that was a little too much (the fruit and all). I didn't let that get me down though because the fruit (except for the tomatoes due to a surprise frost) are coming along. Don't let anyone get you down. Just so what you do!!

My garden is pretty goofy.

Even my own husband claims to be embarassed *that HURTS*

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My husband's a neat freak & criticizes some neighbors (to me only; he grew up in a small town where you learned you better keep your trap shut & get along with people). Some neighbors happen to be sloppy, but I was not much better. I'm so glad our neighbors weren't so critical of me. When I was working full time & raising our child, I shudder to think about the state of my gardens!! The elderly ladies next door never complained, God bless them, but I'm sure it tried their patience because now I realize what an eyesore they had to look at all those years!!! Once my child left home & I quit work, I finally got everything neat & tidy. I'm exactly like you, though, in that I mind my own business and don't look around & make judgments on other people's yards.

I am retired and still love gardening even after thirty plus years of enjoying my hobby and plan on gardening as long as possible. Continue your gardening and enjoy yourself soon you will get compliments even from the complainer.

uroboros5 your yard is whimsicaly charming and unique. I really like it and don't think it is goofy at all, you have an artistic eye.

I still remember my grouchy neat-freak neighbor 40 years ago who strongly disapproved of my mowing around the clumps of blue-eyed grass until they matured. Haven't been able to get blue-eyed grass started since.

I've got loads of blue-eyed grass! I think it's a little late this year, but keep me in mind. I'll send you some next spring!

Nancy

Ok uroboros5 I'm ENVIOUS of your beautiful woodworks. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, even husbands (or not), but I think the art work is wonderous! Did you do them?

Renee

I knew you guys would know what I was talking about! And I know that they aren't the best looking (most of the weeds are just stupid crab-grass and dandelions, nothing tall), but by the time I wait for some TIME, I'd never have a garden!

And I LOVE your VINE BALL! It's crazy-neat!

I'm am the odd-ball, er, man out in my neighborhood! Hhhhmmm...good, I think I like it that way! *wink wink*

Dani

Well, for goodness sake! Some folks have nerve don't they? I'm so glad I live in the country with no really close neighbors. I have 3 acres so that kind of puts a good distance between me and my nearest. There are lots of folks that live down the road from me who pass by everyday. Some stop to comment on my gardens, but they are always nice comments. Some probably think I'm crazy cause I'm out there from daylight till dark and sometimes even later if we're having dry weather and everything needs a drink. :) And during bloom season, I'm always running around with my camera and a notebook snapping photos of everything. There's no telling what folks think, but you know what, who cares what others think. Like others said, just keep doing what you love as I do, and let folks have their opinions. If gardening makes you happy as it does me, then don't let critics wilt your blooms!!! :)
Hope you get lots of pretty blooms and the neighbor turns green with envy!
Jan

I sympathize -- we moved from our last place just to lose the neighbors! Now we live in the country with five acres and don't have to worry about it. But if I hadn't had nasty neighbors, I would never have had the space to indulge in the daylily bug, so things worked out great!

I love your vine sculptures. They are unique and how cool is that?

I have one neighbor, (a sweet lady in her late seventies) who worries about the money I spend on my garden. This lady supports many of her family members including a perfectly capable sister with a healthy teen male son and her daughter who is also healthy while the lady herself has many physical problems, including lupus, but this lady not only supports the family financially, she even cuts the others grass.

I should keep my mouth shut to her comments, but one day after she had commented repeatedly that I must have spent thousands of dollars on my yard, I told her "We have worked hard and we are debt free. My children are adults and I am not worrying about leaving money for them...I made mine, they can make theirs."

She hasn't quizzed me about money spent since that day.

kay

That little old lady probably thought she was being helpful. We don't ever seem to see the wrong in ourselves only in others. I do hope you all are still good friends, but you were right she needs to know how you feel.
As for Yard Nazis they are everywhere, you can even find them way out in the country. Most of ours belong to the "association." When we moved in to the home we now own they send us a letter telling us we needed to cut our grass and that we had weeds in our beds. I threw the letter in the trash and never heard from them again. They drive around in those golf carts and stop and look.

Yard Nazis! I LOVE THAT!

Dani---I like your vine arches too. I would plant daylilies all around them too!
As for neighbors, I live in a neighorhood (not on acres as we would love!) and they mostly just have grass (lawns) and no shrubbery or trees at all. How sad. BUT you know what? That just helps make MY YARD stand out! I am the one with gardens beds galore, filled my lovely daylilies and other plants and flowers, and a red Japanese Maple tree as well as 2 large pink Crepe Myrtles and several red crepe myrtle bushes! Yes, I am proud of my work on it all and I have recieved compliments from many.
You just go on and enjoy your gardening....maybe one day it will 'inspire' them to do something to those boring plain yards! LOL
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Don't let the a**holes get you down. I was the same as you when my sons were small, and I was working. House was never quite clean--let alone neat--and yard always seemed to need mowing or edging or weeding. No flowers anywhere. I played with toes, read bedtime stories, and rolled little cars down tracks. Best thing I ever, ever did. I have two happy, well-adjusted honor students now, who keep their own rooms clean, help with the kitchen work and take out the trash without being told.

You just keep your eye on the big picture!

Petalpatsy,

What a wonderful way to describe life with kids!!! I "used" to be a neat freak, then my kids came along......my life sounded like yours for a long time, and I am happy with the way my kids turned out! That's all that matters. I still have one living here, and sometimes he gets on my nerves, but I stop and try to remember what is most important. I will have my house to myself one day, and it will stay neat. Until then, life goes on!! LOL Jan G.

ladydonna: I love your garden! My daughter lives in one of those "Nazi" controlled neighborhoods too where everyone has to have the greenest, neatest lawn with no other plants! Well, being my daughter, she loves to garden so her yard looks like yours. Not much grass left to mow with pathways through the flowers, etc. She has the most beautiful yard in the entire neighborhood and people walk their dogs by her place just so they can see the beauty. :)
When she first started planting her garden, the "nazi's" tried to discourage her saying they wanted the neighborhood to be uniform. Ha, that didn't work with her, she just planted anyway and now they don't bother her about it anymore.
Ya'll just go ahead and plant your gardens and enjoy them, and don't worry what the neighbors think or say. Truth be known, they are probably just jealous of your beautiful flowers. LOL
Jan