Dreaded Conifer Problem!

I'm sure other fm's will have had experience of this issue so am needing some advice on the best way forward. Needless to say it involves an "awkward" neighbour!

The shared fence which borders my rear, the neighbour of the property planted a row of conifer trees slap bang against the fence. Now fully grown in the region of 6 metres i have a mass of overhang on my side. That much it's even growing on to my garage roof. So they are badly in need of cutting back.

It's far too big a job for me to tackle so i've had a few quotes ranging from £150 - 300.....but that's only for cutting. I can't find anyone prepared to cut and remove as they say it would be too expensive because they have to pay for disposal.

I know legally i am entitled to hand the cuttings back to my neighbour but the amount we are looking at is from a 20ft row of trees which is a considerable amount of trimmings. I thought of bagging them up in sacks (which will cost money again) and throwing them back to his side as i'm damned if i'm going to take them round to him...besides which that would take many many car trips back and forth.

Believe it or not, all this stems from me objecting to the council over a planning application he put in to build a large roof dormer. Reason i objected was due to his property already overlooking mine. He got his planning but after that, he planted the conifers. I've had words with the council over the tree issue as in my opinion they are a fire hazard but they say they can't do anything.

Where do i go from here?

 

High hedge act ? Max 2m i think. Tell the council to get their act together.

Failing that send recorded delivery letter to neighbours pointing out the damage being done to your property and garage.
Ask him to trim, offer to trim and ask if he wants trimmings back. If he says he doesnt,cut back to border,allow branches to dry somewhat,when the next wind blows his way have the mother of bonfires. Smoke the bugger out :fan::fan:

 

Ive come across this several times, it’s not an easy one to solve and my local council has a rate of over £400 for the application if you have an issue of high hedges.
Have a look here and look at your local council web site which should show you the route you need to take.
High hedges: complaining to the council

In all my work hedges are the number one complaint that creates more issues between neighbours.

 

The bad news is that they're only going to get bigger and bigger ! I take it you're referring to the dreaded 'Leylandii' .
Why people still plant these hideous things is beyond me ; we took a massive hedge of similar proportions down from around 10m to around 2m in early Summer ; the bare open cut tops look awful primarily , but eventually the still green sides intertwine and then the hedge can be kept at a reasonable height .
Can't you ask your neighbour round so he can see the problem from your perspective ?
Incidentally , we charged around 400 pounds , including clearing all the rubbish and disposing at the local green-waste site .

 

Hi WeeTam......interesting you mentioned this as the Environmental officer i spoke to told me the high hedge act doesn't apply to conifers. I couldn't argue the toss as i didn't know. I told him if that's the case then something needs changing because i'm not allowed by law to erect a fence the same height.

Your image is most tempting....especially as i have a Sheen flamegun and i've seen conifers catch fire in a wind and it's bloody scary stuff! But i know i'd end up getting "burnt" way more than the trees!!

 

Hi Paul...yes they are the dreaded Leylandii. God knows what damage the roots are doing underneath the fence as well as if i haven't got a problem enough with the overhang. I'm retired now but used to work shifts and he planted them when i was at work. No idea where he had them from as they were fairly grown at the time of planting but hadn't "bushed out".

He's not the easiest of guys to reason with. His property and land is double the size of mine and he's not short of money, but he's a selfish b*stard. My first run in with him was over replacing the fence which he said was my responsibility and he wasn't paying anything. I soon found out they were shared and told him so which annoyed him. He eventually agreed to a getting the fence replaced which had been falling apart, but insisted on taking exact measurements to ensure i didn't try pinching a few millimetres off his precious land. That's the sort of bloke he is!

Planting the Leylandii is his way of getting retribution for me daring to object over his property extension. I think if some law was introduced forcing people who plant them to bear financial responsibility for neighbours maintenance of overhang...that would make people think a little more carefully as to how and where they plant the damn things.

 

The Environmental officer you spoke too is wrong unless you misunderstood what he was saying and that the trees in question don’t constitute to a hedge definition according to legistation.
What you need to do and a little tip is not to demand action or tell them to act as councils are in general hard work to work with if you get pushy. They can be a funny bunch so work with them.
Your local council site will list what is required of you and you need to go through this and when dealing with your neighbour always act politely following the councils guide lines. You also need to find out the cost for you to move this forward and if that is above the cost for work you can legally do with regards to over hanging branches.

 

So the council seem to be something of a stumbling block. Have you tried bypassing the 'council' as such. Usually when you contact the council, for whatever. You might get the ear of a sypathetic member of staff, then on the other hand you may get some newly employed office boy. Have you actually checked to see who your local elected councillor is? Next election time. He/she will be looking for votes.

To quote my experience. Some years back. My wife and I became registered disabled. We couldn't park in the front garden as this was part of downsatirs dwelling. Council highways dept said no to a marked disabled bay. Local councillor got on the case and was soon joined by other councillors. No time at all, and there was the marked disabled bay. Give it a go. Failing that. Try you local MP.
Best wishes.

 

It was a couple of years ago now but i remember the Environmental officer saying specifically "had it been a hedge it would be a different matter as that's governed by the high hedge act where trees aren't". I'd phoned them for advice as i didn't know who to turn to initially but was disappointed with the response i got. I felt almost as though they didn't really want to know.

Cost is certainly a big factor as i'm obviously already angry knowing it's going to cost me to get them trimmed back....purely though nothing other than my neighbours selfishness in planting them right up against the fence which i feel was almost certainly done with malicious intent.

 

Never thought about contacting my local councillor Mike. That's an avenue well worth a try as i may well need some sort of "intermediary" because my neighbour is a pretty obstinate chap to deal with. I certainly aren't relishing the thought of slinging all the offcuts back over the fence onto his lawn as one guy i had come to give me an estimate suggested.

 

An article in the newspaper last week about a 16' conifer hedge was settled when the council ordered the hedge to be cut.
I understood new laws meant hedges cannot be more than a certain height....2 metres?? ....so Phil I think you should pursue this.

 

Bl**dy hell Phil , what a situation ! Mike is correct in saying to contact your local councillor ; he/she may even earn what they're paid to do !!
Leylandii are awful plants ; people plant them hoping to maintain them at around 6' high ; it never works .
By incremental growth , they slowly attain a stature bordering on the hideous ; you can't cut into the 'brown-wood' as they don't regenerate . They just get bigger and eventually form trunks wide enough to stop a tank !
Get in touch with your councillor asap !!

 

Yeah and after reading Shineys post has pretty much put me into depression! If they have to be "two in a row" to deem it a hedge then i've no chance as they're single trees in a line. Also looks like i'm not just going to being landed with a bill to get them cut, but also having to dance around on eggshells to be "nice" to the neighbour etc. I'm pig sick of why nobody in authority has had the balls to outlaw these damn things.

I think having a word with my local councilor might be the way forward.

 

Are you able to post a picture to help the direction of conversation/advice?

Being ignorant of things over there , the first thing came to mind is all the bonfires people seem to host. Certainly a means of getting rid of excess contributions from the rich hillbilly next door?