Operation Garden Terrorism
The epic saga of sadness and destruction now dubbed Operation Garden Terrorism continues. Today I went outside to discover a patch of plants had been crushed along with two sections of the bamboo fence that we built in the early spring. The fence had been kicked in and broken in two spots. What is going on?
July 20th, 2007 at 3:07 pm
Gayla,
Nice to see you at the market yesterday, good luck at the Blogher conference. Sorry to see further troubles with your street garden. People can really be jerks.
July 20th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
I think it may be time for a little camera to be set up to see who is doing this. Why would someone be vandalizing your place like this? It’s so grim. I hope this stops soon. It’s so discouraging when people are mean like this for no reason. All your hard work. I hope this vandalism attack passes soon.
July 20th, 2007 at 7:25 pm
oooooooooooh camera..not a bad idea. The only problem is…once you find the culprit what do you do? Do you catch him, her or it in the act and scold them? Or do you call the cops (if they get there on time)? I too get occasional garden vandalism but what would be the most effective way to stop the person (if the person has an ounce of respect for you and your garden)? Hmmmm..any evil suggestions would be most welcome.
July 20th, 2007 at 7:26 pm
oooooooooooh camera..not a bad idea. The only problem is…once you find the culprit what do you do? Do you catch him, her or it in the act and scold them? Or do you call the cops (if they get there on time)? I too get occasional garden vandalism but what would be the most effective way to stop the person (if the person has an ounce of respect for you and your garden)? Hmmmm..any evil suggestions would be most welcome.
July 20th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
if this continues, then maybe next year plan to plant things that hurt to touch…such as stinging nettles, raspberries, blackberries, roses, thorny bushes etc. they tend to be harder to work with (invest in a nice long pair of leather gloves) but people will be less likely to stick their body parts in your garden. i know you’re not real crazy about planting edibles in your street garden, but the berries could be for the city street birds. my husband also suggested “planting” strips of nails pointing up. that would probably put a quick end to any stomping ideas the perpetrator may have. we normally arent this evil, but we have had similar instances where people destroy all your hard work trying to make something nice just for the fun of it. its really enraging!
July 20th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
My suggestion would be bags of something noxious- dog poo, ink-filled balloons, something like that- so they get it all over them when they stomp.
Alternately, you could trap a skunk in a haveaheart trap and turn it into an attack skunk. I imagine it would only have to spray once and you’d be all set. Or a porcupine.
Seriously, though, I’d go for the nettles- or those big nasty thistles. Or cockelburs- those are nasty.
July 21st, 2007 at 12:10 am
maybe even just a sign that says, “Smile, you’re on camera! :)” (regardless of whether you actually install one)…might make those public urinators think twice.
July 22nd, 2007 at 11:26 am
That really stinks about your garden, people can be so inconsiderate/unaware of where they are stepping. Jeeze.
Well, I’m going to be at the blogher conference, I’m participating in a panel on day 2 “the art of craft.” Maybe I will see you around :)
July 23rd, 2007 at 1:54 pm
How about a nice big batch of poison ivy???? :)
July 24th, 2007 at 11:00 am
I think you need a scarecrow sprinkler. They’re expensive, but one day I’m going to have a whole army of them.
July 24th, 2007 at 2:35 pm
Hi,
I guess becuase I work with police my question is, have you asked for help from them as far as more preventive services in the form of visible officers in the area? Or even make a report. WOuldn’t it qualify as destruction to private property??
July 24th, 2007 at 3:37 pm
Lizard: Except that it is technically city-owned property and what I am doing there could also qualify as destruction depending on who’s looking. I also figure that in this area the police should have better things to do.
I’m also not sure how I feel about policing as an option. I would prefer that people feel a sense of responsibility and accountability that isn’t just about a cop laying down the law.
August 8th, 2007 at 1:39 am
love your beautiful blog!
i hope you had a great time at blogher.