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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

AIBY to put neighbour's rose clippings in her bin

74 replies

SouthDownsSunshine · 08/08/2016 10:58

Neighbour has a huge rambling rose that falls over (a lot) into our garden.

Today I finally got around to cutting back a lot that falls on our side. I respectfully left some on our side so as to give us both privacy (the fence is low).

There was lots of clippings. About a foot worth once in the garden bin. I've got time off work this week and I've got lots more gardening to do so I'll be filling up my bin with my own garden waste before bin collection.

I thought, easy, put it in her bin. (She adds her recycling and normal rubbish to our bins on collection mornings, which we're happy with.)

She has just put it all back into my garden bin.

Who's being unreasonable?

OP posts:

amammabear · 08/08/2016 11:00

I think you both are, you should've consulted her, but she shouldn't have moved it back without discussing it either.

SleepFreeZone · 08/08/2016 11:01

I think you are.

Summerholsdoingmyheadin · 08/08/2016 11:01

YABU. You decided to cut it so you are responsible for disposing of it.

acasualobserver · 08/08/2016 11:03

The clippings actually belong to her. Next time chuck them back over the fence and she can work out how best to dispose of them.

SnotGoblin · 08/08/2016 11:04

YABU. A conversation with her about the rose prior to cutting it might have resulted in her trimming and binning it...

PotteringAlong · 08/08/2016 11:11

You are. You cut it, you bin it.

Vvlgari · 08/08/2016 11:13

I think putting it in her bin is petty, imho. If I'd been her, I would have been irritated but not to the extent of moving it to your bin. I would just have secretly thought less of you.

MovingOnUpMovingOnOut · 08/08/2016 11:14

Does nobody talk to each other any more?

ClaudiaWankleman · 08/08/2016 11:15

She is being U. When you only have fort nightly collections it is annoying to have a large amount of your own bin taken up by someone else's plant which they can't be bothered to prune. Don't do anything further this time, just dump them over her side of the fence next time. 'Where they fell' you can tell her.

Nocabbageinmyeye · 08/08/2016 11:17

Yanbu, her bush her clippings, give them back to her the cheeky mare. I'm pretty sure you legally have to give them back, or is that an urban legend?

Nocabbageinmyeye · 08/08/2016 11:18

Although I agree it is petty and you should have just mentioned it to get but she was cheekier to put them back

malmi · 08/08/2016 11:19

Sounds like your neighbour will be getting their recycling and rubbish dumped back on their doorstep this week :)

Alternatively, a knock on the door and a friendly chat probably wouldn't go amiss.

As pointed out, if you trim foliage overhanging from your neighbour's garden, the trimmings belong to your neighbour and should be left with them to dispose of, so your neighbour is technically in the wrong. By rights you could have just dropped them over the fence, and if you don't reach an acceptable compromise with your neighbour then that would be your 'nuclear option' next time.

ElodieS · 08/08/2016 11:20

What movingonup said!

ProcrastinatingNow · 08/08/2016 11:25

Very petty

CatNip2 · 08/08/2016 11:30

She is being unreasonable. I would throw them over the fence now, either that or go round and tell her that she needs to keep her plant trimmed at your side too and remove the trimmings afterwards.

I have a big plum tree whose branches goes over two neighbours because its in the corner of the garden, I prune back any overhang so they don't get lots of leaves in their gardens. It's the neighbourly thing.

Damselindestress · 08/08/2016 11:33

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I heard that legally you are entitled to cut a neighbour's plant if it comes into your garden but technically the clippings are theirs and have to be returned to them.

Original poster

SouthDownsSunshine · 08/08/2016 11:33

Very happy to take the point I should have talked to her first (although there's no such thing as a 'quick chat' with her!).

Not sure about being petty - now she's moved it back to my bin I'll struggle to get rid of all the garden waste I had planned to do this week. I'm not going to have any more time off work now until I'm on maternity leave in November, and I have dd in nursery mornings this week so I have the opportunity.

I'm tempted to knock on her door, explain my predicament, and hope she'll allow me to put some excess garden waste into her bin.

OP posts:

acasualobserver · 08/08/2016 11:35

I think you're on to something Damsel - a pity no-one thought of that earlier.

ElodieS · 08/08/2016 11:35

Sounds sensible to me South, it would BVU of her to kick up a fuss then I think.

MidniteScribbler · 08/08/2016 11:39

Anytime I've ever had any pruning to do of a neighbours plant, I've always gone over and said 'hey, going to trim the tree, do you want me to return the branches, or just get rid of them?'. Most times they say to throw them out, and that's fine. Other times they might say they've got room in their bin, or they're doing a tip run soon and to throw them back over (I would bundle them in this case, not just toss them over). They generally do the same to me.

I'd be pretty annoyed if a neighbour just came along and threw all the clippings they had done in my bin without asking me how I wanted them disposed of. And I think just throwing them back is pretty damned rude as well - one neighbour did this to me when I was nine months pregnant and they were all over the yard and I had to end up paying to get someone to come over and collect them all and get them broken up (too big for the bin) and to take them away.

SerenDippitee · 08/08/2016 11:42

It was very passive aggressive of you to put the clippings in her bin without discussing it first. I'd have been pissed off in her shoes. Go and have a conversation with her!

amammabear · 08/08/2016 11:44

Seren exactly what I was thinking when I said both were unreasonable.

LRDtheFeministDragon · 08/08/2016 11:49

I think her cuttings have to be offered to her, but it's that way around - she's not forced to take them. I could be wrong, though.

I agree you should have talked to her, but in practical terms, I do think it's rude for her to just dump them back. Given she puts her extra rubbish in your bins by agreement, she should have realised that this isn't exactly unprecedented and you were just doing the same sort of thing. It's neighbourly to be nice about that.

I agree you should go knock on her door, but I think I'd start by just asking her if there's some confusion? Then she will have to explain her thinking, and it will be much easier for you to reply that since it is her plant, and since she regularly uses your bin space when it's needed, you had naturally expected that she would return the favour when you needed it.

ceebie · 08/08/2016 11:54

Perhaps legally you can give her back her clippings, but she's your neighbour - in the interests of good neighbourly relations, just talk to her first!

If you're desperate for more bin space you could always ask around other neighbours if they're likely to have any space in their bin that they wouldn't mind you filling?

NicknameUsed · 08/08/2016 12:04

Damsel is correct. The clippings legally belong to the neighbour. If it had been me I would have had a discussion with the neighbour beforehand.

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