Neighbour accused me of stealing their tree

[Ahelena79]

So our neighbour has a lovely willow tree. It does slightly overhang our border however I am very happy with that as it provides a lovely bit of shade in that corner of the garden which the kids sit under on hot evenings.

Around 4 summers ago I took several cuttings from this willow tree. I didn’t really think to ask at the time as they were nearly touching the floor of my garden and had no real impact on my neighbours life. Instead of chucking them back over the fence aggressively (which other neighbours have done to me!) I decided to plant them to grow a bit of a willow garden in one corner.

These willows have absolutely taken off. There’s about 6 in total all taken from branch cuttings. They are really tall now and can be seen from over the fence (which is 6 foot!)

My neighbour has recently seen them and is now demanding that his property is returned to him. He says I had no right to cut the willow and that they have always been his property even though I have nurtured them to life in the form of new trees. He says he will be contacting the police and threatening legal action. He told me that the willow is taken from cuttings of a family tree that was in his mothers garden and he considers it family property which he wanted to hand down to his kids but I’ve now stolen that from him?? He is absolutely crazy to be honest and I’ve had no previous dealings with him and I’m glad of that now!

Where do I stand legally on this?

I’d not want to live with such an awful atmosphere so I’d have to return them... give him them back dead so he can’t benefit from them. 🤣 yeah the dead trees will definitely lighten the awful atmosphere.

This is honestly the most asinine thread I've ever read. I would have had to wait a long while to stop rolling on the floor laughing at my neighbour before I could walk over to the saplings, snap a branch off each and throw them back in his garden. I'd then name my house 'Willow cottage" and make myself a willow crown and willow basket. Then in the willow basket I'd place many cuttings every year for passers by to help themselves with a note saying "for everyone except Mr Smith next door.

BTW is there any other useless property I can store in someone else's garden and then when they improve it demand they give it back? A broken down car or popped beach ball maybe?

The OP hasn't mentioned anything about the neighbour's mother being dead. Posters are speculating that she's dead/recently died based on the neighbour saying his tree was grown from cuttings from a tree in his mother's garden. Neighbour's mum could still be alive! Or could have died 30 years ago!

It was me who first brought up that possibility, and only as a possibility based on the tense of a single word — I don't think anyone else has described it as anything other than a possibility, either. Clearly the tree has some kind of significance for the neighbour, and that's one possible explanation (though only one!) for the extreme nature of his reaction.

I like to try and think about what factors might or might not be operating in a situation to make a person behave the way they are, or at least remember that there are factors I'm not aware of.

Although it's important not to be totally bleeding-heart wet and get taken advantage of, I find that I'm generally happier in my life if I give the people around me the benefit of the doubt, and accept that there will be reasons they behave the way they do. Some of those reasons might, if I knew about them, make me feel differently about the behaviour, so rather than just thinking of them as "batshit" or "deranged" or a "fucking loonie" or "nuts" or a "fucking mental" or a "fucking weirdo" or an "idiot" or an "absolute nutter" (so much for all those mental health awareness days) I accept that I don't know the reasons and if I did I might feel some sympathy for the person — while still taking steps to protect or stand up for myself.

That doesn't mean I feel I have to try and find out why, or that I have to let them get away with whatever they're doing. It's just that it's not good for me to feel like there are people around me who are inexplicably just insane or arseholes. It's not for their benefit that I try to remember that there's a reason behind their behaviour — it's for my benefit.

That's why I posted and raised that possibility based on a small aspect of OP's post — not just to excuse him based on conjecture.

I didn’t really think to ask at the time as they were nearly touching the floor of my garden and had no real impact on my neighbours life.

I suppose council regulations are different in different parts of the world? Where I live, you are legally allowed to remove any overhanging branches or plants extending over into your property - so this would be fine. Also, discarding of them yourself, fine. Planting them, unusual, but fine!

