Avoid These Expensive Landscaping Mistakes

What It Is: Who even knows
Cost to Repair: $100*

There’s no doubt that it’s frustrating when a tree just won’t grow properly. No one wants a dying thing on display in their front yard, but would you go this far to try and cover it up? A sensible option might be to uproot the tree and buy a new one.

So Many Questions @Instagram / Instagram.com

Instead, this person has thrown a bunch of turf over the top and hoped nobody would notice. Unfortunately for them, it doesn’t really work. It doesn’t blend in with the rest of the surroundings, and it’s certainly doing nothing for the health of the tree.

What It Is: Painting the grass green
Cost to Repair: $1,000*

All lawn owners have battled with keeping their grass green at some point, whether it wilts in winter or dries out and ends up looking like ramen noodles in the summer. The sensible option might be to invest in a sprinkler, scatter some more seeds, or just put up with it.

Cover Up @Claudia Coleman / Pinterest.com

This person decided that a defeatist attitude wasn’t for them and instead of bringing the dead shrubbery back to life, simply got a spray gun and painted it. All is well and good until it starts raining and the dog tramples green paw prints on the new white carpet.

What It Is: Pants planters
Cost to Repair: $200*

There are some things that should never be seen in a garden. Weeds springing up from every place in sight, a shallow grave – and this line of inexcusable planters. These babies have got back, front, and side to side, but that doesn’t exactly make them a work of art.

Pantsed @artur / Pinterest.com

The best option here would be to head on down to Home Depot buy some actual planters, go home, kick these blue jean ladies to the curb, and set about righting a very wrong situation. On the flip side, if you leave them up, at least no one will ask you to host a garden party.

What It Is: A mailbox
Cost to Repair: $200*

Mailmen know better than anyone that there can be some really bizarre mailboxes. Sometimes people opt for cute little painted ones with sweet lettering, but on occasion, something like this pops up. Not only is it a horror to behold, but the neighbors probably won’t like it, either.

Lawn Shark @Alysha Evans / Pinterest.com

We’re all for being unique, but something like this stands out like a sore thumb – or in this case, a severed limb. The best solution is to bulldoze it and buy a new one from Amazon that doesn’t make you want to sing “Dun dun…dun dun…” every time you walk past it.

What It Is: A tree going through a roof
Cost to Repair: $1,000*

Trees can cause real problems with house structures if they’re too close to the property, which is why it’s important to clear the ground before building commences. We’re not sure what happened in this case, but something obviously isn’t right.

Through the Roof @ağač / Twitter.com

Is it intentional, or did the homeowners try to make the best of a bad situation? Either way, it’s going to cost a pretty penny to have that tree felled and the roof repaired. Let this be a lesson to you: mother nature always wins when given half the chance.

What It Is: A giant bush bunny
Cost to Repair: $500*

That’s a big ol’ bunny that just can’t be ignored. Some might say that this is a delightful addition to any garden that will have gardeners around the world hopping for joy. It’s definitely a well-done bunny with beautifully shaped ears but just look at the wasted space.

Bunny Hop @Mariela Giselle Mendoza/ Pinterest.com

That’s a lot of lawn covered with one giant rabbit, which could ultimately be used for tons of other things, like the pool you scored on eBay. Having outside space is a blessing, but something tells us this bunny would just get in the way.

What It Is: A very weird planter
Cost to Repair: $500+*

What do you do when you have huge holes in the concrete patio that haven’t been filled in? Sure, you could spend a lot of money on sorting it out to make it look nice, or you could pour in a bunch of soil, throw in some plants, and make it into a succulent smiley face.

Say Cheese! @Watch and Enjoy / Facebook.com

This level of dedication isn’t for everyone, probably because it’s just so creepy. If you wanted to push it even further, you could stick a fire pit in the middle and make a nose. It won’t end up on Facebook for the right reasons, but at least you can say it’s unique.

