Definitely put up a no trespassing sign or signs. Sometimes police can be more or less about trespassing unless there's signs posted. Then also start tracking/recording the incidents and start making reports about it- enough reports can get some action.

Sprinklers can be effective- motion sensor sprinklers can sometimes be more effective.

Keep contacting the school/parents/bus company with your complaints.

A trick that is fairly nasty that I've known of folks to do about trespassing- Make "stink bombs/jars" and have them set out during bus stop times to drive off the folks with the stink. Mixtures of rotten milk or rotting eggs are easy. I knew one person that would dissolve fertilizer spikes in cola soda for a week or few to make a nasty smelling liquid. Scent baits of animal urine used for hunting purposes are potent and nasty too.

Agree with the no trespassing signs and recording incidents contemporaneously. Send email to the parents of the children that are causing the incidents.

In fact, I agree with beesneeds except for the stink bombs. I think that may go a little too far. You want to appear to be the calm rational person if these exchanges escalate.

I would be super angry, too!

Maybe instead of video with phone, install cameras with signs?

Far as stinky idea, you could fertilize the soil and spray plants with fish emulsion. It does stink, but it fertilizes your garden, too. Lol

I would consider putting up signs for a week or so and then putting a wire on the fence (not sure about liability issues...people are crazy).

Sounds like police need to be involved.

Good luck!!

I forgot to mention kids these days seem far more opposed to getting wet than in earlier time periods.

Ok, seriously, I am NOT getting that old. Sheesh.

Contact the business manager or superintendent of your district TODAY. Calmly & quickly explain your issue, and advise them that several requests to the bus contractor have yet to be acted on. Ask that they provide an immediate resolution to this problem that you can live with. A good solution may be to adjust the stop to an address where a student actually lives. Many states also have specific rules & regulations regarding student behavior both on the bus & at bus stops with discipline procedures that the district can take for unruly students. Under no circumstances should you just live with it because the school year is almost over. And many of the above suggestions is just more work & worry for you, and may backfire on you. The bus company will leave that stop in place for the rest of your life unless they are forced by the district to move it elsewhere. After many years in school transportation, trust me, you are NOT being unreasonable. And if your taxes support the school district, they have an even bigger reason to remedy this awful situation. Best of luck and hoping that your life returns to normal soon.

The last few days I have started to take photos and video, but again, I'm concerned that I could be blamed for videoing children.

DO take some photos and videos. What on earth else do you have as evidence? Without any you have a better chance of becoming "that nasty woman who yells at them." Assuming you approach the school and the kids deny it. Where does that leave you?

I really feel for your situation. Vandalism by kids is not the easiest matter to resolve. But there is no reason you can not record them. They are fully dressed we hope, in public, not restrained in any way, but there of their own will, and out of free will too harming other's property.

I disagree with the suggestions to react in direct harmful ways, shocks, stink bombs, etc. Leave that to movie scriptwriters and resolve things with rational thought, foresight, and effective communication.

Since the family is scary, your best bet is to move the bus stop. Talk to the School board. Send the school board a bill for damages and ask to move the bus stop.

Please keep in mind that these kids have no choice, they *must* catch the bus from this spot. I'm guessing not all of the ten kids are destroying your property. The well-behaved ones shouldn't have to go to school wet or stand in stink because a couple of them were never taught manners.

Here's what I would do:

-Go out once more when the dad is there. Because if those kids are anything like my kids, Dad is the one who will be obeyed without question whether he is mean or not. It's unlikely that he will attack you.

-Say very clearly and neutrally to the kids "this garden is off-limits. Do not climb the fence, do not touch the flowers." Now Dad knows your expectations, and the kids know he knows, and he knows that they know. You haven't 'tattled' to him and you haven't reprimanded them. You've given them one last, fair chance to follow the rules and you've removed any chance of plausible deniability. Don't other trying to explain or be nice. Just give them a direct command.

-The next time you see them stepping out of line, call the bus company with the number of the bus they take and tell the company that you are going to the school to file a report with the principal.

-Call the school and tell them you are coming in one hour and you are going to meet the principal to discuss a disciplinary issue with some students from his/her school. Don't ask the receptionist. Tell him or her. Have the names of the kids or at the very least their address and the bus route number with you when you meet. Show up at the school. Principals (at least the good ones) care a lot about the reputation of their school and will go far to protect it. Tell your story unemotionally, acknowledge that you understand childish irresponsibility but *not* blatant disrespect, and ask for any suggestions the principal might have on how to proceed from here. Resist making ultimatums or dictating terms. Instead ask for Principal's expertise and assistance. Nicely suggest that if necessary, you would be willing to attend a meeting with the family and Principal. Remember to thank him/her for their time. I know you probably don't need to be told that, but sometimes when we are heated we forget those little niceties. Like someone else said, you want to be perceived as completely rational and willing to collaborate toward a solution.

