Could you trellis up a mess of sweet peas/beans with a sign that says you can pick if it grows on the sidewalk side? and hope they'd be satisfied with that sharing and not try to come inside and take more?
Maybe a sign warning that plants have been treated with pesticides would deter some hungry passers-by.

Raspberries? Sure, they'll eat what they can reach, but not likely to hop the fence.

Maybe consider planting eggplant in the line-of-site of other veggies...these plants and their leaves can get rather large and many of what I've grown, there are sharp thorns on the tops of the fruits themselves, so not likely to get swiped.

is it a metal fence that you have if so try hooking up power to it that will deter most peep from trying to climb it lol

Garlic, carrots, rhubarb, cabbage? Probably anything that doesn't have an obvious fruit or vegetable would work.

Perhaps if you planted raspberries with thorns and hung a sign that says, "Do not eat! Berries are poisonous!" :-)

Edible flowers, perhaps?

Cauliflower & brussels sprouts might be good. It takes a long time for them to look like a vegetable. Also if you planted a vining squash that was a little unusual near the fence, it might help "hide" the other things you have planted and they wouldn't know what to make out of a "weird" squash.

With prices on the rise people will be eating anything "free" soon enough. Sorry, no easy solution when edibles are in the line of sight, esp when renting and options are limited (fencing, dog, etc).

Okra. It grows fairly tall and can be spiney. Plus, most people outside of the south don't know what to do with them anyway. They might not even recognize them as a veggie. Of course, since you're a GW member, you can find all kinds of great recipes for your okra. :)

Maybe you shouldn't be so greedy and teach the children to share rather than teach them to hoard.

lol @ city tomato... oh yes. I'm trying to make ends meet by growing food for my family and I'm SOOOOOOO greedy because I don't want people stealing? And as if allowing people to steal food from my family is the only absolute way to teach my children to be generous? that's hilarious. Giving things away is what I would consider generous. Allowing people to steal from you and not doing anything to prevent it would fall more into the "doormat" realm rather than the generous one.

For everyone else, thanks for your input :) Okra... I like that idea. I think I'll do most of the fruit type stuff either on the other side of the garden or in containers. I do plan on growing a lot of broccoli next year since we eat a lot of it but I wonder if that's one of those things that's hard to get to and it's not super appealing to some... cabbage is another great one. This is really helpful!

You seriously call people who would take a few raspberries from your bush as they walk by thieves? What a sad state of affairs.

In most cases it isn't a 'few raspberries.' It's all of them. When we tried to establish a city rose garden some years back, in an upscale area, the rose bushes were dug up and taken away. We abandoned the whole attempt. When a friend put a few rosemary plants near the road, (and this is a remote rural area) all the plants were taken.
Another friend who gardens on the grounds of an apartment complex, had all her flowers torn off, the plants trampled and the garden destroyed. The line between what's mine and yours has become invisible these days.

City tomato,
Are you real? When we give something to someone that is being generous. When they take something without asking, that is stealing. You may steal, and teach your kids that stealing is ok, but I teach my kids not to steal. Come over to my neck of the woods. If you steal here, you might not walk another step, but if you ask I'm sure anyone would gladly give you what you need.

Oh yes, for what it's worth I certainly would not mind someone who as they were walking by grabbed a pea pod or 2 to munch on, no biggie. I'm more talking about pre-meditated stuff where people actually steal purposefully. Hopping the fence and whatnot.

No, I wouldn't call someone who stole a few raspberries off a bush as they were walking by a "thief" and I don't believe I even insinuated that in any of the posts.

I'm glad I don't live in your neck of the woods.

City tomato,
I'm glad you don't too...

Hey sorry but no offense, if you think it's OK to hop the fence into someone's garden and help yourself to their food, then I'm certain glad you don't live around here either!

Well I will say that I haven't been affected by thieves but once and I was shell shocked...I was having a garage sale and sold some extra plants...one lady who missed out on the plants walked over to my sidewalk and pulled up one that I had planted as she was leaving....now that is thievery.

Potatoes are a good idea. Many people have no idea what they are if they see only the top growth. Other root crops can also get by without being recognized...turnips, carrots, radishes. Perhaps choose a tomato variety that ripens to green, yellow, or black. If it looks "weird" people may not want it.

A row of large flowering plants that screens the veggies may help, also. Maybe they would never notice the food plants beyond that. Good luck!

