Step away from the irises, methhead. They don't have any copper in them.
March 2, 2012 12:11 AM Subscribe
What are your best creative ways to deter flower thieves?
We live on a corner lot between two bus stops. Some parts of our yard are thus quite exposed to the sidewalk and a lot of foot traffic. The less principled among the pedestrian traffic enjoy stealing our flowers, particularly the showy ones like irises, dahlias, and sunflowers. I enjoy taunting them with yard signs that make fun of methheads in return (they are the primary culprits), but that tends to only entertain the non-flower thieves and have no impact on the semi-criminal wannabe florists who apparently roam our streets.
We're still in gardening catalog season in the northwestern US, but real gardening season is coming up, and I want to find a better way to keep people from taking flowers from our yard as they please this year.
In my perfect world, everyone would have enough of their own flowers that they wouldn't need to steal ours; in my second to most perfect world, crowd sourcing would take care of the problem, ideally with online viewers of a webcast able to remotely trigger dye explosions, like the kind when people steal money from banks, if someone tried to commit grand theft dahlias. That's probably not going to happen, which is too bad.
Let's assume that we are willing to go quite far with electronic surveillance, including web cams, speakers in the yard, etc. Is that a direction we want to go? Or is there some claim we can make about the yard that is so terrible that none but the most illiterate of flower thieves would want to swipe a stem? Should we break up the sidewalk so people can't walk by, and then engage in a perpetual fight with the city over the right of way? Are there any beautiful, long-blooming flowers that are less interesting to flower thieves? Do any recovering flower thieves have ideas?
Humor me and assume that taking out flowers that are accessible to pedestrians, replacing them with mulch/green shrubs/non-flowering anything is not interesting to me. I am open to replacing the plants that are nearest the sidewalk with other flowers.
Thank you, great MetaFilter, for any ideas on my paltry problem.
We live on a corner lot between two bus stops. Some parts of our yard are thus quite exposed to the sidewalk and a lot of foot traffic. The less principled among the pedestrian traffic enjoy stealing our flowers, particularly the showy ones like irises, dahlias, and sunflowers. I enjoy taunting them with yard signs that make fun of methheads in return (they are the primary culprits), but that tends to only entertain the non-flower thieves and have no impact on the semi-criminal wannabe florists who apparently roam our streets.
We're still in gardening catalog season in the northwestern US, but real gardening season is coming up, and I want to find a better way to keep people from taking flowers from our yard as they please this year.
In my perfect world, everyone would have enough of their own flowers that they wouldn't need to steal ours; in my second to most perfect world, crowd sourcing would take care of the problem, ideally with online viewers of a webcast able to remotely trigger dye explosions, like the kind when people steal money from banks, if someone tried to commit grand theft dahlias. That's probably not going to happen, which is too bad.
Let's assume that we are willing to go quite far with electronic surveillance, including web cams, speakers in the yard, etc. Is that a direction we want to go? Or is there some claim we can make about the yard that is so terrible that none but the most illiterate of flower thieves would want to swipe a stem? Should we break up the sidewalk so people can't walk by, and then engage in a perpetual fight with the city over the right of way? Are there any beautiful, long-blooming flowers that are less interesting to flower thieves? Do any recovering flower thieves have ideas?
Humor me and assume that taking out flowers that are accessible to pedestrians, replacing them with mulch/green shrubs/non-flowering anything is not interesting to me. I am open to replacing the plants that are nearest the sidewalk with other flowers.
Thank you, great MetaFilter, for any ideas on my paltry problem.
look for flowers that have thicker stems that are harder to break? and also that are thorny?
posted by saraindc at 12:19 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by saraindc at 12:19 AM on March 2, 2012
poison ivy border? stinging nettles? laser-defense turrets?
posted by sexyrobot at 12:28 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by sexyrobot at 12:28 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
I'm not sure signage taunting people is going to help...
You know what? My friend's dad made a sign saying that it hurt the roses when people tear off their blooms with a big sad face. It really helped.
posted by spunweb at 12:35 AM on March 2, 2012 [18 favorites]
You know what? My friend's dad made a sign saying that it hurt the roses when people tear off their blooms with a big sad face. It really helped.
posted by spunweb at 12:35 AM on March 2, 2012 [18 favorites]
Best answer: If it were me, I'd probably use barbed wire. Not prison-fence concertina wire, just plain old cattle fence barb wire. It's quite easy to string along, and depending on what your fence is made of currently, you can either just attach it with staples (if the fence is wood) or tie wires (if it's metal). To make it a little more visually appealing you can paint it the same color as the fence if you want, although that will dull the deterrent effect a bit. The stuff is really cheap at places like Tractor Supply — your biggest problem would probably be purchasing a small quantity rather than a 500' roll or something.