-When you get home, send the Principal an email thanking them for meeting you regarding the issue of kids in your garden. Express your optimism that a solution can be reached. Finish with something like "I'll keep you up to date on the situation as it progresses." Now you're on record with your concerns and your super reasonsable approach ;) And the Principal knows that s/he is not going to get you off her/his back until it's resolved lol.

-Give it a couple days and if it's still a problem go back to the bus company, and back to the school. This time be a bit more disappointed.

And so on until you've reached a justifiable state of outrage over the inability of the bus/school to deal with this problem. I know it is very annoying to have to jump through these hoops. But they are the hoops you have to get through to achieve your ultimate goal, which is *not* stopping the behaviour. If that happens that will be a delightful surprise. Your ultimate goal is getting the bus stop moved, but you can't ask for that. You have to keep being a polite, disappointed, angry thorn in the side of the bus company and the school until they ask you what they can do to make you feel better about the situation. Then you say "move the bus stop."

@auntthelma, why the school board? The kids' parents are responsible for the damage. School budgets are strapped as they are and paying out for damage they didn't cause for a garden not on school grounds isn't the answer. The OP has already attempted to be reasonable with multiple parties. This is now a vandalism issue the police need to resolve.

Again, don't take videos. I'm a very rational parent and I don't believe the sun shines out of my kids' backsides, and I teach them respect for others' property. But I would not tolerate a stranger videotaping or photographing them. That crosses a line of decency that no flowers are worth. Photograph the damage from one day to the next. With digital cameras those photos will be date stamped so will be sufficient if you need any evidence.

Don't film other people's kids. You're above that.

^lindsey nailed it.

Sabrina, I'm guessing you are an involved parent or a teacher. The bill is to get the school board's attention. Once you have their attention, ask them to move the bus stop. The parents can't do that.

My son's new house has an interesting weed that I'd never before encountered in a flower bed - stinging nettles. Just sayin'...

Stinging nettles are delicious and very nutritious! Use latex or rubber gloves to pick them now when they are small, dry them on wire racks, and store them in paper bags for a fantastic tea! Or eat them fresh, steamed. The sting goes away when they are cooked or dried.

Maybe instead of video with phone, install cameras with signs?

There is a significant cost difference in a phone which you have and a cctv camera system which you don't have nor need.

Taking a video of a crime in progress (in this case, vandalism) is not generally considered an invasion of privacy. It's considered good citizenship.

Remember, if an old lady takes a video of your kid committing a crime, it's not her being creepy, it's the kid behaving badly.

Maybe some property cameras which film only the borders of your property and get the local news station out there and that will put up a blast out there ''WHO'S DOING THIS?!'' because it's wrong but that way the kids remain anonymous yet everybody knows that is illegal activity and they can face charges if they are caught damaging people's property, and you shouldn't have to confront anybody. It should at least open up a local discussion about what others dealing with this same issue can do.

As far as police involvement, depending on your area that may get nowhere. If the fence is not actually damaged, that isn't vandalism. If the flowers or branches are over the sidewalk they are public property. The police are unlikely to get involved in a neighbourhood squabble especially when the monetary value is so low and it's just irresponsible kids at the bus stop. Sorry, that's just true.

Not saying you aren't justified in your outrage. Just saying the cops won't care.

I agree with auntthelma 100 percent.

The comment was made above, "But I would not tolerate a stranger videotaping or photographing [my children]."

Would you want a stranger photographing your kids or videotaping if your kid was being taunted or bullied or was the victim of a crime? I am sure you would. I am not sure how this is different.

"Remember, if an old lady takes a video of your kid committing a crime, it's not her being creepy, it's the kid behaving badly"

OK, take a step back. No one said anything about the OP being creepy. And no one said the OP is a little old lady. Not that it matters. The age or gender is irrelevant, no one should take video of kids that aren't theirs. Even in my close circle of friends and family we ask before photographing each other's kids, and often we ask the kids. We never post kids' images to social media sites without parents' permission. In the internet age there is more and more of an awareness of the sanctity of the person and each individual's right to privacy and right to control their own internet image.

Think of it this way. OP knows what her intentions are. And those of us following this thread are probably willing to believe that her intention is honourable and she is only making videos to prove her case (which is completely unnecessary if she leaves a paper trail of reports to the proper authorities). But the parents don't know that. How do they know she is not going to post those images to her social media? Would you want to take the risk of a complete stranger posting videos of your kids on the Internet? I wouldn't. And I'd have a big problem with anyone who took out their phone to video my kid. We've all observed that the most lenient parents are also the ones who are quickest to defend their kids against any violation, real or perceived. So simply based on the account given of the parents in this situation, it is likely that they will react strongly to someone taking images of their kids.

