Weeds along fence line

[Mysterian]

Monsanto/Bayer got sued for billions of dollars due to Roundup causing cancer. How is that product still for sale?

No clue. It probably causes just 2% less cancer than the competing brands?

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

If the weeds are on your side you deal with them. I have weeds all the time growing up my fence and I don't really care about it, if I am out there I will pull some off but otherwise I really don't care- if my neighbor cares they can pull them off.

100% agree with this. It's your fence, if you don't like the weeds on it, you maintain it.

I'm a little biased, though. At our old house we had exactly the opposite situation, our neighbor put up a chain link fence then proceeded to call the city every time a blade of grass from our yard even looked like it might touch it. We finally cleared our a 5 foot path along the fence on our side and he started threatening to sue us about the tree limbs hanging over it. Never mind that his yard was full of trash and old cars (which apparently is less offensive to the city than our grass was, cause they wouldn't do anything about it).

 

[MillauFr]

No clue. It probably causes just 2% less cancer than the competing brands?

Well at least when you get sick from cancer you can collect from the class action lawsuit.

 

[MillauFr]

100% agree with this. It's your fence, if you don't like the weeds on it, you maintain it.

I'm a little biased, though. At our old house we had exactly the opposite situation, our neighbor put up a chain link fence then proceeded to call the city every time a blade of grass from our yard even looked like it might touch it. We finally cleared our a 5 foot path along the fence on our side and he started threatening to sue us about the tree limbs hanging over it. Never mind that his yard was full of trash and old cars (which apparently is less offensive to the city than our grass was, cause they wouldn't do anything about it).

The city would have done nothing about your grass.

 

[Mysterian]

Well at least when you get sick from cancer you can collect from the class action lawsuit.

Plus, no more weeds!

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

The city would have done nothing about your grass.

No, most of the time when they came out we were in the clear, but one of us still had to take time off work to go meet them. Plus, it doesn't matter how well maintained your yard is, the city can always find something to tell you to fix. I guess they had to justify the trip out. The best one was when the CITY didn't pick up yard waste for a month. This guy called about the pile of leaves sitting on our front curb (which he actually had to walk around our house to see, he was a back door neighbor) and the inspector actually tried to cite us for it.

This guy was mad we wouldn't sell him a third of our 1 acre yard for $500 so he made it his goal in life to harass us.

 

[footballmouse]

There's a "nice side" to a chain link fence?

When you put a fence along the property line, the poles (ugly side) need to be on your property.

Agreed. Chain link is ugly on both sides.

Agreed, but not everyone can afford a nice wooden privacy fence around the entire yard.

one yard was fenced and the other not the fence owner just went down both sides to make sure it was clean and maintained.

Not about to walk in their yard. Sometimes the grass grows higher than the fence before the township steps in and cuts it.

I don't understand this. Weedwack the weeds on your side of the fence. Done. That's all you can do.

I'm talking about the weeds growing up the fence and through the fence, you can't weedwack that.

It's your fence, if you don't like the weeds on it, you maintain it.

I am maintaining it.

I just wanted to get some opinions because when I go to the township trustee's meeting for them to address the issue on the yard and the house, I don't want them saying that it's my responsibility to maintain the weeds on the fence (not the ground) since they are coming from his yard.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

So what kind of weeds are we talking about? Things that are natural and grew beforehand, things that look like weeds but aren't, plants the neighbor planted? Or is it like crabgrass, dandelions, etc? Ivy or some other creeping vine style plant?

In our neighborhood HOA has where you need to keep your yard maintained and that helps the weed issue lower and helps it not spread from yard to yard as badly.

When we first moved in our neighbor asked us if he could plant some stuff around the utility box located straddling between both of our properties, he said he would maintain it and he has. It's more tall grassy/wheat looking plants that provide access to the box but also some covering.

If there's an issue with anything on our bordering properties we all feel like we can talk to each other about it. That would be my first suggestion before bringing it up to your township. Ask if they will take care of the weeds so they are not climbing up the fence or through it. Is the neighbor by any chance trying to get the weeds to act like a privacy feature?

 

[footballmouse]

Ivy or some other creeping vine style plant?

Yes, exactly.

If there's an issue with anything on our bordering properties we all feel like we can talk to each other about it. That would be my first suggestion before bringing it up to your township. Ask if they will take care of the weeds so they are not climbing up the fence or through it. Is the neighbor by any chance trying to get the weeds to act like a privacy feature?