Stealing is stealing is stealing. Period.

Having said that, my peach tree has branches that overhang my fence. I told the older woman on the other side (about the only neighbor over there who has been polite to me) that if she wants the peaches that are on her side of the fence, she's welcome to them. I can't get them, and I'd rather they not go to waste.

But sneaking a couple raspberries that overhang the sidewalk is one thing. Trespassing on private property to pull things up and make off with them is quite another.

Cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli might be a good idea because a lot of people simply don't like them. Cheddar or purple cauliflower, or some of the more off the beaten track types of broccoli, like white sprouting or possibly broccoli raab, might work as well. People might not recognize them as vegetables. Same with some of the edible greens that don't obviously look like lettuce or cabbage.

A Beware of Dog sign might make some people hesitate, whether you actually have a dog or not.

Yes, taking just one or two of something belonging to someone else without permission is indeed stealing. I have a lemon tree in the front of the property. There are no lemons left on the street side. They've slowly disappeared, one by one as numerous 'non theives' have walked by and felt entitled to reach into my property and pick my fruit.

If it had been just one person, it wouldnt be so bad, but the cumulative affect is.

The suggestion about non-red tomatoes is a good one... if you grow "Aunt Ruby's German Green", it's unlikely that anyone but you will know they are ripe. Edamame soybeans would be unrecognizable to most non-gardeners.

But other than that, chances are that anything you consider to be palatable will be desirable to others as well. If there is a fence, and you have a choice between tall & short varieties (such as bush vs. pole beans, and determinate vs. indeterminate tomatoes), choose the shorter. Root crops & leafy vegetables are good, because most thievery is snatch-and-grab. If it can't be reached conveniently, you will discourage all but the most brazen thieves.

Of course, it only takes one determined thief, who thinks that what's yours is theirs, to destroy a garden. In such a case, the options are to garden elsewhere, or not at all. Unless, of course, you can catch them. There are motion-sensing wildlife cameras that might catch the culprit, if you can hide them from sight.

I briefly had several plots in an inner-city community garden in San Diego, when I lived there. One day, I came in to find a stranger & her children in my neighbor's plot. When I asked her what she was doing, her reply was... "this is a community garden, we can take what we want". (!!!) Several weeks later, all of my produce began disappearing before I could harvest it, and another gardener told me a local indigent was selling my heirloom veggies on a street corner! There was no point in continuing... I was gardening for someone else.

Like most gardeners, I love to share. I always over-plant, and give veggies away to friends, family, church, and the local food pantry. It generally wouldn't bother me if someone picked a thing or two. But when thieves strike, they never stop at one or two - they take it all. A considerate thief is an oxymoron. Hey, I do believe in sharing... and if I catch a thief, I'll share the business end of a shovel, and do so generously.

@sweet_lemon

You know, I was thinking about planting a lemon tree in my front yard and wondered about thievery.

You've convinced me it would be a bad idea.

There was an elderly lady in OR who grew her own veggies. One night late in summer, she saw flashlights in her veggie patch. She had had problems before, so she used the same deterrent.

The shotgun blasts over their heads did scare them off. Her grandson went out and found people had carried in several of those large Rubbermaid storage containers (the kind large enough to ship a couple of small kids to Alaska).

Her grandson then set up some sensors that would turn on floodlights, and that seemed to take care of it.

CityTomato's posts kind of make you wonder where she get's HER in-season veggies.

Sue

Haha good for Granny! Like Ruth Gordon in Every Which Way But Loose.."Get off my porch. Get off my property!" "BLAM!BLAM!"

I remembered a few years back when people around here were "sharing" their Echinacea plants unwillingly. I think city tomato misses the point. If i am doing all the work and fronting all the expense, then YES, I would like people to ask me before they pick the fruit of my labors. Plus, I want to make sure that the stuff is harvested responsibly and sensibly. Where I grew up, fruit trees were everywhere and that's what people "shared" most often. The result? broken limbs, scarred trees, and no fruit left for the owner of the trees. I grow enough tomatoes, peppers,and cucumbers to share with my family and neighbors, and in really good years, I even share with my coworkers. I dream of the day when I can grow enough stuff to share with a homeless shelter or two. Sharing nurtures the soul, getting ripped just makes me angry.