Depending on how tall the fence is, you may need to reposition the plants to keep people from reaching over (assuming you don't want wire stretched above the plants, which might seem a little overdone), but you could probably keep people from reaching through the fence pretty easily with some short sections here and there. (I'd imagine mostly between the existing fence pieces.)
As for the 'hell strip,' you may just need to stop putting such appealing flowers there, and be satisfied with greenery. I can't think of a way to protect those.
posted by Kadin2048 at 12:38 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
Depending on how tall the fence is, you may need to reposition the plants to keep people from reaching over (assuming you don't want wire stretched above the plants, which might seem a little overdone), but you could probably keep people from reaching through the fence pretty easily with some short sections here and there. (I'd imagine mostly between the existing fence pieces.)
As for the 'hell strip,' you may just need to stop putting such appealing flowers there, and be satisfied with greenery. I can't think of a way to protect those.
posted by Kadin2048 at 12:38 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
Paint the fence with anti-climb paint?
Or just give up on showy blooms within reach of the ho-methoi.
I'd try saturating the area with an inexpensive sunflower, and figuring on losing a fraction but it still looking ok. Then, after dealing with a highly localized local mouse and squirrel outbreak, I'd give up and swap in flowering shrubs like nasturtiums or wild roses. Wild roses don't give themselves to plucking.
posted by sebastienbailard at 12:54 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
Or just give up on showy blooms within reach of the ho-methoi.
I'd try saturating the area with an inexpensive sunflower, and figuring on losing a fraction but it still looking ok. Then, after dealing with a highly localized local mouse and squirrel outbreak, I'd give up and swap in flowering shrubs like nasturtiums or wild roses. Wild roses don't give themselves to plucking.
posted by sebastienbailard at 12:54 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
A dense row of Beach Roses along the fence might discourage flower thieves. They're also hardy enough to live happily in the hell strip.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 1:07 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
posted by RonButNotStupid at 1:07 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
Best answer: A picture of eyes.
And flowers with lots of thorns.
Don't put out webcams. People will just steal those. A motion sensor that plays a loud barking noise might work, though, if it was well hidden.
posted by lollusc at 1:23 AM on March 2, 2012 [4 favorites]
And flowers with lots of thorns.
Don't put out webcams. People will just steal those. A motion sensor that plays a loud barking noise might work, though, if it was well hidden.
posted by lollusc at 1:23 AM on March 2, 2012 [4 favorites]
I don't know if this ever works, but have you tried a sign that says: "I'm glad you enjoy the flowers! Please don't pick them, let other people enjoy the flowers too."
posted by sbutler at 1:25 AM on March 2, 2012 [5 favorites]
posted by sbutler at 1:25 AM on March 2, 2012 [5 favorites]
I enjoy taunting them with yard signs that make fun of methheads in return
I don't know if you've checked this, but I predict a sign like that will certainly encourage more theft, not less. You catch more flies and less flower thieves with honey.
Side-note: Don't make fun of people with drug addictions; their lives are often already totally shit and extremely hard, often filled with histories of mental illness and abuse, and knowing that people regard them as objects of ridicule and little more than animals only makes it worse for them. Exercise compassion.
posted by smoke at 1:29 AM on March 2, 2012 [32 favorites]
I don't know if you've checked this, but I predict a sign like that will certainly encourage more theft, not less. You catch more flies and less flower thieves with honey.
Side-note: Don't make fun of people with drug addictions; their lives are often already totally shit and extremely hard, often filled with histories of mental illness and abuse, and knowing that people regard them as objects of ridicule and little more than animals only makes it worse for them. Exercise compassion.
posted by smoke at 1:29 AM on March 2, 2012 [32 favorites]
Put a box there and a sign: If you have to steal our flowers then please give a donation...
posted by yoyo_nyc at 1:43 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by yoyo_nyc at 1:43 AM on March 2, 2012
yoyo_nyc: "Put a box there and a sign: If you have to steal our flowers then please give a donation..."
I think a box of hypothetical money is just going to open them up to more theft problems.
