I would be interested in seeing pictures.

Sounds like a neighbor is unhappy with her look and keeps reporting her..

I am in the process of converting my front lawn to a veggie/flower whatever I feel like garden. When I tell the neighbors what I am doing (I like to ruffle their feathers) they look distressed by my plans. "You are doing what?" "don't vegetable gardens belong in the back?"
I say bring on the revolt of the neat tidy lawn! It needs to many pesticides too much water and too much attention overall.

When will we finally learn that land is precious for our food supply and our water supply.

I can't wait to be rid of the whole thing.
So many better things to grow then grass.

Where is Al Gore on this one.
Thanks, Cherry

Just checked the article on line and this is the only pic with the article. From what I can see, her yard looks great.

Fran
{{gwi:416045}}

Mr Gore is probably at his home in Tn., trying to keep his huge electric bill paid, since nothing in his home is environmently friendly. Those "neighborhood association's" are a pain in the patoot. I'm with Cherry, grass has to be cut, so how is that better for the air quality. I say "less garss more flowers".
There was a women that posted here last fall, that was having problems with her neighbors over her Wsing containers. Wonder what ever happened with that.

Gosh what's wrong with her yard? It looks beautiful to me! One year she gets praised the next fined. ??? Whats with that town???

I guess the only problem I have with her garden is that she feeds the birds. Bird seed spills on to the ground and attracts rodents.
The previous owners of my house fed the birds and when we moved in we had rats out in daylight in our yard.
The attic had a significant mouse population that took us months to trap.
So no more feeding the birds for me.
I rather plant seed plants for them.
cherry

No, Mr. Gore is not at home - he's thoughtfully expending fossil fuels jetting around the world with his entourage telling us to be better stewards of the world's precious resources while he magnanimously buys carbon credits to run his electricity-sucking mansion. To his credit, though, I'd bet he'd be okay with her garden. It's got lots and lots of green in it....

I wish I knew how she gets her stuff to grow like that... it looks so cool and shady!

Brightmoregirl, carolinkcmo_5 was the one you are thinking of, I think. Her problem was not with sneaky neighbor(s) turning her in, it was with one whom she knew and dealt with directly and eventually sort of won by default (city did not send inspectors after all). The lady in New Jersey is in a tighter spot. I wish her the best, and hope she does the least necessary, if anything at all, to change her yard to appease those who appear to have burs firmly wedged in the terminal ends of their alimentary canals.

:-)

Terri

That's why I live out in the boonies!!

Me, too, Kek. You can't see my place from the road and you can't see the road from my place. And I like it that way. So neighbors don't drool over my "curb appeal"...who cares? They also don't tell me what I can and can't do. I love it. We are a mile from the paved road and 4.5 miles from "town" (where there is ONE...count 'em...1 traffic light in the whole town). Yep. Move to the boonies while there is still time!!

These are things I worry about - big brother watching me. We did not move into a planned community or a community with covenants, or a historical area because of such attitudes.

Look at that woman's yard? I would LOVE to be her neighbor!

girlgroupgirl

I'll say her yard is stunning.

I do live in a neighborhood with an HOA and rules and the town is funny about the grass growing too high. But, we have quite a few homes in the neighborhood too with those habitat signs and folks who really say they care and do something about the environment. I feel really blessed to live where I do and hope the feelings of my neighbors never change for the worse. We would welcome her with open arms.

lindakimy- Traffic light? What's that? There's that darn box that blinks red hovering over the intersection, that's about it here! LOL

This is crazy. How dare people tell others how their outdoor space should look? Those "officials" should turn their attention to the idiots who pave or concrete over their front yards, so that rainwater has nowhere to drain and wildlife loses yet more habitat.

I'm ashamed to say I live in the "Garden" state. I thought this was the very thing my fair state was about. More and more frequently I have seen these things occur. Developments with their covenants (sounds like a dirty word to me). The state is overpopulated and overdeveloped. There is no room for environmental protection. I wonder how many citations the factories along the Turnpike receive for spewing their waste into the air, water and soil.

As if the cost to live in this state it isn't bad enough, but now you have people telling you how to live. How many of those folks are riding around in their gas guzzling, emission leaking vehicles. A perfectly manicured lawn is far more dangerous and more of a health concern than her backyard habitat. The amount and types of chemicals these lawn companies use to rid their customers of clover, crabgrass and dandelions if far more hazzardous to pets, children and elderly. Wonder why so many people have developed asthma and allergies? We are cutting down natures way of helping us breath easier. I'm sure if any true testing could be done, they would find the air quality around her house far better than most "maintained" areas.

Just venting.

As a former native of NJ, I am sad to see the level of ignorance that has often prevailed in local and state governments there. Since when does habitat attract mosquitoes? Attracting birds does quite the opposite; the birds EAT mosquitoes.

Hey Edgewater, your stupidity is showing!!

