Neighbour’s tree is basically living rent-free in our garden — now she’s offered us a leaf blower 🙃

[Buddhabuns]

Our neighbour’s enormous tree hangs over almost the entire width of our garden. It blocks sunlight, drops catkins and leaves everywhere, and last autumn we filled four garden bins (which we pay for) clearing up her mess.

We’ve asked — nicely — twice. She trimmed a few bottom twigs, probably with nail scissors, and called it done. No difference. Now the roots are pushing up our fence, and the leaves are back in full force.

Her solution? She offered to buy us a leaf blower.

We already have one. We just didn’t realise we’d signed up for unpaid groundskeeping for her passive-aggressive tree.

Every other neighbour manages their trees. She clearly thinks if she waits long enough, we’ll give up or vanish under the leaf pile.

AIBU to think she’s completely taking the mick — and that the leaf blower offer was basically an insult?

You can't touch a tree with a preservation order without permission, you can apply for permission. All of the tree is preserved not just the bit on the other side of the fence, so you can't trim back the branches to the fence line without permission. We have trees with TPOs that were obtained by the previous owners of our house specifically to stop the neighbours cutting them back, got quite nasty between them I believe, but well before our time.

just putting this here (ETA: sorry realised someone else got there first)

Can you get a tree surgeon to cut it right back?

Or get council involvement yourself?

You bought a house with a garden and there is nature in it?
I'm not surprised you're upset by this, OP. I've never heard anything like it.

Trees in gardens. What next? Fish in the ocean?

There is no 'right to light'. The OP can cut back overhanging branches as long as to do so would not destabilise the tree.

OP, first find out what sort of tree it is. Some trees e.g.oak are a lot more stable than others, e.g. chestnut because their roots are deeper.

Then check if the tree is covered by a TPO. Look on your local council site.

Then perhaps find a reputable tree surgeon and ask them for a quote to reduce the height and spread of the tree by 50%. When you have the quote, take it to her and offer to go halves in the autumn after nesting season is over.

They don’t have to lop off every branch but I have this same issue and I contacted a reputable company who pruned it all back by a huge amount. I did inform the neighbours out of courtesy but they couldn’t do anything about it. We didn’t give them the trimmings back (I know they couldn’t technically have them- I doubt most do!).

the tree wasn’t damaged and has grown back and will be due another trim soon.

nope you are supposed to OFFER the trimmings back.

actually not quite right. You CAN do work on a protected tree without a TPO provided that the tree is dead, dying, diseased or dangerous. Not saying any of these apply here. Tree surgeons will trim other people's trees back to a fenceline, at least the firm I use will. They aren't the cheapest where I live but they do a careful and tidy job.

That was what I said ! I said you can apply to have it trimmed!

Very few back garden trees have a TPO. It has to be a public enhancement to the area, not sequestered in a back garden.

Get the tree assessed by a reputable tree surgeon OP and have it cut back at the very least. Too many people have large trees in suburban gardens and don't manage them properly. My NDN's large ash tree grew into my pear tree and basically killed it off. They eventually had it pruned but ash trees grow rapidly so we'll soon be back to square one. Minus the pear tree. Still, it's such fun spying the many rooted ash seedlings in my borders. If I just left them I'd be living in an ash forest by now!
Manage your trees, folks, and don't piss off your neighbours.

You can trim but you get rid of the trimmings yourself - the neighbours doesn’t have to

I'd cut them back OP.
I think the tree owner has responsibility to manage it and make sure neighbours are ok, but she isn't doing that, appreciate it's a pain but i'd do it to enjoy my garden. Maybe consult a tree surgeon first. Though that won't fix the fence issue.
I say that as someone who has a row of sycamore's at the end of my garden, we cut them every winter when the leaves have gone and every 3 years have tree surgeons come and do a more drastic cut, at that time we ask the neighbours behind us if there are any bits affecting their light etc that they'd like us to address. They also have my number for other times of the year if they notice any bits growing over their side (there is a stream between us and them so we need to manage cutting it back as they can't reach and are in their 70's)
We see it as they are our trees so it's up to us to manage them and not upset people.
Before anyone maybe has a go at me for the drastic cuts, sycamore's grow fast and these are large well established tree's, there before the houses were built around them and would not get planted on an estate like ours if they hadn't already been there. We'd not remove them as they support wildlife and we do like having that wall of greenery, but we can't let them grow massive.