I'd put up a nice sign first (like spunweb's or sbutler's suggestions) before escalating to more drastic methods. But if no sign will work, I bet a row of stinging nettles would be immediately effective.
posted by Gordafarin at 2:45 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
I think a box of hypothetical money is just going to open them up to more theft problems.
I'd put up a nice sign first (like spunweb's or sbutler's suggestions) before escalating to more drastic methods. But if no sign will work, I bet a row of stinging nettles would be immediately effective.
posted by Gordafarin at 2:45 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
I've found that sitting out on the lawn in a ratty lawn chair with the old Remington and empty bottles of Potters rum bottles scattered around really keeps anyone away. Extra points for plaid underwear, bathrobe, and incoherent rambling.
posted by ZaneJ. at 3:01 AM on March 2, 2012 [6 favorites]
posted by ZaneJ. at 3:01 AM on March 2, 2012 [6 favorites]
I remember reading that even a picture of an eye will make people less likely to steal, so make sure you jazz up your signs with some eyeballs
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 3:05 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 3:05 AM on March 2, 2012
As an alternative approach, all of these work for cutting gardens -- the more you pick, the better they grow. Then you can sink a sign that says, Take What Makes You Happy.
Feverfew
Antirrhinum 'White Rocket'
Zinnias
Bishop's lace
Clary sage
Phlox
Asters
Dahlias
Bachelor buttons
Sunflowers
posted by thinkpiece at 3:42 AM on March 2, 2012 [21 favorites]
Feverfew
Antirrhinum 'White Rocket'
Zinnias
Bishop's lace
Clary sage
Phlox
Asters
Dahlias
Bachelor buttons
Sunflowers
posted by thinkpiece at 3:42 AM on March 2, 2012 [21 favorites]
"Caution, pesticide application"
posted by sciencegeek at 4:22 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
posted by sciencegeek at 4:22 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
Or a motion sensor activated sprinkler system.
"Beware of Dog" (and you'd need to borrow a dog occasionally, one that likes barking).
posted by sciencegeek at 4:24 AM on March 2, 2012
"Beware of Dog" (and you'd need to borrow a dog occasionally, one that likes barking).
posted by sciencegeek at 4:24 AM on March 2, 2012
I enjoy taunting them with yard signs that make fun of methheads in return
Ooh, yeah, I bet that's got people stealing your flowers just to piss you off. I think the teenaged me would have picked a bunch of your flowers and thrown them back on your lawn out of spite. The damage may have already been done at this point.
If the nice signs don't work, plant very low-growing flowers (vinca? marigolds?) in the hell strip and put up signs reading "Pee is hurting our flowers! Please don't let your dog do his business here." Maybe with a picture of a dog peeing on a cartoonishly sad flower. Betcha very few people want pee flowers.
posted by Metroid Baby at 4:26 AM on March 2, 2012 [13 favorites]
Ooh, yeah, I bet that's got people stealing your flowers just to piss you off. I think the teenaged me would have picked a bunch of your flowers and thrown them back on your lawn out of spite. The damage may have already been done at this point.
If the nice signs don't work, plant very low-growing flowers (vinca? marigolds?) in the hell strip and put up signs reading "Pee is hurting our flowers! Please don't let your dog do his business here." Maybe with a picture of a dog peeing on a cartoonishly sad flower. Betcha very few people want pee flowers.
posted by Metroid Baby at 4:26 AM on March 2, 2012 [13 favorites]
A well-secured motion detector camera. Even a fake camera that is well secured would deter some
posted by JayRwv at 4:28 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by JayRwv at 4:28 AM on March 2, 2012
Best answer: If it were my garden, I'd go with the idea of a hedge of thorny, itchy, pokey plants between the sidewalks and the tempting flowers. Local plants will be easiest to establish and maintain. For instance, here in the Pacific Northwest, we have natural hedgerows of Nooksack roses. They're almost as good as a fierce dog at keeping people away from places, and they're lovely much of the year, and the only maintenance difficulty is keeping them hacked back with bleeding all over them.
Depending on your yard configuration, you might also consider raised boxes for your flowers, with a fence on the side(s) facing the street.
I'd do my best to avoid any kind of confrontation -- signs, cameras. You want to enjoy your flowers, not spend a lot of time thinking about people who also want to enjoy your flowers, the scum lowlifes who don't even have the decency to leave other people's plants alone .... sorry. Enjoy your flowers this year!
posted by kestralwing at 4:33 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
Depending on your yard configuration, you might also consider raised boxes for your flowers, with a fence on the side(s) facing the street.
