To loathe Britain in Bloom and all the hideous hanging baskets everywhere?

[GetOrfMoiLand]

I think they look vile and are a waste of money.

Everywhere seems to have the same look - I drove through Taunton and Barnstaple at the weekend, they both had hideous displays of hanging baskets and topiary thingies, all with the same flowers (bright pink and red busy lizzes, geraniums, lobelia). It makes everywhere look the same.

It's just such a waste of time. These things will be dead by the end of the summer. I know councils have a budget for gardens, but why can't they spend it on year round plants and trees, not the creation of these crappy hanging baskets. The cost of their erection (oo-err missus) and watering must be high as well.

Or am I a miserable old caaa?

I heart you, Pikelit.

Lol at the thought of all this stuff done by prisoners.

And yes, Ilfracombe High Street of a Sunday morning used to be covered in battered flowers where revellers had headbutted the hanging baskets. There were more disembodied flower heads on the floor than there were pools of vomit (which was quite nice)

so long as they don't put it on car registration plates like in the US "great potatoes" for Iowa or some such place

They should have red lights in the eyes of that squirrel that go on after dark.

That would be good

I like the squirrel's afro.

You would think they could have used a red bush to topiarise.

I think it would be even better if they actually started moving after dark. Enormous privet and lobelia squirrel shuffling round the park with its zimmer frame. That would cut binge drinking in an instant.

zzen you are making me roar today

lights! lol

geez yes, I likethe sound of that!

You have been watching too much Buffy.

" i sentence you to 6 months topiary with an extra 30 hours dead heading"

weeps wiht moving squirrel

Perhaps you could put it forward to your local committee for next year, setsquare? I reckon some MN infiltration into BinB, with some truly baroque ideas would be good.

sheffiled have a steel man

YABU. I love them. There is always someone to moan when people try to make the world a brighter place!

I loathe hanging baskets; they seem to be planted with absolutely no imagination.

Having said that I like BiB when it's done imaginatively (not in our town sadly). I think Gilbert is wonderful.

The first year we were here we were collared by some old dear saying "You'll have to do something about that [pointing at the small expanse of horribly overgrown 'garden' in front of our house] by June you know." DH and I gazed at her open mouthed, thinking of the leaking flat roof, the front wall of the house becoming disconnected from the rest of it, the leaky pipes, the electricity which blew the fuses at any and every opportunity, the cooker which was a threat to life, (she had asked I assure you!) all of which we had just had a long conversation with her about! And the only thing she was worried about was the judges of BloodyBritaininBloodyBloom would see our crappy bit of earth!

I think that flowers speak for themselves-nature is wonderful and they don't need imagination!

Yes, Pisces - I agree that nature is wondeful. Bright orange busy lizzies aint natural though

YANBU these things are hideous and very prevelant in the Cotswolds. Still, it gives the small minded retired types around here something to do when they are not out creating mayhem on the roads with their geriatric driving.

Mis old caaaa.

I think this is just a bit of snobbery myself. Hanging baskets are associated with retired people and Harry Potter's muggle relative types, that's why you don't like them.

No one can seriously object to a lot of flowers together, hanging or not. It's the connotations you don't like IMO.

Hey getorf - just go a bit further north then! Bridgie's displays are much more original. Empty lager cans, Maccie D burger boxes and fish and chip wrappers

Busy lizzies are quite horrible though.

Ooh am not a snob honest!

Higgle - I live in Gloucestershire so can attest to the flowers in the cotswolds. Somehow they look a bit prettier there though.

It's the topiary trees standing in regimented ranks and the identikit hanging baskets hanging up outside kebab takeaways and provincial knicker shops which I think are vile

Oh that actually does sound quite snobby, doesn't it

Orm - Bridgwater sounds just like Ilfracombe in that respect. Yes - busy lizzies are bleeding hateful.

I like busy lizzies-I like bright and vulgar!