I am just impressed you were able to grow something as substantial as a willow from a cutting! He is bonkers. Keep your impressively struck trees. Let him howl at the moon. I really don't see he has a leg to stand on. Unless your council says all cuttings must be returned, which to me seems nuts!

If you've previously been in good terms: For the sake of being neighbourly, I'd chop the tops off and give them to him.
Then dig the roots up.

Your neighbour might be crazy, but them watching the tree grow will only make them worse over time. It could make for unpleasant living.

Grow a different tree or a slightly different willow

You're all barking up the wrong tree.

FGS don't even engage with him over this and definitely don't offer him money. Just deny and say the cuttings came from elsewhere. There's no way hi could prove they came from his tree.

This is the batshttiest thing someone’s ever complained about and I have been on MN for a long time.

He’s utterly bunkers.

There are some tree-mendous puns on this thread

I'm loving all the puns that have stemmed from the OPs cutting remarks!

I really want to start a thread asking how many MNs cut and throw back, and how many cut and dispose themselves. And how many cut and go round and ask i guess, as well.

I feel the throw it back over should be the law. It's a right pain in the arse having to dispose of a neighbours bush and tree overhangs yourself. We have to pay for our brown bins, they only get emptied once every 3 weeks and one trim back of all the neighbours bushes here is enough to fill 2 bins!

I just don’t understand why he can’t take cuttings from what’s in his side, grow them and give them to his kids if his mothers tree is that important to him? Why would he care what you have done with the cuttings? He sounds an absolute nutter.

Tell him to crack on with the police action and you will await the riot squad.

I bet your batshit neighbour always makes sure he gets his bins out before the rest of the street and gets peeved if someone puts there's out first;he seems the type.

Oh yes! My DH worked in the council Parks and Gardens nursery, and in the summer they did evening tours for the public. He had to keep a very close watch for people helping themselves to cuttings.

Hah! Midnight pruning! There was a very overgrown Rosemary bush in a front garden near me, growing so far over the wall onto street pavement it was an obstruction and I must admit I pruned some off and propegated it. Tsk tsk.

I once saw three very respectable looking older ladies in Beth Chattos lovely garden helping themselves. They had as the phrase goes “ come equipped “ with small plastic bags, damp cotton wool and sharp snips. I said very loudly “ you do realise that you can buy well rooted cuttings of those plants in the garden centre attached to this garden .it’s just over there “. They all jumped and looked very guilty and scuttled of without saying anything….

My suggestion is to cut off the saplings close to the ground and give back to the neighbour saying you've bought replacements. As they already have a root system, they'll grow back really quickly and the crazy neighbour won't be able to say anything.
I'd make extra sure the cut saplings don't take by dunking the trunks in a tree stump killer before handing them back.

I sell live willow cuttings and most of my willow trees will have thousands of cuttings taken from them. He's talking nonsense but I'd agree with others regarding being careful of drains and foundations.

Are you sure that you legally should have given the cuttings to him? I mean, I know you're not in the US...but on this side of the pond, you're allowed to cut any part of a neighbors tree that hangs over onto your property. And you can do whatever you want with what you cut off. Even if it's a fruit tree. I would think that you all would have something similar.

And if you really should, legally, given the cuttings to him, you probably shouldn't have said as much in a public forum....

Let him go to the police. Ok technically you should have offered the cuttings back , can he prove your trees are from his cuttings? He can still take cuttings from his to pass to his family , you haven’t stopped him.

You're a CF. Who cares that you nursed the tree back to life. You nursed the tree that you stole back to life.. And then you have the cheek to come on here with a sob story, even though you're in the wrong. The audacity!

She didn't 'nurse a tree back to life' the tree was fine. She grew 4 whole new trees without harming the mama tree in the least.

Do what @forrestgreen said

Yes, by law she should have offered the cuttings back to him. That’s the way it is here.

I read this with the voice of the Grinch in my head.

The audacity!!!!