I'd do my best to avoid any kind of confrontation -- signs, cameras. You want to enjoy your flowers, not spend a lot of time thinking about people who also want to enjoy your flowers, the scum lowlifes who don't even have the decency to leave other people's plants alone .... sorry. Enjoy your flowers this year!
posted by kestralwing at 4:33 AM on March 2, 2012 [3 favorites]
Response by poster: The suggestions for plants that are prickly and for incorporating eyes on any signs are particularly helpful. I'll definitely check into the Nooksack roses!
A motion activated sprinkler or light or whatever would probably catch a lot of innocent people, but it's fun to think about. Now, a remote controlled sprinkler that I could activate if I saw someone in the act of stealing...that would be awesome.
Re the content of the signs, what I have been making are generally reminders that taking other peoples' stuff, even if it is "just" flowers, is stealing, and that we'd like for them to leave the flowers for others to enjoy; they make fun of the methheads who are doing the damage without specifically mentioning meth. Sometimes they are educational, as in, "The flower you are about to steal is called a dahlia. Love, the people who grew them." After coming home a few times to plants actually mangled or ripped out of the ground, last year I made a more anguished sign in which I hoped that the flower thieves would be first to go when the zombie hordes invaded. I don't notice any trend upward or downward in terms of theft if I have a sign or two up, it makes me feel better, so I doubt I'll give them up unless the problem totally stops.
posted by bloggerwench at 5:16 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
A motion activated sprinkler or light or whatever would probably catch a lot of innocent people, but it's fun to think about. Now, a remote controlled sprinkler that I could activate if I saw someone in the act of stealing...that would be awesome.
Re the content of the signs, what I have been making are generally reminders that taking other peoples' stuff, even if it is "just" flowers, is stealing, and that we'd like for them to leave the flowers for others to enjoy; they make fun of the methheads who are doing the damage without specifically mentioning meth. Sometimes they are educational, as in, "The flower you are about to steal is called a dahlia. Love, the people who grew them." After coming home a few times to plants actually mangled or ripped out of the ground, last year I made a more anguished sign in which I hoped that the flower thieves would be first to go when the zombie hordes invaded. I don't notice any trend upward or downward in terms of theft if I have a sign or two up, it makes me feel better, so I doubt I'll give them up unless the problem totally stops.
posted by bloggerwench at 5:16 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
I know you don't want green shrubs but barberry is a nice colorful shrub, with bonus thorns. Planted densely along the path, it might discourage people from walking through it.
posted by cabingirl at 5:17 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by cabingirl at 5:17 AM on March 2, 2012
Plant blackberries all along the border between the sidewalk and your garden. Nice combination of endless tiny flowers, delicious unlimited fruits that you should be happy if people pilfer, and thorns that will prevent anyone reaching any deeper into your property.
posted by roofus at 5:18 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by roofus at 5:18 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
So you have methheads fairly regularly doing property damage, at relatively predictable times (waiting for the bus)?
Have you considered calling the police and asking them to patrol it a few days? Picking up methheads on slam-dunk property damage charges is the sort of thing that makes cops happy. Even if you're in a high-crime area, they probably have a "community policing" or "broken windows" unit who focuses on these smaller, quality-of-life crimes. (In the alternative, call your city councilperson and grouse about quality of life and middle-class families and improving local properties with flowers that get damaged and blah blah blah, and he or she will make the cops come patrol your corner for a while.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 5:21 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
Have you considered calling the police and asking them to patrol it a few days? Picking up methheads on slam-dunk property damage charges is the sort of thing that makes cops happy. Even if you're in a high-crime area, they probably have a "community policing" or "broken windows" unit who focuses on these smaller, quality-of-life crimes. (In the alternative, call your city councilperson and grouse about quality of life and middle-class families and improving local properties with flowers that get damaged and blah blah blah, and he or she will make the cops come patrol your corner for a while.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 5:21 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: roofus, blackberries are invasive here, but otherwise, I like the idea. A plant with lots of flowers/fruit that are so overabundant that I don't care if people take it would be ideal.
posted by bloggerwench at 5:28 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by bloggerwench at 5:28 AM on March 2, 2012
Response by poster: kalessin--I like the way the mermaid roses look--great suggestion. Can the size be kept in check, or would they be too confined in an area that was smaller (like three feet wide)?