What It Is: A bench swallowed by a tree
Cost to Repair: $1,000*

Benches underneath trees can be lovely places to spend an afternoon, watching the world go by as the birds tweet overhead, making their nests. The only trouble is, trees are living, growing organisms that have the capacity to fully swallow something as puny as a bench if it gets too close.

Nature Is Healing @Eve Farris / Pinterest.com

The local authority may not have imagined it would happen, but this tree bit back. There’s no quick fix for this that can be bought at Home Depot. A tree surgeon, a new bench, and a prayer would be a good (but costly) place to start.

What It Is: Decapitated palm trees
Cost to Repair: $600*

Palm trees usually add a little bit of pizzazz to a scene, but what if they’re just too palmy for your liking? Some might go the whole hog and uproot them, but the bigger the tree, the bigger the problem. This person decided enough was enough and just chopped the heads off of them instead.

Decapitated @Instagram / Instagram.com

Does it look pleasant? Not in the least – but at least they don’t look like palm trees anymore. Who wants a gorgeous, leafy sight when they can look at the trunk in all its glory, surrounded by sky, anyway? Don’t expect to see prints of this pop up on Etsy anytime soon, though.

What It Is: A pool full of grass
Cost to Repair: $10,000*

Maintaining a pool isn’t cheap. Getting one taken out can also cost a pretty penny, but what if you really want a lawn in your yard for your kids to play on? Why waste the money when you can just invest a few hundred in a ton of soil and scatter some grass seeds on top? The patio is already there, all you have to do is ignore the railings.

Plan B @benavidez99 / Reddit.com

There won’t be any Instagram stories of pool parties, but you could pitch a tent on it and pretend that backyard camping is the new “in” thing. There’s not really any way to fully justify this monstrosity. It just exists.

What It Is: PC planters
Cost to Repair: $200*

It’s quite easy to forget just how far technology has come. Just a couple of decades ago, computers were big, bulky things that weighed a ton and had download speeds comparable to a snail crossing the road. These days, they’re fast-paced and ever-evolving – but what happened to the old machines?

Tech Graveyard @Mickey Connerat / Pinterest.com

Apparently, they all congregated in this weird and wonderful computer graveyard, where they spend all eternity dreaming about the good old days and watching Google from afar, wondering how they managed to fall so far behind. They don’t even get free cookies…

What It Is: Lemurs made from bushes
Cost to Repair: $40*

Whether this is a strict fail could be open to interpretation, but there’s no denying that these lemurs look a little bit out of place in this situation. It must have taken a lot of time to beat that bush into submission, especially when it came to crafting the tails and faces.

Leapin' Lemurs @Tertawa Sutra / Facebook.com

Whoever got to grips with this one obviously knows their way around a trimmer, but we can’t help but feel like it would be better off bulldozed. There’s a lot to be said for traditional landscaping that doesn’t involve replicating the cast of a Netflix nature documentary.

What It Is: A surefire way to terrify kids
Cost to Repair: $500+*

Depending on which way you look at it, this is either a shrub sensation or a ghastly pile of grass. It’s a great way to convince kids that giants are real, but can you imagine stumbling across this piece in a wooded area while trying to enjoy your walk?

Who Goes There? @Karen Cramar / Pinterest.com

Some might love it, others might think it’s the worst thing since Netflix put their prices up, but there’s something about those eyes that make the entire thing unsettling. The gardener was probably proud of this one, but be under no illusion – when they get sick of it, it’s going to be very expensive to take out.

What It Is: A really unnecessary sign
Cost to Repair: $500+*

This poor sign is trying to do its job, but it’s not being adequately supported by its coworkers at all. The teeny tiny patch of grass makes the sign feel totally laughable, but there’s no one to turn to to make it feel better. All that’s left is a bunch of dirt and shattered dreams.

What Grass? @eBaumsWorld / Pinterest.com

Who knows, perhaps this could be a basis for a new Disney Pixar short. The sign befriends a tiny seedling before helping it grow into an entire luscious lawn. Let’s hope someone is able to give this sign the future it deserves before too long.