There's nothing more frustrating than structures and features in the yard that look out of place. I'm talking about things like outdoor faucets, downspouts, and utility boxes – all essentials that can't be removed and disrupt your otherwise carefully curated landscape.
It's less than ideal to have brought your dream garden idea to life to then compromise with these features. But, what if I told you they could be cleverly concealed in a way that actually transforms them into attractive garden features?
5 Innovative Ways to Hide Outdoor Eyesores
Lots of these ideas can also be used to transform an awkward-shaped garden into a space that effortlessly flows.
1. Disguise Gutters with Climbing Plants
One of the biggest, yet unavoidable, eyesores in a backyard is a gutter downspout.
While many individuals try to conceal it by painting it the same color as the bricks of the house, it's not the most effective way to disguise this long, unsightly pole.
Instead, landscape designer Paul Robbins says to employ the help of the best evergreen climbers and best flowering climbers.
'You can plant trailing plants such as creeping Jenny, vinca, and sweet potato vine around your gutter to conceal it,' Paul says. 'The leaves will hang down and totally hide your actual gutters.
'From the street, all you can see is a nice border of green around your house. Plus, your trailing plants get to take advantage of all the extra water that drips off your roof,' he adds.
There are a couple of ways to do this. For example, you can install a downspout trellis (like this from Amazon) or train climbing plants to grow on a house.
Paul is an outdoor and landscape designer, as well as a deck-building expert. He's the CEO of Austin Fence & Deck Builders and Atlas Deck Builders, trusted outdoor construction companies serving Central Texas since 2015.
2. Switch Up Your Compost Bin
While making your own compost is a great way to get organic matter for free for your yard, it's not always the nicest of things to see.
Even if you use a closed compost bin (like this from Amazon), having a black structure in the yard doesn't always align with outdoor aesthetics.
Luckily, Paul has a creative way to turn your compost heap into a chic addition to the garden:
'Invest in an outdoor plastic storage bench (from Amazon) and turn it into a compost bin,' he says.
'Simply remove its contents, open up the door and place your compost bin or pile into it. You can even add some cushions on top to create some additional seating,' he adds.
Make sure to follow our advice around how to stop compost smelling bad to make this area of your yard more inviting.
3. Conceal Utility Boxes Behind Attractive Screens
Utility boxes, though of course essential, have a way of disrupting the garden landscape.
Rather than allowing them to draw attention away from your carefully curated yard, landscape designer Michael Clarke suggests using garden screening to conceal them.
'To hide utility boxes you can use outdoor privacy screens and panels made of cedar (like this cedar garden screen from Amazon), vinyl lattice, or composite slatted panels,' he suggests.
'These are easy to install and easy to move when utility workers need access,' he adds.
A bonus: you can turn garden screens into green spectacles by training climbing plants up them, the same as you would with a trellis.
'You can also create a small garden island around the utility box by planting layered beds of low ornamental grasses, perennials, and taller shrubs to hide the boxes behind,' Michael suggests.
Michael Clarke is the founder of Yardwork and Pulled, the online platforms for everything home and garden. He has a degree in landscape architecture and horticulture from the University of California Davis. He was previously the founder of a landscape development and maintenance company.
4. Cover Weedy Patches with Stone or Gravel
There are lots of ways to get rid of weeds, including using a weed puller tool (like this from Amazon), but sometimes it feels like an impossible task to keep on top of.
If you have a particularly weedy area of your yard that continues to thrive no matter what you do, there's an easy solution to hide them (and get rid of them for good).
'This is the easiest outdoor eyesore to conceal with landscape stone,' says landscape designer Dawn DeFeo.
'Lay down some landscape fabric (from Amazon) and then 3-4 inches of stone mulch, like pea gravel, crushed granite, or Mexican beach pebble.
'Nothing will grow through it and it will never need mowing or edging again, beyond some minor upkeep,' she explains.
This is essentially a technique to smother weeds and one of the best methods to weed a garden quickly.
The result leaves you with a beautiful stone landscape to dress up with outdoor seating, planters, or a gravel garden.
Dawn is the head of landscaping and gardening at Landscape Barn and, with decades of landscaping, gardening, and exterior design experience under her belt, she is an expert on all things landscaping-related.
5. Landscape with Large Boulders to Hide Outdoor Faucets
This is perhaps the quickest of the ways to hide outdoor eyesores on our list. When it comes to your outdoor faucet, you can simply place a large boulder in front of it.
'A single large boulder or a tight cluster of two or three medium ones will completely hide an irrigation valve box or hose bib while still letting you flip the lid open in seconds,' says Dawn.
It's the best way to hide a faucet without making it unusable.
This will particularly improve this area of your yard when it comes to covering an outdoor faucet in winter, using a faucet frost cover (from Amazon).
Other ideas for landscaping with rocks can also be used for this purpose and for providing screening of other unsightly, functional areas of the yard that you need regular access to.
FAQs
How Do I Hide an Eyesore from My Neighbor's Yard?
There are lots of things you can to do try and conceal an eyesore coming from your neighbor's yard. For example, you can try planting tall trees or put up trellises to grow climbing plants as a natural screen. Other options include installing a pergola to block the sightline and prevent you and your guests from seeing the eyesore while in your yard.
All of these ways to hide outdoor eyesores can be adapted to the specific situation in your yard. For example, you may choose to also use plants to hide a garden wall or you may want to create a flowering living wall in place of a fence.
Shop Gardening Accessories to Uplift Your Yard:
A rain chain is a great way to harvest rainwater and this one has beautiful hummingbird motifs. With a copper finish, it has a timeless feel to it.
This white lattice trellis is a cottage garden staple. Use it to train climbing plants and create natural screening in the yard.
This gorgeous blue glazed ceramic bird bath brings an elegant touch to wildlife gardens. It has a UV and frost-resistant finish for many years of use.
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