30 Of The Most Bizarre Things Seen In People’s Gardens And Yards, As Shared On This Instagram Account For Ugly Gardens

"It all started as an in-joke between friends about gardens we’d see that weren’t necessarily bad, they just had a funny vibe or a weird aesthetic," Bede and Jame told Bored Panda that everything began with some comments about how a particular garden might be ugly.

According to the duo, it's not just traditionally beautiful gardens that can be works of art. Bizarre and ugly yards can have artistic merit, too. "We love the way people put themselves out there with their gardens. Gardens are a really personal thing and are always on display out the front of your home. They require huge amounts of effort and upkeep too," they said. And anyone who's ever put in the hours to tend to their garden, no matter how small, is likely to agree that it's back-breaking labor!

One of the main things that keep James and Bede passionate about running the Instagram garden project is how it brings them together with fans from unusual places. "We love being able to interact with people around the globe through the medium of humor. Getting submissions from places we’ve never even heard of is always super interesting."

I was curious to get the founders' take on whether one of the main draws of 'ugly' photos is that they stand out very clearly among the stream of 'perfect' and curated pics that we usually find in our social media feeds. "Certainly, there is something about the ugly aesthetic which stands out on Instagram, a garden doesn’t have to be classically beautiful to stand out, make you happy, or be a landmark in the real world either," they shared their opinion.

Both Bede and James admitted that they aren't sure where exactly the line between well and poorly-designed gardens and good and bad yards lies. "That’s what is fun," they pointed out that not knowing is part of the appeal.

Finally, I was dying to find out why so many people seem utterly obsessed with garden gnomes. It feels like there's never just one or two of them guarding someone's lawn, but droves and droves of the figurines. "Neither of us has ever owned a garden gnome, but we imagine there must be something exhilarating about it, perhaps almost drug-like because once someone has one they seem to get a habit. If we have one bit of advice, it's to be careful of garden gnomes."