posted by bloggerwench at 5:32 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by bloggerwench at 5:32 AM on March 2, 2012
Check to see if knock out roses (which thrive in Austin) grow in Portland. They are are quite thorny, impossible to kill, require very little maintenance and produce many flowers. While the flowers are lovely,colorful and abundant, they are not in in the typical rose shape and not really "steal" worthy on their own, IMO. You also wouldn't miss a few if they were taken.
posted by murrey at 5:33 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by murrey at 5:33 AM on March 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
Best answer: In addition to the roses as deterrent, you might consider focusing your plantings nearest the sidewalk on "drifty" flowers that have small flowerlets on abundant racemes and that don't invite taking single blooms--things like penstemon or Russian sage or calamintha--rather than showy, classic "cutting" flowers like dalhias or irises. I've got this calamintha 'Montrose white' flanking my driveway, and it gets started in late July and then just goes and goes and goes until November--the individual blooms are tiny, and even the whole racemes are not that much to write home about, but it just pumps out so many, and for so long, that it's one of the happiest things in my garden.
posted by drlith at 5:53 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by drlith at 5:53 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: That calamintha and some nepeta interplanted with salvia and pink roses would look fantastic, and it would be the drifty/thorny combo you are talking about, drlith. I've not noticed calamintha before--thanks for the tip!
saraindc, it's funny about thicker stemmed flowers. What I have noticed is that when people try to take flowers by ripping them off the plant, they can actually cause a lot of damage to plants with thicker stems. Whole stalks will break off, or in some cases, the entire plant gets pulled out of the ground in the effort.
Eyebrows McGee, I've certainly thought about calling the police, but I always decide they have more important things to do, given the higher dollar value crimes our meth population engage in all the time on our street (theft of bicycles, strollers (maybe to carry off the flowers in!), car break-ins, going into peoples' yards during the day and stealing metal stuff, etc. I like the city council route you suggest as a general deterrent to the low-grade criminal activity.
posted by bloggerwench at 6:25 AM on March 2, 2012
saraindc, it's funny about thicker stemmed flowers. What I have noticed is that when people try to take flowers by ripping them off the plant, they can actually cause a lot of damage to plants with thicker stems. Whole stalks will break off, or in some cases, the entire plant gets pulled out of the ground in the effort.
Eyebrows McGee, I've certainly thought about calling the police, but I always decide they have more important things to do, given the higher dollar value crimes our meth population engage in all the time on our street (theft of bicycles, strollers (maybe to carry off the flowers in!), car break-ins, going into peoples' yards during the day and stealing metal stuff, etc. I like the city council route you suggest as a general deterrent to the low-grade criminal activity.
posted by bloggerwench at 6:25 AM on March 2, 2012
Put up a professional looking sign.
"WARNING: THESE FLOWERS HAVE BEEN CHEMICALLY TREATED TO PROTECT THEM AGAINST INSECTS AND PESTS. CONTACT WITH SKIN MAY CAUSE ILLNESS AND SERIOUS ALLERGIC REACTIONS. NOT FOR INDOOR USE: THESE FLOWERS WILL PRODUCE A NOXIOUS ODOR WHEN TAKEN INDOORS WHICH MAY BE HARMFUL TO CHILDREN AND PETS."
But it in English and Spanish with a Skull and Crossbones underneath (and let your neighbors know it's a joke.) This will do nothing to deter wildlife (deer are very fond of flowers, but they cannot read) but may deter the casual thief.
I don't see why you need to waste any compassion on methheads who trespass on your property and steal your stuff. Don't mock them, but don't be kind.
posted by three blind mice at 6:37 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
"WARNING: THESE FLOWERS HAVE BEEN CHEMICALLY TREATED TO PROTECT THEM AGAINST INSECTS AND PESTS. CONTACT WITH SKIN MAY CAUSE ILLNESS AND SERIOUS ALLERGIC REACTIONS. NOT FOR INDOOR USE: THESE FLOWERS WILL PRODUCE A NOXIOUS ODOR WHEN TAKEN INDOORS WHICH MAY BE HARMFUL TO CHILDREN AND PETS."
But it in English and Spanish with a Skull and Crossbones underneath (and let your neighbors know it's a joke.) This will do nothing to deter wildlife (deer are very fond of flowers, but they cannot read) but may deter the casual thief.