Just because the kids are behaving badly (from the description it is not a crime by the way) does not give anyone the right to cross the lines of decency. Two wrongs don't make a right. Her case can easily be proven without videos of the kids. Heck, she can ask other neighbours to stand there and watch too. Now there are witnesses.

And those other kids, who are not being destructive, have rights as well. If I found out that my nicely behaved kid was in a video on your phone, guess what? Now you have problems with me. That might actually work to your advantage in the long run because I would make darn sure that bus stop got moved!

"Would you want a stranger photographing your kids or videotaping if your kid was being taunted or bullied or was the victim of a crime?"

Hell no. I would want the adult witness to step in and stop the abuse.

And its different because fences and flowers have no awareness that they are being harmed.

The woman who worked hard on her garden knows she is being harmed. Don't discount her feelings.

There is no right to privacy on a public street. Period. If people take pictures of video of my kid while she's walking to school, there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. And most people in my neighborhood have security cameras, so I'm sure we both get recorded every day. Whether it is likely to offend someone is a separate issue. Personally, if kids were destroying my yard I would absolutely video tape them, but, as a practical matter, I'd do it discretely to avoid a potential confrontation with the parents.

(This is not legal advice.)

Do you have pictures of the front of the house and bus stop area?

The bus company needs to move the bus stop. They can do this. My oldest started riding the bus this year and they had the stop 200 feet from my house in front of someone’s private property (no house though) at an interesection with 3 way stop that people blow through. Since my kid was the only one getting picked up at this stop (and no sidewalk) I asked them to move it to my driveway and they did. Talking to the school board would be a good next option. That is not ok for kids to destroy your property.

Hey auntthelma you seem really invested in this dilemma and that's fair. But please don't put words in my mouth ok? I have never, in any of my posts, discounted her feelings. In fact I've affirmed them many times and I sympathize completely. I took the time to detail an effective strategy, which videoing is simply not. It's not necessary, it's not ethical, and it can only serve to escalate the problem when the parents inevitably retaliate.

My last comment was a direct reply to the tackykat who said "Would you want a stranger photographing your kids or videotaping if your kid was being taunted or bullied or was the victim of a crime? I am sure you would. I am not sure how this is different."

I was answering how it is different: because a child in active danger from a bully is of more importance than a fence or the feelings of the owner of the fence. I feel certain that if any of us saw a child being abused on one hand and a fence being climbed on on the other, we would intervene on behalf of the child. Even sweetpea, and even if it was her fence.

Just because it's legal to videotape a person in public, doesn't mean it is ethical or even necessary. Photos of the damage will suffice. And you will have problems with the parents if you do, which gets you nowhere in your ultimate goal which is to protect your garden.

If you tell the parents who are present, and they do nothing... you tell the bus company, they don't care, & niether will the cops... you tell the neighbours, they'll sympathise but may not want to get involved... you take pictures of the damage, but not the act of it being damaged...
then you try going to the parents who are not present and the school, they deny it because the kids deny it...
and the media, where it's an allegation with nothing to stand on...
what else do you have? If you were published it you can blur out the kids faces easily, but you need evidence of it happening.

If I remember the kids are from at least two schools. easy, they each say they were there, but the others did it... and nothing happens, they continue.

Record a video, while telling the kids that as you have told them previously, they need to stop, and tell them that you are recording this as evidence needed if they do not stop.

Assuming a cctv security camera system picks up kids doing this or whatever else? is it then also wrong to have them recorded, moreso if they were bystanders, they have rights, they might get on to social media, the lot?

Now I'm not at all saying the op should post them on social media, but in general, about others having pics of you and sharing them, the reality is, you don't control your internet image. You control your daily life image, through your behaviour.
Part of your image will get spoken about, part of it will get shared on the net, part of it will remain unknown to others. But you chose what that image was to begin with.

Several ideas here are good ones, some are not. My 2cents worth.

1. Go to the principal. Tell him the problem. See what he does. If it is not taken care of.....

2. Go to the school superintendent. Tell him the problem. See what he does. If it is not taken care of...

3. Go to the School Board during open forum. Tell them the problem. See what they do. If it is not taken care of....

4. Go to the police. Tell them the problem. See what they do. If it is not taken care of....

5. Go to the news There are call for help people that can help. Tell them the problem. See what they do. If it is not taken care of....

Hire a security guard for 2 weeks. Build a different fence.

I feel you have talked to the kids and the parents. They have chosen to do nothing. So now you need to do what you can do.

But, walking in someone's yard is not okay especially with the intent of destroying property.

And, plants, etc. that are hanging over the side walk are public property. You may need to trim your plants.

I doubt OP wants to have the reputation of the crazy lady who takes videos of kids at the bus stop.

Again, I understand that this would be heartbreaking and infuriating. But it's not a police matter. Because they have too much to do to get involved in neighbourhood squabbles.

