Autumn is memorable and has many things to look forward to, such as leaves draping over yards and birds migrating. Then there’s the clear whine of leaf blowers, whether from a hired hand across the road or your next-door neighbor. Sometimes, the shuffled debris and leaves might find their way to your yard, and that’s a problem most times.
When your neighbor blows leaves onto your property, it simply means that they have broken the leaf blower etiquette. It’s much worse when you have cleared out leaves from your yard and must deal with another set from your neighbor. Read on to learn how to handle such a situation.
Rights and Legal Issues
Generally, your neighbors are responsible for damage caused by a falling tree or something else causing damage to their yard. However, this responsibility does not extend to falling leaves. As a result, you can’t knock on your neighbor’s door and ask them to clean up the leaves.
If the tree’s limbs or branches hang over your property, that’s a game changer. You can approach your neighbor and ask them to trim or cut some parts off. It’s a common arrangement since the tree belongs to them and helps them avoid potential legal issues.
Ways to Stop Neighbors From Blowing Leaves Onto Your Property
It’s frustrating to find leaves in your yard and areas of your home, especially when you don’t have a tree yourself. Thankfully, you can take several actions to stop that from happening.
According to the law, fallen leaves are the responsibility of the one who owns the property on which the leaves end up. If a neighbor’s tree branch extends into your fence, you must clean it up.
The same thing occurs when a branch is sticking out of your home. There’s a caveat here, though. If the particular tree is damaging your property, they are responsible, but as far as leaves go, you must deal with it.
With the legal element out of the way, here are a couple of ways to stop neighbors from blowing leaves onto your property:
1. Get a Wooden Fence Installed
Installing a fence is one of the best ways to stop leaves from gliding onto your property. There are different fences to consider, but a wooden one makes sense, thanks to the wooden slats or panels installed upright around the garden.
In addition, a custom-built wooden fence generally costs less, though it primarily depends on the kind of wood that you choose. For example, you can save a lot of money by choosing pre-fabricated wood panels for your property. These panels are readily available and are also very inexpensive. You won’t spend so much to buy or install them.
The wooden panels are pre-fabricated, so adapting them to the site or areas around your home might be challenging. For this reason, consider your options and call a professional to install them instead of doing so yourself.
2. Ask the Neighbors to Trim Their Trees
Putting a wooden fence up is a great idea, but you can also deal with the leaf problem by speaking to your neighbors. However, the conversation might prove awkward. If you are friendly and share conversations with them frequently, chip in the issues. Explain to them how their blower overshoots leaves onto your property.
Your approach matters; if you get it right, many people will understand your plight and try to work things out. Do not outrightly ask them to cut down the tree. In most cases, the most straightforward or convenient solution is to ask them to trim the tee properly. Trimming helps reduce the foliage, making cleaning your property easier.
If you can, suggest contributing funds toward the trimming exercise. This will show them that the situation bothers you that much. It will also ease their fears of a dent in their finances. Generally, you will stop worrying about the tree and the leaves after trimming it.
Many homeowners adopt this method because it is the best, most cost-effective, and civil solution to dealing with leaves in your yard. While it depends on the cooperation from your neighbors, there’s no harm in trying. It remains an excellent way to express your concerns and how much it affects you.
3. Use a Wire Mesh Fence
It’s understandable if you doubt the effectiveness of using a wire mesh fence to stop leaves from occupying your property. That’s because a conventional wire fence won’t keep the leaves out of your yard. A reason for that is the wiring, which has considerable gaps in between, allowing leaves to pass through easily. However, a mesh fence might do some good.
Wire mesh fences are not the first choice for many people, mainly because they subtract from the aesthetics of the place. Also, wire mesh fences caddy a look many describe as too restrictive. But if you want a lasting solution to the problem, installing a wire mesh fence around your property is wise.
In addition, you will find wire meshes are readily available from local stores, and all you have to do is install the frame. Only ensure the frame has an appropriate height to keep the leaves out. A low wire mesh fence will do little to nothing to stop leaves from blowing over and onto your property.
If you feel awkward installing a wire mesh fence, plant a tree vine to complement it. Many kinds of hedges and vines can grow all over the wire mesh, and it will cover the wires. In no distant time, the vines will produce flowers to add a more aesthetic dimension to your property.
4. Take Legal Action
Experts recommend legal action as the last resort when everything else fails. Taking legal action is a long road that can lead to enmity between you and your neighbors. In summary, there’s no going back from this because it would affect any relationship indefinitely.
Before you hire a lawyer and proceed to court, or contact the city to complain about a charge against your neighbor, think it through thoroughly. You can strengthen your case by installing exterior cameras, taking recent pictures of your yard, or inviting the authorities over.
How to Keep Leaves Off Your Yard
Nobody likes leaves on their property unless you have a thing for them. Unfortunately, leaves around your home will always generate them, especially during autumn. Thankfully, you can maintain a neat, leave-free property.
Invest in a Good Rake
A good rake is a must-have in your home. It’s great to remove leaves from your property and to leave the place nice and tidy. Investing in a good rake will benefit you if you have a small yard. It’s also helpful to remove grass clippings from your lawn.
Get a Leaf Blower
Along with your rake, a suitable leaf blower will help you eliminate leaves from your yard. A blower is excellent for getting leaves off patios, sidewalks, and other hard surfaces. At least, you’d be prepared to match your neighbor.
Maintain Trimmed Trees
If you’ve got trees in your yard, it’s best to trim them as needed during the year. After trimming some branches, some trees naturally go with the branches, leaving the yard free from many fallen leaves.
How about leaving them?
It’s difficult to clear or rake leaves from your yard consistently. For this reason, many homeowners decide just to leave the leaves in their yards.
That means not taking any steps to keep your yard clean. If you do that, the leaves die and decay, returning vital nutrients into the soil and serving as a natural fertilizer.
However, leaving a substantial number of leaves on your lawn can damage your lawn. The grass will suffer if the layer gets too thick, thanks to the lack of air, sunlight, and nutrients needed to survive. Moreover, when these leaf layers get wet, they can grow fungi.
Conclusion
Leaves blowing from your neighbor’s home onto your property can worry you. That includes more work for you and issues with the neighbors. You can deal with this by speaking to your neighbor about the leaves occupying your property and asking them to trim the trees.
A wooden and wire mesh fence is another option to protect your yard from fallen leaves. Legal action is viable but should only be used as the last resort as it can spoil existing relationships. You can always keep a good rake and blower handy to deal with leaves.
Now that you know this, try to maintain trimmed trees in your yard and use this information to stop the neighbors from blowing leaves onto your property.
