Our area is what the mail carriers call a walking route, old neighborhood where the mailboxes are by the front door as opposed to the newer developments with mailboxes on posts at the curb. In years past the mail carrier never dreamed of walking across someone's yard when going from house to house, sidewalks and driveways were their paths. But since we moved here 22 years ago all the carriers we have had just cut right across the yards. Until I started the front garden that was not a problem. But now I find that I must re-train the mail carriers who walk our route and since we have only had two regular carriers in all these years and dozens of temporary ones, that means I have a lot of people to train. I started out last fall by putting a note on the mailbox asking that they refrain from walking thru the new garden. It worked in a way but they would still cut thru at the top of the area no matter how many obstacles I placed in the path. And in a way that was fine since it technically wasn't the garden yet. After re-arrangeing that area last month, they started walking right thru the bed itself. I put up a little fence, they stepped over it. I put pots of dormant perennials to block them and they stepped over them too. Yesterday I put this sign on the mailbox The first notice they see ( photo / image / picture from toni's Garden ) They can't cut thru on the old path any more since that is now part of the shade garden and blocked off, but they have been going between our cars in the driveway and walking thru the flower bed. Now that the perennials are coming back, I have planted some new bulbs, roots and seeds out there I really don't want them stomping thru and compacting the black clay we call soil and killing my plants. So this morning I used two decorative shepherd's hooks, strung a length of chain between them and hung a sign from it. Chain with sign ( photo / image / picture from toni's Garden ) And the sign says.. Just don't do it ( photo / image / picture from toni's Garden ) Today's mail carrier was yet another substitute, one I haven't seen before. He read the sign on the mailbox, started walking down the driveway then turned to go between our cars and saw the second sign. He backtracked, walked down the driveway and proceeded along the sidewalk to the next house. I just wonder how many others will follow my instructions, if they don't then I will have to call the local post master and complain.
Gotta love it I should show off my sign I put up on our front hill that says keep your dogs dudu off my property. Sometimes people just don't get the message unless you put up something BOLD. Way to go, Toni. I love it.
You go Toni!!!!! I would call walking through someone's yard rude, even on the grass, much less in the flower garden. I would get a big shehperds hook and 'hang' the first mail carrier, that doesn't read your sign, on the hook. :-o I would call the local postmaster and complain. Perhaps the reason they don't/can't read the sign is the fact that people get mail for the wrong address frequently. We did when we were in Coppell. You may have to decoratively chain/rope your yard off. And high enough that they can't step over the chain! :-x Too bad they won't change the system/set-up and let you put a mailbox at the curb.
Eventually the whole front yard will be off limits. I have a Viburnum and a Texas Lilac that will be planted on the south side of the main yard to act as a barrier when they are larger, until then there will be ribbon strung between them to keep them from being stepped on. We will be putting up some panels of picket fencing across the front by the sidewalk....4 feet tall x 8 feet long with vines planted for each panel and there are 4 Caryopteris x clandonensis 'Longwood Blue' to be moved from the backyard that will block off the north side of the main yard. Hopefully by the end of this growing season the mail carriers will be stuck with sidewalk and driveway only.
Good signs, Toni. It's a pity that you have to 'train' the postal employees...it seems rather elementary to me that sidewalks are for walking and yards and gardens are for looking.
I hope your mail carriers get the hint Toni. Love those signs!!! I would have thought it would be easier for them to use paths and driveways instead of cutting across gardens. I wonder what they'd think if all their mail customers tramped across their land?
I Love your signs.I would have already complained to the post master.You should not have to deal with them walking through your yard.
I loved the signs We had that problem too at the first house we lived in as newlyweds. Our mail carrier tore his pants on the spigot and tried to complain to me about it!! If he would have stayed on the sidewalk, like he was supposed to he wouldn't have torn those ugly blue trousers!!! Deanna :-D
I just got home from taking my youngest to work and as I pulled up to the stop sign on the corner today's substitute mail carrier was walking up to our porch...so I sat at the corner to see what he would do. He almost got it right, he did walk down the driveway and on the sidewalk for about 15feet (which happened to be where the freshly dug bed ended) then he cut back up across the neighbors yard to their front porch. The re-training has started on two mail carriers, now I have about a dozen more to keep an eye on over the next few weeks.
I'm sorry, but I can't help laughing every time I read this thread. I wonder how the mail carrier feels when they ignore the first sign and suddenly stand before the second one? I know I would be embarrassed.
