Neighbour wants to cut my tree down.

[Lemonnhoney]

More of a WWYD.

Neighbour around the back of my house (gardens back onto each other) just came round to ask if she could cut the branches off a big sycamore tree at the end of my garden.

Apparently it's covering her garden with something? I'm assuming it's the flowers which are quite sticky with sap. She has just built a dog kennel too and apparently it's ruining it?!

It's quite a big tree and I get where she is coming from but it's so beneficial for wildlife, I see so many birds in it and it must be a habitat for thousands of insects.

I kind of fumbled about how I'm into nature and wasn't too sure and then said I'd have to ask my landlord.

I could pribably agree to her giving the tree a trim but to cut all the branches off? No way.

I feel awkward about it all though because I don't want any hassle.

AIBU for just ignoring her until she asks again then saying no 😂 I don't know what to say to her.

@Stuckforthefourthtime

Not quite the same thing, I know, but if I precariously balanced a dirty old mattress on my fence and it fell over into my neighbour's garden, I'd be rightly considered an immense CF if, when they complained, I said "Oh, no, I don't want it back, thanks - just get rid of it yourselves!"

It's a tree. Is it any wonder that our ecosystems are falling apart when people are all replacing back gardens with AstroTurf, front gardens with paving stones and comparing cutting down tree branches in nesting season with lobbing a dirty mattress over a fence?

Our ecosystems are also struggling because people plant inappropriate things in the wrong place.

Ours were definitely planted as a boundary back before there was a fence (our garden backs on to what is effectively wasteland belonging to commercial premises and there was no fence)
I'm a nature lover but I would LOVE to be able to replace them with different trees, but this age we'd never get permission. There's 8 or 9 and they totally dominate. I spend hours every weekend from October onwards trying to clear the leaves it's exhausting and feels such a waste of time!

She can cut the overhanging braches but not while there are birds nesting.

I would absolutely pass the problem on to your landlord to deal with, and did when a neighbour complained about a pyracanthas in our garden not long after we moved in.

Initially I trimmed the overhanding branches back but then the neighbour wanted the tree making a lot smaller, claiming it was blocking her light. So I took photos from her garden, with permission and sent them to our agent with her request. No one ever came back to either of us and that was nearly 3 years ago; she hasn't complained about it since, even though the tree is now bigger and hasn't been cut back at all on her side.

Even if I wanted to, I can't make any major changes to the garden without the permission of the landlord so let yours know, which also covers you if anything happens to the tree, and let the neighbour know you have done this and will be in touch again when you hear anything about how the landlord is going to proceed.

I agree with ElsieMc. Several years ago in our old house we had a beautiful tree in the front garden, end house and some of the branches over hung the road were our neighbour parked her car and wasnt to happy about the birds that sat on the tree pooping on her car (she could've parked on her drive way). The tree was well maintained and had a trim in Septembers after nesting season. Long story short we got a T.P.O (tree preservation order) on said tree, neighbour never spoke to us again. Years after we sold the house the tree still stands. What I'm getting at is for the birds sake september is the better time though your neighbour will be inconvenienced, perhaps she should move her dog house.

I've asked the landlord so will see what she says. She's quite easy going so don't think she will mind either way.

Also highly doubt she will contribute to any of the cost considering we have had a gutter that needs fixing since moving in over a year ago and she hasn't bothered to do anything about it.

The problem is that if she wanted to cut what was on her side it would be half the tree.

I sympathise with her but don't agree the best solution is to cut all the branches off back to the trunk.

I agree with what others are saying too about it waiting until after nesting season. But I think they are furloughed atm and on a bit of a DIY vibe so also don't get the feeling they will wait.

In nature trees are blown down or boughs come down in storms. Some are simply too large for modern overcrowded housing. Taking off a few boughs if done responsibly by a proper surgeon won’t harm the tree. Sycamores can be pains—we have them.

We have a number of large trees that go along the back of our garden, because of the wind direction here they all lean away from our house, completely dominating the (much smaller than our) gardens of the three houses behind us.

I do feel sorry for them, and we'd love to reduce the height for safety, but at the end of the day, the reason they're protected is that the trees have been here far longer than the houses!

The wildlife in our garden is stunning, the sounds are amazing and it should be considered a wonder not a hassle, if any of those neighbours don't like them, they can move.

We had this problem. A neighbour's tree had been dominating our small garden for a couple of years, and wouldn't do anything about it. It threw our garden into shade for most of the day. It all came to a head when one of the massive branches was ripped off during a storm and crashed through the roof of our shed. We went round and complained (although the shed was a wreck and was due to be removed but he didn't know that). He was very apologetic and ever since then, the bloke has professionals to cut the branches back so we aren't permanently in the shade during the summer.

Ours were definitely planted as a boundary back before there was a fence

A lot of people seem unable to grasp the simple fact that most mature trees will spread many times wider than the trunk and thus, if you want to use a tree to mark a boundary, you need to plant it maybe 5-10m away from where you intend the boundary to be - unless the intention is that the tree should occupy a 'no-man's land' between the two owned pieces of land.

Either that or they play the long-game land-grab, planning on gaining ground slowly by stealth as the tree grows, employing a natural form of the Mr Twitt Walking Stick principle.

