More aesthetically pleasing?

Hi all,

We have neighbours moving in imminently and our garden looks like Steptoes yard . We haven't had any for a long time and my bunny keeping hobby has seriously expanded during that time. There is a high hedge between us, but if they look out their back windows they are going to wonder what on earth is going on!

I have a variety of sheds, playhouses, runs and 16ft long, unattractive runaround tunnels taking over the entire garden. Everything is very jumbled and mismatched and mostly second hand. I also have a number of tarps and bungees holding everything down in bad weather.

I can't afford to replace everything, otherwise I would definately get something really fancy like I've seen online.

Is there anything I could do to make things more attractive? Does anyone else have the same problem? Should i just accept that's how it is? Should I try painting things to match (hugely daunting, a lot of work, I'd imagine)?

Any suggestions very welcome.
Thank you x

I am sure that they would rather your bunnies be safe, warm and secure than a manicured garden. I am sure that letting them meet you and your bunnies will start them seeing you as friends rather than judging you.

TheThreeB's said:

Hi all,

We have neighbours moving in imminently and our garden looks like Steptoes yard . We haven't had any for a long time and my bunny keeping hobby has seriously expanded during that time. There is a high hedge between us, but if they look out their back windows they are going to wonder what on earth is going on!

I have a variety of sheds, playhouses, runs and 16ft long, unattractive runaround tunnels taking over the entire garden. Everything is very jumbled and mismatched and mostly second hand. I also have a number of tarps and bungees holding everything down in bad weather.

I can't afford to replace everything, otherwise I would definately get something really fancy like I've seen online.

Is there anything I could do to make things more attractive? Does anyone else have the same problem? Should i just accept that's how it is? Should I try painting things to match (hugely daunting, a lot of work, I'd imagine)?

Any suggestions very welcome.
Thank you x

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This sounds very familiar! My neighbours were just very touched that I was rescuing so many unwanted rabbits and trying to give them a life worth living.

Hopefully when you meet your neighbours they will have the same viewpoint

It wouldn’t actually occur to me to be bothered about how it looked to the neighbours - my garden, my choice lol.

Casco said:

It wouldn’t actually occur to me to be bothered about how it looked to the neighbours - my garden, my choice lol.

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This.

Have your own garden exactly how you want it

I would be tempted to pain things to match where possible otherwise when you chat to them mention what your set up is. Hope they turn out to be really nice neighbours for you.

Sometimes just a little tidy and a fresh lick of paint can make you feel fresher!

But as far as I'm concerned I agree with the others, you're garden is done according to your needs! So don't worry!

I presume they had a nosey at the neighbouring gardens before they decided to move in - so they knew what they were getting in terms of the view. I would just keep the boundary hedge etc tidy and see what they are like when they move in. You don't have to answer to them - unless you are doing something the local council may act on (eg Environmental Health, excessive rubbish build up, running a scrap yard, lots of bonfires, etc), it's your space. Just because there are lots of pipes and the colours don't match - the rabbits don't care. I'm sure there are other gardens nearby that are not immaculate. Your new neighbours may not be gardeners anyway.

Every time we go to our allotment, we have a quick look at all the others to see where ours ranks in terms of 'tidy' - and we are relieved when at least half are much worse than ours. There will always be some that are 'perfect' - like gardens - but most are 'functional'. It's your space. I'm sure our garden gets comments with the rabbit runs, etc, but the outside is neat and tidy and people all do different things with theirs, as they are entitled to. So don't worry.

I wouldn't worry so much, I'd view how it looks from their garden as the main thing, if they want to nosey into your space from their upstairs I don't think it matters so much. I'm glad I;'m not your neighbour - I'd be permanently at my windows enjoying bunny watch to the extent you'd probably find me quite creepy :lol:

Noise and smell are the 2 things other people would possibly complain about - you might be lucky and your new neighbours might be animal lovers.

Thanks for all the replies

Hopefully we won't have anything to worry about and they won't care. It's not like they are a nuisance to anyone. A lot of it is probably my own worries about how it looks. You just never know...

I probably should have mentioned we are military, so it's a more unique situation and I haven't seen anyone else with anything like what we have. I'm just concerned in case someone wanted to make a problem of it. We haven't seen who it is yet x

Casco said:

It wouldn’t actually occur to me to be bothered about how it looked to the neighbours - my garden, my choice lol.

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This

However, if you do ever decide to paint stuff etc I'm more than happy to come over and provide some help. (Mainly so I can meet all the buns and everyone else )

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joey&boo said:

I'm glad I;'m not your neighbour - I'd be permanently at my windows enjoying bunny watch to the extent you'd probably find me quite creepy :lol:

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:lol: I have an image in my head now :lol:

Hope the new neighbours are nice & don’t cause you any issues. I’m sure my neighbours aren’t overly impressed with my garden, as well as the rabbit shed I have kids stuff like a big trampoline, playhouse, swing set etc plus a few random ‘I’ll tidy that away later’ type things whereas they are mostly retired and have plenty time to spend keeping their garden nice. In fact quite a few have a company come round to cut their grass regularly. Not that I’m jealous of course