Neighbour’s kid picked my daffodils

I agree. We have a new estate in our village which is a mixture of private ownership, shared ownership and housing association properties. The developers planted daffodil bulbs around a sculpture within the grounds of the development.

Last year, the flowering daffodils were trampled on and most of them were pulled up and the bulbs scattered around.

There is also a great deal of litter scattered about - soft drinks bottles, packaging, bits of broken plastic toys. Residents must be aware that their kids are leaving litter on the paths and grass and shrubby areas rather than bringing it home for disposal, but they evidently don't care and it is spoiling a nice estate for everyone who lives there.

Children need to be taught from a very early age that you don't leave litter.

They also need to be taught that you don't pull the heads of flowers, or trample on them or pull them up by the roots or pick plants from other people's gardens (and it's another 9 days until Mothering Sunday).

I was brought up in a small village that regularly won the county's tidiest village competition, We had it drummed into us at home that you don't leave litter. We also had it drummed into us at junior school and at the end of playtimes we were all expected to pick up any sweet wrappings and we weren't let back into classrooms until the playground was tidy.

It is parents' responsibility to teach their children not to spoil the environment for everyone else.

If I was the OP and I knew which neighbour the child belongs to, I would have a quiet word with the parents. I might take round a pot of bulbs for the child to look after at home and encourage a love of gardening.

that would be amazing, especially the last one.

I would take the same number from their garden, then knock on their door holding them and explain why, but then I'm petty like that.

Vodkamummy · Today 12:58 "Whoops! I clicked you are being unreasonable by accident"

You can change your vote. Just click the other option.

this happened to me a few years ago- a young boy picked them all.
Then, when I went out in the car a little later I saw all my daffs, the young boy had picked them to put on a spot in the road where a boy had died crossing a the year before. I was more than happy they had gone to a good place.

My DH did the first strim of the year for the first time after we'd moved house a few years back. He didn't realise the flowers starting to show in the border were flowers and not long grass, down they went.

I was disappointed but accidents happen.

Saw my own little girl eyeing up a neighbors daffodils earlier this week and warned her they are already being loved and to please do not disturb them. We get to see them every day walking to school now, that's nice enough surely

Whoops! I clicked you are being unreasonable by accident 😬😆 I don't think you are being unreasonable to be a little deflated having that little spark of joy vanish like that. Tbf if it had been a couple, no biggie, but all of them, yeah I'd be a bit sad too.

I was thinking this! The existing buttons don't often match what I think. I very frequently need buttons that indicate:

• You're having a laugh!
• Get a grip
• FFS RTFT! This has been said a dozen times already.
• Yeah, right
• Use paragraphs and then I might read this

Precisely. Yet this is apparently so sweet and innocent according to a lot of posters.

@CustardySergeant because she knew full well she shouldn’t be picking them I expect and knew she’d get into trouble if she picked her parent’s daffodils.

I don't know why so many posters think the girl picked them for her mum. There are daffodils in her own garden. Why would she decide to go into a neighbour's and pick them?

Last year my dh strimmed my tulips before they had flowered

My goodness, why on earth did he do that? I'd have been extremely upset. Tulips are lovely.

At eight? Really? I know many people believe it to be too young, but in England the age of criminal responsibility is ten years old, so from that age on a child can face charges in the juvenile court. The law therefore assumes that long before the age of ten a child should know right from wrong. Not all parents make sure their children are taught this, unfortunately.

@wishingplenty In the world I live in, once upon a time not so long ago, any child stealing someone else’s property would have been given a smacked bottom and sent to their rooms. They wouldn’t have had people on an internet forum condoning thwir behaviour and calling them sweet!

I would have a word with the parents just to ask her not to do it again, I'd feel annoyed by this but wouldn't blame the child.

as a few suggested I’m going to have a quiet word with their parents and let them know what’s happened and that I might not be so forgiving if it happens again

That's sensible OP; no need for any nastiness but you can do without her coming back for the tulips, summer flowering stuff and whatever else

The mention of Mothers Day reminded me of our local park though, where if the daffodil flowering coincides with the date every single one disappears

I am gobsmacked at posters on here saying it's OK and each to their own, what joy how sweet to see a child steal and trespass.

I hope they don't have children and if they do, don't live near me!

Do those posters think it's OK what I related in my first post? A 10 year old picking all the flowers on the gravestones in our local churchyard. I presume that's 'sweet' too.

What brats! Did you tell them off or complain to their parents?

Apologies, I completely misunderstood and thought you implied that post was in any shape or form reasonable. Agree, no chance she would do that herself

I’d be annoyed too. Years ago we planted some crocus in the front garden to grow through the lawn and saw next doors kids stamping on them when they flowered 😡

I’d love that.

i often roll my eyes on the teachers' threads on here because i worry that if parents aren't teaching the kids right from wrong then teachers need to try to help mitigate that.

I am so sorry, Teachers. I had no idea that so many people are utterly batshit and teaching their children that trespass and stealing is ok. You all deserve medals and a million quid a year, at least and to only work part time if these are the yobbos you're getting in your classrooms.

Only yesterday my son gave me a daffodil on our walk to school. I thought he had picked it from the public display in the park we walk through, so I reminded him that we must not pick those as they are for everyone to enjoy. He was horrified and said ‘oh no Mummy, I picked it up from the floor!’ He is 6 and knows that we do not pick flowers except daisies. My 3 year old also knows that we don’t do this, and both certainly know to keep out of other people’s front gardens!

If one of my children had done this in your own garden OP I would be mortified, apologise and definitely offer to buy you some new bulbs/even plant them myself!

Picking flowers from someone else's garden? Flowers where you have planted bulbs and waited for them to come up? And when they are in a garden they last for weeks, so to see them all gone because some feral kid picked them all is awful.
Do you have children? If so, do you teach them not to take things that aren't theirs?