Obviously, most of the massive trees we have now were planted decades or even centuries ago by people who are long dead, but it's still a very selfish thing to do, to plan a tree without ensuring that the full extent of its above-ground growth will remain on your own land.

It seems to me that trees are the flora version of cats: plenty of people own them and look after them responsibly, realising that other people shouldn't be expected to have to bear any potential negative consequences of their choice to have them; but there are a lot of folk who simply don't care and consider themselves untouchable - what they want is all that matters and if anybody complains about gardens that are permanently in the shade or unsafe to ever let their children out to play in because of the endless poo, they feel they have a perfect right to just tell them to F-off.

May not apply but just to note If you are in a conservation area any works to a tree require planning permission including pruning

It all came to a head when one of the massive branches was ripped off during a storm and crashed through the roof of our shed.

Lucky that it was only a shed, I suppose. If it had been a child playing in the garden, aside from all of the obvious emotional and practical devastation of the bereavement, I wonder where that would leave the owner of the tree legally. Would they be liable or does the law exempt them from any responsibility in such an instance?

the law about cutting off the overhanging branches has a part in it about not spoiling the overall shape of the tree. I can't remember it exactly, but if he pruning it would unbalance or spoil the tree, then no she can't.

She also can't do it in nesting season.

I'm guessing with a lot of these large mature trees they were there when people bought their houses (they don't tend to appear overnight) they just didn't think about the consequences of them being adjacent to their homes until it inconvenienced them.

I think you’ve misunderstood her, no one wants to “cut all the branches off” she probably wants the lower branches removed, which is actually good for re tree.

Removing all the branches no tree surgeon would do, it would just leave a vertical trunk which would look stupid.

I live trees but hate sycamores,they mostly harbour greenfly,drop sticky sap over anything under the canopy and around and grow like weeds.
Cut it down and plant a nice tree there.

The problem is that if she wanted to cut what was on her side it would be half the tree.

Oh so she has that much of it on her side? I feel sorry for her.

It's daft to be dogmatic about protecting ALL trees at ALL costs in ALL places. Wanting to replant with something more suited to the space doesn't make you a nature hater. Supporting an effort do so would encourage a love of trees rather than a seething resentment about sap and seeds ect. Not everything natural is wonderful.

the law about cutting off the overhanging branches has a part in it about not spoiling the overall shape of the tree. I can't remember it exactly, but if he pruning it would unbalance or spoil the tree, then no she can't.

So, in practice, you can't really cut back any but the most insignificant overhanging branches, as trees tend to grow out pretty much equidistant from their trunks. A considerate owner would therefore thin the tree all around to the same extent that it encroaches on the neighbour's property; but in effect, the law seems to state that, if you plant a tree even on the very edge of your boundary, you can take de facto ownership (or at least dictate the use) of all of the land that it eventually covers. Sounds so patently unfair to me.

I would work with her (and landlord), she came to ask, so she must be fairly cooperative. Ask to go around to her side and see the issue and view what she wants to take off and try to ensure she gets a tree surgeon in.

My new neighbour whose garden backs onto mine hacked away at my tree and ripped branches off. Didnt say a word as he thought the same as many on here that it was on his side.

What he should have realised when he bought his house and started paying his money to the estates scheme of management is that trees are protected where we live. You cannot do any work on trees unless you have a tree licence and they have to approve the tree surgeons.
The neighbour has clearly done it himself and looks truly dreadful. The estate has written to them with a warning.

Sad thing is if they had popped round I would have arranged for a tree surgeon to come round a tidy up the tree. As for your neighbour I can totally see there point and if your in an area where they are allowed to then she doesnt actually need your permission.

WeBuiltThisBuffet

I agree with every single one of your posts. They could of been written by me!

My neighbour asked the same thing last week. To cut a few over hanging branches as the leaves fall in their garden. They cut the whole thing down I was fuming. He said he got a bit carried away. Its actually better as I now have much more sun but the tree was so pretty and i used to sit listening to the birds in it.

I can sympathise with your neighbour here’s bit. Our neighbour has a massive oak tree which is right up to our boundary line. It’s an absolute nuisance for us, constantly covering our garden in debris. We have to dispose of bags and bags of leaves every year and any washing I try to dry outside is covered in sap/bird poo. All our garden furniture, kids toys etc are ruined. We get no sun after about 11am as it’s hidden by the size of this tree and during autumn we get pelted with acorns. We paid a tree surgeon to cut a chunk of that overhung our garden a few years back but it didn’t make much difference to the mess it makes of our garden. It’s also within 10m of our house so we get the added bonus of paying extra home insurance. I totally get that it’s great for wildlife and i loves trees/wildlife in general but I do think that trees of a certain size in small gardens should be ‘maintained’ a bit.

So in my lengthy response to your AIBU... legally she can only remove branches that are overhanging the boundary but I would speak to the landlord if it could do with a bit of a tidy in general (once nesting season is over).

I'm guessing with a lot of these large mature trees they were there when people bought their houses (they don't tend to appear overnight) they just didn't think about the consequences of them being adjacent to their homes until it inconvenienced them.

We've been here 10 years. The tree that is 2-3 m from my house but far from theirs has gone from below fence height to house height.

Thank you, 101jobs