I am so very blessed to be able to live in the gorgeous Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania; life is good!

Mary

This boggles my mind. Some people obviously have too much time on their hands, that they have to dream up something to complain about. There are so many real problems in the world (and here at home!), and we are worried about how someone keeps their yard, ESPECIALLY when the intent is to improve the world? These people (the complainers) should all spend 4 weeks living in poverty, disease, and zero freedom - see if they come back complaining about a little extra foliage.

Sheesh, it is no wonder many folks overseas have a bad view of Americans if they're reading this kind of news.

"mosquito breeding ground?!!" They sure pulled that one out of their A$$, didn't they??? They sent their toadies to the rule books to "find something, anything that we can use to cite this woman is doing something wrong."
They simply don't like the way it looks (she's not conforming, tsk tsk), but can't use that in court...must find some lame RSA that will CYA...
Jerks.

She looks like such a sweet and caring person - I would love to have her as MY neighbor!! What a shame

Carrie

So will she have to tear all that out! What a shame. She does look like such a nice lady. Say did you hear about the 70 year old lady in Utah that was arrested and thrown in jail for not watering her grass? If you go to the tractor forum you can see a picture of her place and read the news article. Unreal !

I'm speechless. Somebody has to get a life and get real in that lady's neighbourhood. Obviously a neighbour who has too much time on their hands. They need to winter sow for therapy...

Just found out a month ago that a subdivision in our city doesn't allow clothes lines. One of our Aldermen successfully put through a bill at city hall to negate/stop any covenants which would deter good environmental practices. One lady quickly took advantage of the new law and placed for clothes out to dry, but after taking a trip in to grocery shop, she came home to discover her linens had been 'paint balled' and were ruined. They soon discovered the culprit was the son of parents who had objected to the lines. Linens were replaced...

I think alot of neighborhoods do not allow Solar Dryers
(Clotheslines).
I love mine.. after years of living in an apartment where I could not have a clothesline I now have three!

Looks like he arrested her for not giving her name not for the lawn.
Sort of a technicality if you ask me.
Cherry

Here is a link that might be useful: Arrested for brown lawn..

What happened to the concept of personal property or individual rights? The local government is way too involved in this situation. Their responsibility should be protecting society from real danger, and otherwise leaving people to lead their lives as they see fit.

I'm not crazy about everything my neighbors do, but unless they're doing something bothersome on my property, it's none of my business. I hope to be afforded the same respect.

This woman's yard, from what I can see, is beautiful. Some may disagree, but unless she's selling marijuana she's growing, I don't understand what the problem is. Live and let live.

It's all about greed, which is rampant in our society, unfortunately. The other area folks no doubt feel she is bringing down the property values - which she probably ISN'T, but I bet that's how it's being perceived. I've seen and heard so many times people buying big ticket items - houses, cars, etc. - even musical instruments, and boy am I familiar with that one - with the idea of how much they will "appreciate in value". Does no one buy a home to live in anymore? A car to drive with? A musical instrument to play?

This is such a mistake on the township officals part. It has to do with lack of information and mass media scare tactics. Vicki's garden is lovely, it also demonstrates how we should all be gardening and tending our earth.
I am even sadder at what this will cost Vicki to defend herself. Let alone the costs to us citizens that have to fork up the rest,because of someone's uneducated/unmerited decisions.
*Of all awards that Vicki should be recieving--*
I don't think the Poster Child for Natural Gardeners was her idea!*
A Cinnaminson Master Gardener

Don't think that moving to the "boonies" will help you. We did that several years ago, and now the traffic is so fast and furious on our "country" road that you would not dare to take your dog for a walk on it. This is in NH. Every side road has a new development with hundreds of new houses. My husband counted the traffic lights that used to be on his way to work. Now they have quadrupled!!

I showed this to my 24 year old daughter and her comment was,

"Mr Rogers must be turning over in his grave about this one.
Remember Mom, Mr Rogers and Planet Purple? How he tried to explain to young kids why everyone is different? hair, height, weight, skin color, abilities, disabilities? He'd take us to "Planet Purple", where everyone was purple and looked the same, acted the same, sounded the same. Nothing was different and none of us liked that? Now they are creating "planet purples" in reality and that is really scary."

How right she is. My yard looks about as different as can be from all my neighbors and all of their's are different as well. We may share plant divisions that we have or extra seedlings or what ever, but none of us want our gardens to look the same other than well grown, lush plants.

How sad and pathetic can it get. Legally grown, beautiful gardens that aren't clones of everyone elses are not allowed on someones own personal property, property that they paid for and own?

Are we living in orwells 1984?

