Anger after garden plants hacked back in Horsham man’s ‘little paradise’

A man who has spent 15 years creating a ‘little paradise’ in his Horsham garden has been left devastated after discovering some of his prized plants cut down.
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Clive Williams was angry when he spotted that the tops of privet hedging and bamboo bordering his garden in Littlehaven Lane had been lopped off.

Clive, 65, thinks that ‘over zealous’ council gardeners, who were tidying up borders at neighbouring Littlehave Infants School, are responsible.

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He said: “I heard a chainsaw and saw people cutting hedges in the school grounds, but didn’t think anything of it.

Clive Williams with the hacked plants in his Horsham garden. Photo:  Steve Robards SR2008102 SUS-201008-175820001Clive Williams with the hacked plants in his Horsham garden. Photo:  Steve Robards SR2008102 SUS-201008-175820001
Clive Williams with the hacked plants in his Horsham garden. Photo: Steve Robards SR2008102 SUS-201008-175820001

“But the next day I walked down to the bottom of my garden and I couldn’t believe it - I thought ‘what’s happened to my hedge and bamboo?’. They had cut off four or five feet. I thought ‘no, you can’t do that.’

“The bottom of my garden is like a little paradise with lots of exotic plants. We used the privet and bamboo to screen the area.”

He and his wife Joanna have been carefully cultivating it with all sorts of plants, such as palms and banana plants, for the past 15 years. “We have taken a lot of care of the garden over the years and spent a lot of money on it and then to find this done ... they even left the rubbish on my side of the fence so I have had to clear it up myself.”

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He said the hacked-back plants were clearly on his property on his side of a fence bordering the school grounds.

He has complained to West Sussex County Council about the damage but was left even more angry when. he said, his complaint was ignored.”I have heard nothing from them,” he said, and feared he was being ‘fobbed off.’

A spokesman for the county council said: “We have received a formal complaint from Mr Williams regarding this matter and it is currently being processed in line with our complaints procedure.”