Why is everyone so hysterical about trees? We need trees more than we need more humans, we are obsessed with "light". I have a full size hornbeam in my courtyard garden, it's full of birds and wildlife.
I get it trimmed back a bit when the chick's have left the nest so it doesn't grow to the size of a house.
Do you want to live in an arid wasteland with no trees.
No sympathy from me I'm afraid. It's as if you find nature most inconvenient.

I love trees and have planted large trees in my garden (away from boundaries so that my neighbours aren’t impacted too much) but I don’t agree with the argument that trees should never be removed. Lots of trees are planted in unsuitable places and are not what’s best for the local wildlife. It’s often difficult for other plants to thrive if they are overshadowed by trees as the trees can take light, water and nutrients away. I’ve a couple of trees where it’s difficult to get anything other than moss to grow beneath them. Also, many tree aren’t chock-a-block with birds nest and wildlife like some people seem to think. It really depends on the type of tree and where it’s positioned.

I think it’s really shitty to expect neighbours to have to pay to maintain something that’s not in their garden and that they have no control over. I pay to have my trees maintained by a tree surgeon once every couple of years or so.

Ah, so what (unreasonableness?)did she need to go to the council about, and is that the reason she'sbeing less that co operative now?

Here everyone is a problem neighbour. You have a tree which has grown too big but you don’t want to take responsibility for it.

It’s there when you bought the house so you should have only bought it understanding you would have responsibilities to maintain your trees.

if the tree hung over the pavement you wouldn’t be able to weasel your way out. The council would enforce it or do it and charge you. But as it’s only your neighbour you are merrily choosing to ignore your responsibility

it’s continually grown
Do the scientists know about this

Who’s avoiding their responsibility? The tree is protected, and TBH the ‘’thinning’ that’s allowed would do very little to reduce what our neighbour objects to.
The tree was already a mature, protected specimen when we bought the house many years ago.

Cut back to fence line. Job done.

The law is an ass on the subject of trees.

I mean why do you have to pay and why is it your responsibility to keep neighbours tree cut back.

or do it yourself and then have to dispose of the branches, but then again if you were a decent neighbour you wouldn’t let it over hand in the first place.

By the way your neighbour is an absolute joker.

Actually I think she’s been generous offering to pay for a leaf blower.

The reality is she is allowed to have a tree, and she has no obligation whatsoever to clear up the leaves etc that fall from that tree into your garden, or to help you do that.

This is just part and parcel of living near other people.

You can hire a tree surgeon to cut any branches that go over your fence - a reputable one will be able to check for you if there’s a TPO and whether that’s likely to unbalance the tree in a way that creates risk for you. But that will be for you to arrange and at your own cost.

In the UK, we really aren’t. This country is full of ill educated people like the OP’s neighbour planting trees in the most inappropriate places.

Im a surveyed and I’m sick to death of seeing WI initiatives and idiotic parish councils planting hedges on verges and next to properties and other generally inappropriate places.

Trees do actually grow really big, people who plant them near boundaries and dwellings just need to educate themselves as to how large they grow and the impact on buildings.

I say this as a person who has planted acres of woodland successfully in the last years. They will do really well because I planted them in a field, in space.

It’s a tree. In a garden. Live and let live.

Or, as it bothers you, get the bits that are on your property trimmed. If you want it cut properly, offer to pay for it. Maybe your neighbour can’t afford to get it done. Everyone is struggling with money atm, and paying to sort a tree in the garden isn’t a priority.

We have a neighbour who wants us to cut a tree back. They came to us 4 weeks ago just as the tree was starting to bud. During the winter it was hardly noticeable that there was an overhang, but now yes I can see there is a bit of an overhanging branch or two.
I have said I will get the tree looked at in the autumn which we do every two years with our other trees, or pay to have the overhang removed if they want to do it. But now they're talking about remodelling etc, and there is no way I am doing that in the spring time or early summer, it will have to wait till the autumn.
I am getting a lot of headache about it, but I won't budge. Wildlife is really important. They are welcome to cut the very few overhanging branches, which we will pay for but this is the wrong time of year.
Obviously they also haven't noticed their two massive trees completely overshadowing our front garden 🙄

Live and let leaf