The magnolia is really much too close to the house. But at this point all you can do to hide the box is to put up some kind of open work covering and paint it same color as the house. Has to open so you can get to the box. And if the meter reader needs to read it, that part must be left open.

the sweet bay is about 15 feet too close to your house.. leading me to believe your landscaper is an idiot.. and i suggest you find a better source of knowledge...

are you really going to take your jug of wine and lawn chairs over there and sit there all summer looking at your utilities???.. i think not..

frankly.. there is no problem here that needs fixing..

go drag the barbie and the wind out on the patio in back;.. and enjoy the back of the yard.. rather than the side of the house where your utilities are..

ken

I don't know if it is possible but painting it the color of the house would help it disappear.

Illicium cultivars will work well, such as Woodland Ruby & Spring Frost. Leann & Juliet Cleyera, Aucuba & Camellias will also do very well.

The suggestions shown are BananAppeal Anise & Fatsia:

Thank you! If I planted the plants by the tree would those make the tree eventually rot at the bottom?

That tree will get very wide, and really should be moved out of that bed. I'd just paint the box and then plant interesting plants beneath.

At my last house, I called my city to see if I could paint mine, they said go ahead. I painted it my brick color. That made a huge difference!

They said I could plant in front of it or screen it, but the face always needed to be clearly seen and easily accessed if needed.

I planted Hyacinth Bean Vine on it every year, and planted mid-sized shrubs (dwarf Abelias) in front of it. I also had a Crape Myrtle outside of the bed. The vine was perfect — well-behaved, and just the right size. I’m z8, too (Tx) and it was in a shady spot.

Your box is quite a bit larger than mine was, so you might want to look into the trellis ideas mentioned.

But I’d call your town/city first, some don’t want anything near them.

I’d paint it and plant underneath. And yes it might be on the side but I’m in the camp of wanting to utilize every square inch of my yard so I understand

No unless they were watered excessively

far more harm will come to tree when you have to remove it because it is too close to the house and you are tired of pruning to an ugly unnatural shap to keep it within bounds

Rolinda, what area are you in? Without knowing that, specific plant suggestions may or may not be able to grow at your location.

Paint the box the same color as the house. If you are really feeling energetic, paint the pipe at the foundation level cream. It's really effective. I saw one painted brick with mortar. It was barely visible against the brick house, despite the fact that the paint job was quite amateur.

Tiffany great question. As I mentioned in my OP I mentioned I was in zone 8. Is this what you were asking about?

Zone 8 tells how cold it can get ... but there's a wide variety of climates, still. Zone 8 could be Georgia, Texas, Arizona, Oregon, most of the UK ... Those are some very different climates.

Paint the box the same color as the house. Plant Camellias aorund it if there's some shade.

I can't help but wonder, won't someone need to access that box every now and again? I wouldn't cover it up with anything. I like the idea of paint it the same as the house, that sounds nice.