Fran

So incredibly sad, for her and for us - What has become of our dreams for a better Earth for all? We live in a Mfd Housing Community (can you say Land Lease [yikes!]) and they have acted a lot like this bunch in NJ. We dealt w/ what we had to, but like someone who responded above, we have also transferred a fair portion of the veggie garden to the front yard, just to be In Their Faces and see what anyone would do. One neighbor told us that we are Weird, like her sister (as if that made it ok). These Rightous Yay-hoos bring out the Feisty in ME! grrr

Ontario is now in the position to have to "override" bylaws against hanging clothes on the line. Some subdivisions built in the 70's & 80's had a caveat that no one should hang their knickers and tighty-whiteys out for all to see.
Now we have to get the Provincial Government..kinda like a state..decree that it's ok to hang clothes on a line or outside rack. For Pete's sake...they're pushing the flourescent bulbs, smart meters, energy saving appliances, and still let some doo-wahs say that you can't hang laundry outside!
p'd I am.
Wendy

So what happened?

I remember reading something on msn.com that the hearing was re-scheduled until late August, and now I cannot find any updates.

The fact that any public office would make a homeowner destroy a beautiful habitat is nauseating. This woman is providing a shelter for all the animals that are being pushed out of their homes because of all the construction that is constatntly going on. As what is left of natural habitats are disappearing, the animals, insects and the like need to go somewhere.

This woman is doing the right thing. In a world where new homes, malls, and Starbucks are popping up at such an alarming rate, we can all learn something from her.

Bigger isn't always better when it comes to the size of a house.

Bravo, Vicki Wozniak, bravo!

Wow...how about when city workers show up and simply destroys your garden for you?
:(
Unbelievable!!

Here is a link that might be useful: City Destroys 10 Year Old Natural Garden

Gardener, town settle yard case

By GEOFF MULVIHILL
Associated Press

Vicki Wozniak says her yard is her own little nature preserve. Officials in her town called it an unmaintained property.

Today, they completed a compromise and ended a monthslong saga in municipal court that made hers the most famous one-eighth of an acre in Edgewater Park.

Wozniak has changed her yard some, though it's still nothing like the closely cropped, orderly lawns most of her neighbors have.

And today, Wozniak paid a $50 fine and $33 in court costs and pleaded guilty to failing to maintain her property.

She was spared a fine that, under a town ordinance, could have been $10,000.

Over the last few years, Wozniak, a 50-year-old information technology specialist, has turned the lawn around her mid-century ranch-style home into a refuge for hummingbirds and butterflies. The yard has become an obsession.

It has been certified as a backyard habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.

But Edgewater Park inspectors have continuously cited her, saying the property was a nuisance and a safety hazard.

Finally, in August she and an inspector struck a deal. The tickets would stop so long as she took care of a few more things, such as cutting a clear path to windows on one side of her home, placing some lights along paths in the backyard and removing a vine.

Wozniak agreed to make the changes to avoid a big fine she says she could not have afforded. But she preferred her yard before -- and thinks the charge to which she pleaded guilty wasn't quite right.

"I truly feel like I am lying when I sign an affidavit that says that I am guilty of not maintaining my landscape," she said in an e-mail.

After all, during growing season, she puts in more than 10 hours a week on the yard.
Published: September 25. 2007 1:47PM

Those stories just make me sick. I've just been complaining recently about that sort of totalitarianism in my small town. The city comes by regularly and rips limbs off my trees in the back alley - they do not trim them, they rip them with some sort of huge machine on a truck. I know their goal is to kill them, and they did kill one old silver maple that I remember from my childhood when it was a baby. (I live in the same house I grew up in.)

I try to flout them where I can. Much to my husband's dismay, I let my kids keep a small stand of corn in the front strip of lawn that sprouted up from last fall's Halloween decorations. I maintained it meticulously, weedeating around it, and handweeding between the stalks. That was cleaned up after harvest, but we still have the watermelon and pumpkin vines out front...Thank goodness I'm not the only rebel. My neighbor and cousin are both growing pumpkins in their front yards too this year!!!

I really fear I may be cited soon for my "Green Globe" - an experiment gone awry. My daughter and I plant these beautiful foliage plants every year - well, ok, technically they're weeds...Redshanks...really cute. Anyway, we always stick a few in odd places where they don't have the best conditions. This year we had the brilliant idea of putting them in a heavily amended slightly raised bed right up in front of the porch. They usually top out at around 3 ft. in a good year. This year they are over 6 ft, and filling an entire bed. The stems are like bamboo, about 2" diameter in some places. And when it rains, it flattens the whole thing from the middle. I trimmed it back some, but it just keeps getting out of control. When it's at its best, it's really pretty and different. Even my husband admired it for quite awhile. Everyone asks me what kind of shrub that is - "Wow, that grew really fast..." I can't wait to relieve the city - and my husband - of this problem, but it is just on the verge of setting prodigious amounts of the best seed ever...

Hi,
A similar thing just happened in Buffalo. Thankfully, they decided that the garden was just fine.
Remy

Here is a link that might be useful: Buffalo Garden Story