I don't see why you need to waste any compassion on methheads who trespass on your property and steal your stuff. Don't mock them, but don't be kind.
posted by three blind mice at 6:37 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
Deer repellent capsaicin wax or a bittering agent. Hard to enjoy a bouquet when bringing your hand to your eyes or mouth is extremely unpleasant.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 6:42 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 6:42 AM on March 2, 2012
Make sure whatever sign you put up includes a pair of staring eyes.
posted by hermitosis at 7:13 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by hermitosis at 7:13 AM on March 2, 2012
Are there cheap fake surveillance cameras that could be mounted in a conspicuous place? You might not need actual surveillance -- just the implied threat might work, if it's convincing. Most metheads are also paranoids.
posted by Devils Rancher at 7:27 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by Devils Rancher at 7:27 AM on March 2, 2012
I don't know much about gardening OR other climes, but here in the midwest, many of our native prairie flowers have such tough stems that it's nearly impossible to actually pick them. Maybe some of your native wildflowers are similar.
posted by Occula at 7:39 AM on March 2, 2012
posted by Occula at 7:39 AM on March 2, 2012
Motion activated sprinklers like those used to keep pets off of yards. Someone tries to steal a flower and they get a shower.
Also a front fence of some sort, though you wouldn't want to make it metal or they might steel that too, but a nice wooden picket fence or something might at least slow them down. A nice picket fence with an electric wire like those used to keep animals out of yards might also help, depending how far you want to escalate things. Also nthing the prickly, brambly type of rose. They look pretty but make amazingly good hedges for keeping things in or out.
posted by wwax at 8:38 AM on March 2, 2012
Also a front fence of some sort, though you wouldn't want to make it metal or they might steel that too, but a nice wooden picket fence or something might at least slow them down. A nice picket fence with an electric wire like those used to keep animals out of yards might also help, depending how far you want to escalate things. Also nthing the prickly, brambly type of rose. They look pretty but make amazingly good hedges for keeping things in or out.
posted by wwax at 8:38 AM on March 2, 2012
Plant Stinging Nettle in with the flowers.
posted by Thorzdad at 8:54 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Thorzdad at 8:54 AM on March 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
If you live on a busy street with bus stops, your home may be zoned for dual use--commercial and residential. I know of several people in NYC who have homes in which they are allowed to have businesses run out of the ground floor. IF zoned commercially, get a Tax ID, and place decorative signs near the flowers with an "official" price of over $200 for each. In most states, theft of an item greater than $200 is a felony or at the very least a serious misdemeanor. You can set up a web cam inside your home, and if you are able to catch any "felons," prosecute them as such. The $200 price tag would keep any honest buyers away, or, if someone is really wants to pay you $200 for a $40 plant, than that's up to them, so long as they're aware of it.
I'd definitely try the thorny plant idea first, however, because even if the above is possible for you, the effort needed to enact it probably wouldn't be worth the payoff, unless you're specifically seeking revenge.
posted by Debaser626 at 9:48 AM on March 2, 2012
I'd definitely try the thorny plant idea first, however, because even if the above is possible for you, the effort needed to enact it probably wouldn't be worth the payoff, unless you're specifically seeking revenge.
posted by Debaser626 at 9:48 AM on March 2, 2012
It seems like creating a relatively pretty but firm border of vegetation should work.
If you make it about 3-4 feet deep and about 4 feet high I would think that would prevent folks from bending too far in to pick things. Of course, this will take either a large purchase of mature-ish bushes or waiting a while.
Ceanothus might be a good choice. They grow pretty quickly, aren't thorny, but aren't really easy to walk through.
How much of a trash problem do you have? People tend to use bushes as trash cans, I've noticed, so you might solve one problem but create another.
posted by MonsieurBon at 9:48 AM on March 2, 2012
If you make it about 3-4 feet deep and about 4 feet high I would think that would prevent folks from bending too far in to pick things. Of course, this will take either a large purchase of mature-ish bushes or waiting a while.
Ceanothus might be a good choice. They grow pretty quickly, aren't thorny, but aren't really easy to walk through.
How much of a trash problem do you have? People tend to use bushes as trash cans, I've noticed, so you might solve one problem but create another.
posted by MonsieurBon at 9:48 AM on March 2, 2012
motion sensor activated sprinkler system
Pigeon spikes
Thistles
posted by theora55 at 11:59 AM on March 3, 2012
Pigeon spikes
Thistles
posted by theora55 at 11:59 AM on March 3, 2012
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by bloggerwench at 12:17 AM on March 2, 2012