GOSPORT CLOUD

Overgrown hedges are an eyesore and potentially a hazard. There comes a point what is and what is not acceptable. When a hedge is smothering a pavement, forcing pedestrians, mothers with pushchairs, to step off the path, let's not mention keeping eye on the odd bramble ready to take your eye out. I suppose some could be deemed as enviromentally friendly, replacing the trees being hacked down in Brazil each day.
Originally I intended this to be a rant, yet with deeper thought I had concluded that there may be hidden reasons why a householder would allow their garden to become a jungle. In the distant past, housing estates were built after the second world war.At the time houses had minimal wired fencing. Let me introduce you to the Box plant. Looked great at the time, Sunday mornings the wife preparing dinner, out there in the sun, sleeves up and shears in hand trimming their pride and joy into their own personal designs.

Times have changed, these days residents have different priorities, and mindsets to what was and what is relevent today. It is so easy to become annoyed with a neighbours overgrown hedge.
Yet there maybe circumstances beyond their control harbouring the reason why the garden bounderies are akin to a jungle.Take for example there are quite a few houses that were previously council, but were sold to housholders during the Thatcher years. Most of these have been passed down through the family and maintained. For those occupied by the original owners, they would now be retired people, very often physically unable to tend their gardens. The change of society has isolated these people. Six foot fences, no visitors, no need to leave the house due to everything paid automatically.

It must be quite heart breaking for these isolated people that society has left behind. To see their once wonderful garden becoming nothing more than a prison. Blanketing their view of the outside world, and of course no one can see that they are there also.
It's doubtful if the property owners are trying to expand the footprint of their land. Theres a house nearby, honestly the weeds are higher that the window, the front door cannot be seen. I wonder if any one actually lives there. Wildlife have taken advantage of this, foxes relish these little island sanctuaries, along with rats etc. Hence the amount of foxes running around the area. This house apparently was reported to Gosport council in August 2022. Gosport council inquired, the resident it seems, is not very helpful. The overgrown pavement is down to Hampshire county council. Meaning Gosport has no control over this, though I say they can push the enviromental issue with the foxes moving in and pestering the neighbours. Although I have to say I have a relative in Wales, who has expanded the size of the land footrpint by moving his fence every year by a few feet onto a dis-used railway line. To date he has erected a double garage on this land and a hardstanding. He is a character though, I give him that.