Planting right up to the boundary and pruning...

[BewareTheBeardedDragon]

I'm feeling mildly irritated at the moment because my neighbour has planted several things literally in the boundary between our gardens.

The front gardens have no fences (deeds prohibit fencing at the the front), and I have consciously done my planting a little way in from the edge to prevent my plants encroaching on their garden.
My neighbour has a small cotoneaster (not one of the tall ones) right on the boundary, which I have to keep clipped right back on my side to stop it taking over my front border. It looks ridiculous because it's basically flat on my side, and tbh I resent having to do this since it's not my plant.

Now they have put in a row of roses, and again they are all right on the boundary. I'm feeling irritated at the prospect of more pruning requirements being foisted onto me. I can't ask them to prune because my border is quite wide and I don't want someone else putting their feet into it (I know where to stand!)

I'm probably being completely unreasonable and unless I go and sour neighbour relations by complaining (which I won't do) there's FA I can do about it, so I'm just moaning really.

My garden is to the south of their so all the bloody plants want to come my way. Grr.

Why wouldn’t you want to have roses in your garden? They don’t need a lot of heavy pruning in my experience. I would say get your own plants in the border and hopefully between the two of you, you can make a nice garden!

Well you are not being unreasonable at all. Her plants are clearly going to grow into your garden.

The thing is - I have the plants I want in my garden already. I don't have a large garden either front or back, and I'm a keen gardener. I want to get the most out of every inch of space I have, and I don't particularly like shrub roses.

Along (but with a decent space between) the boundary on my side I have a climbing rose which I'm training as a standard. I have bamboo (in a container), Himalayan honeysuckle, jasmine, hollyhocks, colourful dogwood, as well as various other perennials and annuals which I pop in, and edibles where I can fit them. I have just prepared spaces for some new climbing strawberries towards the back of the border (it gets narrower so they're easily reachable where they are placed.)

I don't have space for random plants invading from the neighbouring garden. I don't have time to be pruning other peoples plants and I also feel a bit awkward about pruning them (though I still do it). I'm actually happy for there to be more plants on their side - just don't want them so incredibly close. It's a bit like when someone stands too close to you in a supermarket queue (pre-covid). Ah well.