If the parents are rational, the behaviour will stop after a chat with the principal.

If the parents aren't rational the situation is going to escalate very unpleasantly if videos and photos are made. Especially if they are shared on social or traditional media.

Lindsey is right actually about sharing the videos, it's okay to record on your property line, but unless you are planning on actually sueing your neighbors and using it as evidence in court don't share the videos, and of course you want to avoid doing that at all costs.

sueing neighbours? haha things escalate quickly here

The reason I suggested sprinklers is kids don't get wet unless they are in the plants because most people don't water sidewalks - someone remarked that kids would be going to school wet. Kids don't want to sit in school with wet clothes and after school they are not hanging around their bus stop they are heading home. Also that is just the time your sprinklers are set for - kids will not register intent with this action. I would not take photos except to document damage. I would call the bus company and the school often. I would also find out where the office is for the bus company and visit them in person. I am so sorry you are dealing with this. Please let us know what you are going to try and how it works.

@auntthelma, the school district moving the bus stop is a bonus, IMO. The first order of business is getting restitution for the damage caused by the kids, for whom the parents are responsible. My kids are grown now, but I can't imagine not reporting this if nothing has been done to curb the kids' behavior after several attempts to discuss with the parents rationally and reasonably. I would have been horrified if my kids did this to someone else's yard, and would have offered to pay for the damage without being asked. (And then would have had a strongly worded conversation with my kids that included grounding.) If they won't pony up, file a report.

"You won't get far with the bus company in all likelihood. To them, the deal is pick the kids up, drop them off. Nothing else is their business"

That's partly true. They might not care much. But from the moment the child sets foot on the bus stop to the moment they step foot off the bus at school the bus company is legally responsible for them.

All bus companies do have a no horseplay at the bus stop rule. If a kid is messing around, stumbles into the street and gets hit or hurt the bus company can be held liable. My kids have been written up for playing tag in our driveway (which is their bus stop) because the driver could see their "horseplay" from down the block.

Sit in a lawn chair on your front walk with your phone up and pointed at them like you were filming. Don't film, just act like it. See what they do the first day you do that. You're changing their behavior just by being there and holding up your phone.

Holly bushes and an Electric fence !..just a thought !

I love the sprinkler idea. I do think addressing it like you did first is a great first step. If the parents don't care you are at a loss. You could also address it with the school since it is a behavioral problem. I have another thought though. What if they were to see you working hard in that area? If by chance when they got off the bus or even chatting with the parents talk about how much time the garden takes...your favorite plant, etc. Just in passing. It's all I've got for you! Best of luck.

How about an electric fence like people do when they want to keep their dog in the yard?

I wouldn’t worry about if they think of u as the grumpy woman, they r acting like bad parents n bratty kids.. best of luck.

Oops sorry snaggy, just saw ur post

great minds think alike. Lol.

UPDATE I heard from the school system this afternoon and they are planning to move the bus stop to the next street down! This will happen after April vacation of this year. So, hopefully only 1 more day of dealing with this! So much more than I was hoping for.

sweetpea, keep us posted as to what happens. Three new homes are being built not far from us. They are directly across the a high school, and there's a bus stop in front of them. All 3 are also very close to the street...maybe 25-30 feet. All I can think of is what a PITA it's going to be for the owners. That whole area is simply crammed with traffic and kids in the morning and afternoon. No one can believe they picked that spot for new homes...or that anyone would want to live there knowing the situation.

I won't use a sprinkler, If was my house I will sit outside with a hose and give a free shower to who damage my plants

OMG...that's GREAT!!! Kudos to the school system and YOU for staying on top of it. :-)

That is wonderful news!

Yes it is wonderful. I just hope that there aren't any people upset over the move. And for all of the people commenting on video or filming the kids, I also was not thrilled with the idea. I'm not a creeper. I just wanted proof if there were any denials of afore mentioned acts. I had NO intention of posting anything and would only use said evidence if in fact needed to the proper authorities. I thankfully no longer have the need and will erase these. As far as I was concerned it wasn't about them being kids. No one would be getting up in arms if they were over 18 and destroying my property. I'm just glad this will be rectified.

sweetpea I can assure you I never for one second thought you were a creeper or that you were going to post those images anywhere.

I am really glad that the school heard your concerns and acted accordingly. I felt very sure they would. :)

You may find that there is a public road "right of way" or set back issue that will end up with this dispute not being decided in your favor.

Is there another place in your yard for your garden? If so, begin moving your garden now ... before the city digs it up and paves it over for a sidewalk.

If you plan to film any activity on your lot -- and even if you're not going to -- you could, perhaps should, post one of those signs saying "camera in use".

If you are permitted to add a 6' fence, budget permitting, do so, whether or not you move your garden and end up with only grass at that corner.

suezbell, the matter has already been resolved in the OP's favor. The bus stop is being moved to another street.