how do you hide eyesores in the garden

13 Clever Ways to Hide Outdoor Eyesores and Boost Your Curb Appeal

1. Unsightly garbage and recycling bins. Buyers fantasizing about living in your home will snap back to reality when...
2. Ugly electrical boxes and meters. Utility boxes can be unfortunate focal points of your yard. Before you camouflage...
3. Messy garden hoses. A sloppy tangle of garden hoses is an...

Full Answer

How do you hide an eyesore on your property?

Create a Natural Barrier Plants, trees, and flowers are great natural ways to hide or distract from eyesores out in the yard or on the house itself. You can choose to plant them directly in the ground or in a planter. Planters are great for places like porches, patios, and decks where planting directly in the ground isn’t an option.

What are the best things to hide in your backyard?

Utility boxes, air conditioning units, lawnmowers, garbage bins and more; these are essential items, but we’d prefer not to look at them while spending time on our hard-earned green grass amongst lovely flowerbeds. So what do you do? We’ve prepared a list of outdoor eyesore hiding ideas to get you started on the path to backyard beauty.

How do you clean up an outdoor eyesore?

The easiest outdoor eyesore to hide is your personal clutter. Remove gardening tools, toys, outdoor equipment, and trash to restore peace to your backyard. “The backyard has to look nice and clean — there really can’t be any loose items,” says Mack.

How to hide unsightly bins in your garden?

Plants or Trellis for Hiding Air Conditioning Units 2. Lovely Raised Planters Hide Unsightly Bins 3. Wooden Privacy Screens Come In All Sizes 5. Faux Rocks Cover Unsightly PVC Pipes 6. Pretty Planter Hides Garden Hoses 7. Lovely Cabinet Hides Utility Box and Garden Tools 8. Basic Cedar Screen For Hiding Bins 9.

How do I hide junk in my backyard?

1. Unsightly garbage and recycling binsHouse garbage bins in a specially designed shed. ... Add a privacy screen between the bins and point of visibility. ... Floor containers. ... Wall mounts. ... Replace the garage door. ... Paint the exterior a color. ... Enhance with faux carriage-door details. ... Create dimension with a pergola or lattice.More items...•

How do you camouflage an outdoor electrical box?

But there are ways to hide them safely by making some clever adjustments in your landscape.Cover Up a Transformer Box with Grasses. ... Plant Evergreen Shrubs to Hide an Electrical Box. ... Make a Screen Using a Decorative Fence. ... Cover Your Utility Box with a Fake Boulder.

What can I plant to hide an electrical box?

Ornamental Grasses Any type of ornamental grass does a great job at hiding an electrical box. When the utility company needs to come out to check the box, these grasses withstand people trampling out and around the space. They grow back very quickly and don't look bad if they accidentally get run over.

What can you plant around a utility box?

1:343:56How to Screen Large Utility Boxes With Plantings | This Old HouseYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipYes inkberry another native now what's so terrific about this is that it isn't evergreen. So in theMoreYes inkberry another native now what's so terrific about this is that it isn't evergreen. So in the winter. Time it will keep its leaves it will do a very good job of screening.

How do I hide the utility pole in my yard?

How to Hide an Electric Pole in a BackyardUse a twining vine such as clematis to hide the pole. ... Create a conifer garden in front of the electrical pole. ... Plant a cluster of birch trees to disguise electrical poles. ... Hemlocks are dense enough to make a good screen.

How do you hide electrical box on wall?

0:337:35How to Hide A Breaker Box - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo today we're going to try and fix that by creating two fabric panels one to cover the breaker boxMoreSo today we're going to try and fix that by creating two fabric panels one to cover the breaker box and one to kind of even out the space and we're gonna make them from scratch.

How to hide cable boxes?

Using a decorative cover is a simple and easy way to conceal yard pipes and cable boxes. You may be able to use a tall, narrow pot turned upside-down, and perhaps place a matching shorter planted pot, or small statuary on top. Alternatively, you could place a large plant saucer on top of the upturned pot for an instant birdbath.

What shrubs are used to disguise cable boxes?

Small evergreen shrub s are commonly used to disguise cable boxes, pipes, and the like. Be sure to choose something that will not outgrow the allotted space, or frequent maintenance will be required to keep the design in scale. Juniper, Japanese holly, and boxwood may fit the bill.

How to block transformers in yard?

To block large transformers, a mix of the above is often the best tactic. Place a lattice fence section, like our Monet Fencing Panel pictured, on one side, with a mix of shrubs and perennials on the remaining sides. If the problem is at the corner of the yard, echoing that corner with the lattice works well. Try not to have the entire design the same height all the way around--this tends to look unnatural. Place a taller structure or plant at the back, or place the taller items on the two opposing sides.

How to make a screen for a trellis?

A simple screen can be made by connecting wooden trellis sections of the appropriate height with hinges or cable ties. For additional stability, they can be nailed or stapled to 2x4 lumber on the inside at the bottom. Our Vinyl Siding Hooks make it easy to attach a 3-sided screen to the house--just loop a piece of twine or cable tie through the trellis at the edge, and run the loop through the hook. This will also make for easy access on trash day, or (don't say it!) in the event your a/c unit needs to be serviced.

What plants can be grown on one side of a lawn?

