Help With Copy-cat Neighbours!?
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We moved to our house last summer and since then have done a lot of landscaping outside. As we were progressing with the yard we started to notice our neighbours on one side were starting to copy our ideas-not exactly but close-and bigger and better. I waited until they planted their flowers so I could purposely plant something different. I waited for 2 weeks after they were done and when I planted mine, they went and bought the same plants and added them to their already planted garden. They had made their whole backyard gravel and told us when we first moved that they didn’t want any plants back there but once we planted our beautiful pots, they did they same thing. We put a garden bench in the yard a couple of weeks ago and this morning when I woke up and looked out the window, guess what they had in their yard….? One of the other neighbours even made a comment in passing one day that there seemed to be a competition going on. Everything we do, they have also done and have even had the nerve to look over our back-yard fence and ask us where we had bought certain items. At Christmas they copied our outdoor decorations and after we renovated the inside of our home they went and did the same things in their house-even down to the same paint colors. They are driving me crazy, to the point I want to move already! What can I do to get them to stop this stupid behaviour?
- Tomato Plants-when Will They Have Fruit?
- Starter Plants And New Shrubbery?
- Looking For Landscaping Ideas For My Backyard?
- A Small Part From My Garden Shed Blew Into Neighbors Yard And They Wont Give It Back!!!any Ideas?
- A Small Part From My Plastic Garden Shed Blew Into Neighbors Yard And They Wont Give It Back,any Ideas?
There are a couple options here:
-You can comment on it, be direct and tell them about it, they will be so embarrassed that they will stop.
- You could be secretly insulting (i.e.: Wow, it almost seems that you are racing to keep up with us!). If you are so rude about it, then they will stop and try to do their own thing and leave you alone.
-You can try to be so big that they can’t copy you (Might not work in the recession).
-You can always make the fence taller!
They are obviously self-conscious about the new people moving in and outdoing them, so they feel compelled to try to stay on top.
U have the wrong attitude. Didn’t u know that imitation is the greatest form of hero worship.
Instead of being annoyed, u should be feeling good about being a good example to your neighbour. And also since u obviously like your type of landscaping, I would think that the more people who copied u, the better u would like the area.
Your neighbour obviously respects u and what u are doing. Think of it as if u are a leader in your neighbourhood.
Well this seems like a really annoying situation…..they obviously are jealous of you for making such a beautiful yard…..you should go over there and just tell them to please stop copying your lawn because that just makes both of you look like the copyer…….your neighbors are stubourn people for doing that…..you need to stop it at once.
They must really think you have excellent taste. As with anything, someone comes up with a good idea, and someone else takes that idea and expands on it. Feel flattered that they think so highly of your landscaping ideas.
Tell them to fk off and take the labels off all ur plants! Oh and put a sign outside your door saying stop copying us or ill sue you!
Jump off a cliff & see if they follow.
put a sign outside that tells them to stop copying you or youll sue
dont cut your grass for 3 weeks. I wonder if they’d copy that
My mother had the same thing happen to her!
My mom likes victorian stuff, her whole house is done up in it. Well this neighbor of hers was very friendly to my mom and invited us over her house before (it was all modern) and when my mom finished unpacking she invited over her house for coffee. The neighbor made compliments about the decor and such but that was the extent of it.
A couple weeks go by and my mother calls me quite upset, I ask her what the problem was and she said Eve (the neighbor) had her entire house done in victorian but not only that but copied the same color palette as my mom.
Just wierd, it’s so sad that other people can’t have or aren’t secure enough to have an identity of their own. They have to copy others.
Just take it as a compliment, it’s so not worth getting into something with them. Having a frost between neighbors makes it uncomfortable living next to them.
When I first started reading your question, I thought “How flattering”. Then I read on….That’s a bit extreme and I can see why you’re frustrated.
I love to garden. I have very little grass left in my yard. If I had a neighbor who talked to me about my yard, I’d be more than willing to talk plants. I’d ask them questions about what design they were planning for their yard. I’d mention differences in our yards and how certain plants would look better for them than me.
The conversations would be something like, “I love that nice shady spot you have on the north side. If I had an area like that I’d love to have some bleeding hearts and have you heard about some of the new hosta cultivars that they’re coming out with?” or “If I had a nice sunny location like that I would love to have a raised herb garden. Have you ever thought of that?”
I would definitely mention an on-line gardening group called Dave’s Garden. A basic membership is free and there are forums (only some are for paid members only) where people can discuss design ideas, different plants, and there’s just a wealth of information available on there. I think that if your neighbors could see what a wider variety of people do and have more ideas and input, they’d copy from all different styles and eventually find their own niche. If you haven’t checked out Dave’s yourself and you like gardening, you might like it too.
I really see an opportunity for a gardening friend. You could make lemons into lemonade. If nothing else, you could point this budding home gardener in the direction where she can find others that she can get inspiration from.
If you ever want to chat about gardening, please e-mail me. I love all things related to gardening.
bahaha…sounds like my neighbour. I live near a mad old woman and everything I do…nearly everything…she tries to copy. But as she has no money she tries to do everything herself and so comes out crap. lol.
I had to fix the garage roof and I did it by the book, a long process…fungicide/sealant/bitumen paint all with a ladder and extension arm. What did the nutty old woman do? Cos she didn;t have the strength to use an extension arm plus didn;t have the equipment or the bitumen paint (she used normal black paint…lol), she risked breaking her neck by going ON the roof…these are old asbestos cement roofs…lol Next, as I said, asbestos cement, I was using a protective mask…she did it all without and must’ve breathed in so much asbestos, I don’t even want to think about it. What an idiot…I wanted to warn her about the asbestos, but she’s very abusive and foul-mouthed and she’s an evil old witch to boot.
Then anyway…she copied almost everything I did except for big jobs which she knows she doesn;t stand a chance doing.
You know what…these people are ignorant. They are without imagination, so have to copy their neighbours. In a way it’s admitting you are better than them. Remember that imitation is the best form of flattery. You should be flattered…
If I was you start ribbing them about their lack of imagination. Start saying things like “…I see you get your inspiration from us…” and “…if you need any advice on your house or garden…”. See what they say. People like that can;t be too proud and have accepted they are lower than you….would YOU not be ashamed to copy someone? I would…I consider myself to be good enough to use my own brain and not need anyone else to get ideas.
Anyway…yeah stupid neighbours and stupid people…there are plenty about. Don’t let it bother you…just start mocking them…you’ll eventually find something which they can’t copy…either that or just move if the idiots disturb you too much.
As for me I have accepted the mad old cow for what she is…the only thing that bothers me is sometimes she shouts from her window…which I draw the line and I’ll let her know that mad or not she has to behave herself.
Good luck with the idiot neighbours…
UPDATE: Ok this is a fun idea. Get something and put it in your yard. Could be anything…and better if inexpensive…. Put it in your yard…see if they copy it. If they do take it away…this way you can start to make their garden different to your by forcing their hand. Start messing with their heads and have fun mocking the ignoramouses!!!