It is always a treat to get a compliment on the garden and the in person one is better! Perhaps it is, as you say, because the giver sees it all but I think maybe it is because it is that much more personal! Love this picture. How inviting!

Like you, I treasure all the compliments I get from neighbors and friends. But the ones that have meant the most have come from fellow garden bloggers like MSS (Zanthan), Annie in Austin, and Kathy Purdy, because they've seen the edited, show-offy garden on my blog and then seen the reality in person, and still had nice things to say about it.

I don't know if you've had an in-person visit from a regular reader of your blog, Stuart, but I promise it'll make you nervous. On the other hand, if they're a gardener too, you know that they'll be most forgiving of the bad spots. 'Cause we've all got them.

You've got me nervous already thinking about Pam. That sure is another level altogether.

Cheers for the comment as well Layanee.

A few people have told me that my garden should be in a magazine. I immediately begin thinking of reasons why it couldn't be...but then just smile and said "Thank you." :-)

I've gotten some nice comments on my garden from neighbors passing by on their evening walks, and it always makes me feel good. I sometimes wonder what the people who walk by without saying anything are thinking?

I've often thought this as well Carol.

I have a corner lot, so my yard is very visible. Last year I had two comments that really meant a lot. One was from a teenage girl as she was passing by, she didn't see me, but I heard her say to her boyfriend that my yard was so pretty. He commented back, "well she's in it all the time". The other comment was from a lady walking by, she said that I must be a master gardener like her mom, because my yard was so beautiful. Those comments make the labor so worthwhile.

We all need positive strokes, & unvarnished praise for the "real garden" is akin to unconditional love. A neighbor across the street commented to me how much she liked my front garden. I was standing on her driveway at the time, & it caused me to turn & look at my garden. I realized that I usually only see it up close & I noticed how different it looked from a distance. Now I try to consider how the "big picture" looks out front & how I need to tie it all together.

Last fall, when I was mulching the new front garden... after having heard the "Hey, aren't you going to leave any grass there?!" comments from the yard-gung-ho neighbors... the young man who lives 2 doors down from me stopped to chat on his way home from his grandma's. "I see the garden is winning," he said... and then at the end of our chat, he said: "You know, I don't think I inherited my Mom's green thumb. But when I have my own house, I want to try to make my front yard look as interesting as yours... not just boring grass!"

It wasn't just that the rest of the neighbors had arched there eyebrows at my shenanigans... but also that I can hold out some hope that I'm inspiring some people (even if they won't have their own gardens for at least 10 years!) to rethink the urban landscape. :)

Secretly, that is my favorite thing from being on our Garden Walk Buffalo tour - the compliments & comments from strangers. Ego stroking always feels good. I think opening your garden to a tour is all ego-driven.

Sometimes, with neighbors, I take the comments for granted. They tell me how nice they think my garden is, but knowing they just have grass they begrudgingly mow, I think they'd compliment anything that's NOT grass.

The only thing better than a kind comment is when I see someone out front taking pictures of my garden, which happens occasionally.

And the only thing better than THAT is the one time I looked out the window and saw a class of a dozen 10-15 year-old kids sitting on the sidewalk, all sketching my garden.

One of my most memorable moments was a mother and daughter coming up my pathway to the front door and I could hear them talking. The little girl said 'oh mummy, what a pretty garden!' I have treasured that moment for a long time.

Although one neighbor across the street likes the in-progress pink garden, most of the "good stuff" that goes on the blog is behind the privacy fence in the back yard. It gets compliments, Stuart, but the people who come through the gate aren't casual passers-by.

Until we do something with the front yard I won't expect any kind remarks from strangers ;-]

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

I had ridden to a garden symposium with two members of my garden club. I continually tell my "Garden Friends" that I am not a gardener because I have no clue what I'm doing. When they drove me home they asked to see a new garden bed I was in the process of working on. Before leaving my dear friend said, "What are you talking about? This is a REAL garden and YOU are a REAL GARDENER!" By far my best garden compliment ever!

great post and comments. Makes me realize hardly anyone notices even my front garden. Maybe because of hte fence? Now I'm looking for excuses. I'm jealous of the feedback you all get - waaah!