Easily grown choices include hardy geranium, threadleaf coreopsis, catmint, and Artemesia 'Powis Castle.'. A mixture of plants will be more pleasing than hedging the object in with the same plants—perhaps a tall grass on one side, with shorter junipers on the remaining sides.

Can black eyed susans be planted on either side of grass?

Coneflowers or black-eyed susans would hide the front of the box, and could be repeated on either side of the grasses. This type of planting is much easier to maintain. If the look of the box in winter after the flowers have gone dormant is really too bothersome, a piece of lattice could be installed to hide it.

How to make a Japanese garden look more expansive?

Are there any attractive views like neighboring trees or hills in between the rest? Japanese gardeners make clever use of "borrowed scenery", views in the distance, to connect their garden to the surrounding area. By hiding just the elements you want to block and incorporating the beauty seen from afar, you can bring a feeling of expansiveness to your garden.

What are some things that we should not look at in a garden?

For some it's a downspout, air conditioning unit, or barbecue. For others, neighboring rooflines, utility poles, or other sights in the distance give uncomfortable reminders of the city beyond the garden.

What plants are good for screening?

Sturdy, finely-textured plants like 'Marjorie Channon' kohuhu (Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Marjorie Channon'), New Zealand wind grass (Anemanthele lessoniana), and mint bush (Prostanthera rotundifolia) provide screening while allowing the unit to retreat into the backdrop. Bold superstars such as 'Grace' smoke bush (Cotinus 'Grace'), giant butterbur (Petasites japonicus), and canna lily (Canna spp. and cvs.) can be used in nearby focal areas to draw attention toward themselves, and away from the elements you're trying to obscure.

What plants make an effective screen for unsightly elements?

Finely-textured plants like mint bush make an effective screen for unsightly elements.

What is a vine in a garden?

A small vine helps beautify a rain chain or downspout (Garden designed by T. Zephyr Markowitz Design). Cup-and-saucer vine is a good choice to trail up a downspout. A simple fence in a bright hue adds a whimsical touch of color to the garden and serves a utilitarian purpose for hiding garden tools and the sprinkler manifold.

How to hide a low roofline?

A mix of heights and textures gives depth to your planting and avoids the feeling of being closed in. Low rooflines are easily hidden by vigorous climbing roses which will arch up and over your fence without taking up much space on the ground. Utility poles can't be hidden entirely, but you can draw the eye away from them using a tall, finely-textured shrub set just slightly off to the side.

What vine to use to trail downspout?

Cup-and-saucer vine is a good choice to trail up a downspout.

What to use to hide bins?

Nicola Croughan, an interior designer for Blinds Direct, recommends creating a natural “screen” to hide bins, outdoor grills and other large items. In addition to traditional fencing with trellises added for extra height, Nicola recommends using natural plants such as bamboo, willow and reed screening. He adds that “Vines are another great way to disguise eyesores that are attached to your home. Of course, you must be mindful of where these are being planted and any areas they might impede on.”

What draws your attention away from any unsightly items?

Nicola also recommends creating a distracting garden display to draw attention away from any unpleasant sights and sounds. “A stunning garden display draws your eyes away from any unsightly items. Water features will always command attention, and offer a pleasant sound to disguise any unwanted noises from tanks or extractors. Rockeries and flowers are also sure to draw the eye.”

Who said when considering a wide range of options available to hide various problems, choose the option that fits into answer?

Artist and designer Pablo Solomon suggests that when considering a wide range of options available to hide various problems, choose the option that fits into your natural setting, harmonizes with your home and if applicable, fits your neighborhood.

Can a tangled hose kill grass?

One item that can easily be overlooked or forgotten—an unsightly and tangled outdoor water hose. “Not only can a tangled hose be an eyesore, it can also kill your grass where the hose rests on your lawn,” cautions Craig. “Instead, try a wheel, a recycled spool or a recessed planter box that allows you to hide the hose inside for easy access while providing a place to plant some of your favorite perennials.”

How to hide eyesores?

Plants, trees, and flowers are great natural ways to hide or distract from eyesores out in the yard or on the house itself. You can choose to plant them directly in the ground or in a planter. Planters are great for places like porches, patios, and decks where planting directly in the ground isn’t an option.

What is the best way to divert eyes from unsightly neighboring views?

If you want to divert eyes from unsightly neighboring views, a tall fence or hedge is the way to go.

What is a garbage can shed?

A garbage shed is an outdoor storage shed that’s designed to store large outdoor garbage cans and recycling bins. These structures not only hide your garbage cans but they also keep them secure ...

What to do with ugly pvc pipes?

If the plants themselves don’t disguise ugly pvc pipe s or well heads in a garden, a thoughtfully placed bird bath or fountain might be just what you are looking for. A garden statue or decorative faux rock can also provide disguise in these situations as well.

How to hide an AC unit?

There are a number of ways you can attempt to hide an ac unit – plant some bushes and flowers around the unit, diy a fence around it – but perhaps the fastest and easiest way to hide it is to use an outdoor privacy screen. Outdoor screens, like the resin wicker design shown below, can also help to cut down on noise as well, which is ideal when an outdoor entertaining space is located near the unit.

Do garbage cans detract from the exterior of a house?

Garbage cans, utility boxes, and AC units are necessary to making your home function properly but unfortunately they can detract from your home’s exterior. Here are some simple ideas for how you can disguise these unsightly outdoor eyesores quickly and easily.