SHOP PRODUCTS
Houzz Logo Print
cdodson_gw

Neighbor's Trumpet Vines taking over my yard

cdodson
17 years ago

I moved into my house 9 years ago, and they had a small portion of our adjoining fence covered with the vines. I remember thinking, oh how pretty! They used to be contained, now they just let them go. They have been growing up the sides of my house, causing the paint to strip away when they are pulled off, growing inside my garage in boxes I have stored, behind the washing machine, all over my back yard now which I have worked at keeping neat, and now they are working their way to my front yard. I used to have a nice little strawberry patch on the far end of the fence, but they have ruined that for me as well. My dog dug a hole so she could plop her big belly down in it to watch me do my yard work, and when she got up I noticed big roots coming from the other side of the fence.... trumpet vine roots.

I have asked the neighbors three times this year since spring started... PLEASE can you cut them back before they reach my roof and gutters and start taking them over too? They said sure, we just need to set a time to do it (WE?) They did a small portion at the front of the fence, but what about the rest of it? This is what I asked them in a second attempt to get them to do something about it a month later, while they are in full growing force. Again, nothing happened, and when I went over and asked them what they were planning on doing and that if I ended up doing it on my side, I would use RoundUp. They said "Do what ya gotta do." Now it's obvious they don't have any plans to do anything else.

Okay, that really got me steaming mad. They are not MINE to cut back. They are destroying my house slowly but surely, and every year it gets twice as bad as they are multiplied. I have checked places in the city to see if there is any kind of law or something that can be legally done about this as it will end up being property damage. Turns out there is nothing I can do about the vines, but I can file a small claims suit.

My question is, has anybody had a problem like this with neighbors who refuse to take care of their own vines or invasive plants? I really feel this is not fair to me, and before this they have been great neighbors, but if I have to, I will file a small claims suit because I cannot keep doing this, and in the end I will end up having to dig up half my yard to get rid of all the roots. They may be growing in places I'm not aware of, like actually up into the house somewhere I can't see them. I have killed them in my storm drains also. These are on my property so the city cannot do anything about this either.

Any help or suggestions would be welcome. I don't want another spring and summer like this year. I have plenty of my own yard work to do!

Comments (18)