I thought about planting a blueberry bush in my front yard. Aside from edible berries, they have pretty flowers and striking fall foliage.

But then I reconsidered and decided to plant it on the side yard.

And the front yard neighbors are the ones that I like.

I am glad I live in a nice neighborhood. I have to ask people to help me get rid of fruit from my trees. I do know how bad it does get out there believe me and I do feel for all of you

Another possibility is to plant a vine or bush right next to the fence that has long, sharp thorns, especially if it's a thorny vine that overhangs the fence.

If I recall correctly, the story of Beauty and the Beast begins when Beauty's father steals flowers from the Beast's yard. I should go back and read the original, not the Disneyfied version.

When I bought a raspberry plant to put next to the fence in back, I made sure I got one with thorns. And most of my vegetables are in a side area that can't easily be seen from any of my neighbors' yards. It's screened by house, shed, fence, lilac bush, fence, peach tree, and cherry tree.

I suggest placing some toy stuffed skunks in amongst your plantings, too.

How about Curly Kale? It's not a popular vegetable and short so someone would have to hop the fence to get to it. It's easy to grow but you'd need to get the seeds in the ground soon if you want to harvest before Christmas. I break it into pieces, spray with cooking oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper then bake at 350 for a few minutes, until crispy. So yummy and good for you - like broccoli flavored potato chips.

No real suggestions here accept something viney or thorny on the fence to block the garden from sight. Being robbed is horrible. I had my home broken into and jewelry and my sons piggy bank stolen 6 yrs ago in city. I now live in a small town and have had my broken down car (in my driveway 50' from the road robbed) of spare change and they tried to start it but they could rig it to work without they key, instead they went over to my working car which the trunk was unlocked and stole all of the change out of it. It was heartbreaking. Having your hard work stolen is just as horrible. I hate having a few plants stolen/eaten by animals let alone people who should know better.

Here's what I did for the last 3 years to deter both the 2 legged kind (kids in the neighborhood) and the local cats. I bought 2 of the motion sensor sprinklers attache a in-line fertiliser canister and filled it part way with skunk sent (sold in hunting stores) and the rest with water. I think you get the jist of what happens. After a couple of attemts by kids they got the message, Cats well they arnt that smart, but thier damage has gon down considerably.

Hope that helps
Happy Gardening
Mark

We had a woman donate alot of time and money into planting around the church at which I work. I helped her put in the big stuff she donated. She spent most of the summer putting the plants in. The following monday after she was all done most of the bushes and flowers disappeared. A co worker and myself followed the dirt trails to a house 3 blocks over to find all the stuff she had planted allready in the ground of this house (and get this they were planted around a bathtub mary) we called the police and they did nothing at all. So over the next few weeks I proudly displayed a sign outside this house reading "Plants proudly stolen from a church" every fay they would take it down and every night Id put it back up, stuff stopped diappearing. Its a shame when you can prove to the police that it was stuff taken from the church and yet they are still unwilling to do anything about it.

Big sign out front ....

{{gwi:59989}}

Gardenman - that's absolutely awful! I can't believe people do this sort of thing... unfortunately, being realistic, I gotta take what measures I can to protect my hard work.

My husband just keep suggesting booby traps... :)

Maybe a sign that says "Please ask before you pick"....and another sign that says "Thieves will be shot on sight". LOL

Of course, I live in the country. Small signs like this would add a "cute" touch to the garden.

While this isn't gardening, when I was 16 I worked for a summer in a corner grocery that also sold ice cream, mini pizzas, hot dogs, etc. The girl who used to work there spent all summer painting a beautiful mural on the outside wall. She finally got done. It was beautiful. Everyone was very proud and happy.

The next morning, we came to work and found red paint splashed all over it. We didn't even get to display the finished piece for a full day. The girl was heartbroken and understandably didn't feel like starting over again. They just painted the wall white.

I've never understood why people do that. I also read in another thread somewhere someone who had expensive prize irises, daylilies, etc. They came home early one day to find someone else's car parked in their driveway. An entire family, kids, too, were in her backyard digging up her flowers. They had shovels, pails, everything. This was a planned expedition. When they were discovered, they simply took all of their stolen flowers, got in their car, and drove off.

On a slightly related note, I have a beautiful copper hanging that I wanted to put out, but it's still in its box. I don't know if it would last a day before disappearing.