My neighbors are crackheads, literally. It's a rental house and the owner doesn't even live in the same state so he hasn't seen the house in years. I don't want to talk to the people living there, they're usually strung out on drugs. The owner just pays the fee each summer when the township has to come out and cut the grass. The township trustees know all about this house because the amount of times the neighbors have complained and the inspectors need to come out.

 

[MillauFr]

No, most of the time when they came out we were in the clear, but one of us still had to take time off work to go meet them. Plus, it doesn't matter how well maintained your yard is, the city can always find something to tell you to fix. I guess they had to justify the trip out. The best one was when the CITY didn't pick up yard waste for a month. This guy called about the pile of leaves sitting on our front curb (which he actually had to walk around our house to see, he was a back door neighbor) and the inspector actually tried to cite us for it.

This guy was mad we wouldn't sell him a third of our 1 acre yard for $500 so he made it his goal in life to harass us.

If someone wanted to buy 0.3 acres the price would be $10 million

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Yes, exactly.


My neighbors are crackheads, literally. It's a rental house and the owner doesn't even live in the same state so he hasn't seen the house in years. I don't want to talk to the people living there, they're usually strung out on drugs. The owner just pays the fee each summer when the township has to come out and cut the grass. The township trustees know all about this house because the amount of times the neighbors have complained and the inspectors need to come out.

So the ivy/creeping stuff isn't as intrusive as I thought you were talking about. Around here crabgrass and dandelions, etc all of those types are the ones that people really have to keep in check because they spread so crazy.

It sounds like your city isn't as interested in this issue unfortunate as that is because they certainly know citizens are annoyed at the property. You could bring it up with the city just asking them, I'm guessing they would probably just tell you to take care of it if it's that bothersome just so they don't have 1 more issue to have to have with this property but that's just me thinking out loud

Is there an issue with it as in you don't want the looks of it? I'm asking because I wonder if you can try and train it to stay around the fence and not outward. Like weave it through and then cut it if it gets too high from the top support pole since clearly the tenants aren't going to do much at all. To answer your question it may just be easier to try that route for a bit than try and keep destroying it or trying to get the city to take action against this property they already know has a length complaint history.

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

If someone wanted to buy 0.3 acres the price would be $10 million

Well, maybe not 20 years ago, but he was very offended we didn't jump at his "generous" offer.

 

[barkley]

Yes, exactly.


My neighbors are crackheads, literally. It's a rental house and the owner doesn't even live in the same state so he hasn't seen the house in years. I don't want to talk to the people living there, they're usually strung out on drugs. The owner just pays the fee each summer when the township has to come out and cut the grass. The township trustees know all about this house because the amount of times the neighbors have complained and the inspectors need to come out.

do you have like minded neighbors just as upset as yourself about the house? if so you might band together to do a free consultation with an attorney b/c some states have laws that allow homeowners to sue the property owner of another house that creates either a public nuisance, diminishes their ability to enjoy use of their own property or causes their property to be devalued. had a co-worker with a crack-house a couple of doors down that was a constant mess/constant source of police activity-she and her neighbors banded together when this kind of law passed in my former state, spent a couple hundred each to get a lawyer to write a simple letter explaining to the property owner the law, the neighbor's basis for pursing, a rough (HIGH) estimate of how much they would seek in damages...................went no further b/c the owner never replied to the letter but evicted the tenants/put the house up for sale 'as is'.

 

[sam_gordon]

do you have like minded neighbors just as upset as yourself about the house? if so you might band together to do a free consultation with an attorney b/c some states have laws that allow homeowners to sue the property owner of another house that creates either a public nuisance, diminishes their ability to enjoy use of their own property or causes their property to be devalued. had a co-worker with a crack-house a couple of doors down that was a constant mess/constant source of police activity-she and her neighbors banded together when this kind of law passed in my former state, spent a couple hundred each to get a lawyer to write a simple letter explaining to the property owner the law, the neighbor's basis for pursing, a rough (HIGH) estimate of how much they would seek in damages...................went no further b/c the owner never replied to the letter but evicted the tenants/put the house up for sale 'as is'.

In some neighborhoods, the home owners have even gotten together and came up with a series of bylaws to make sure property is kept up.

 

[NotUrsula]

Salt the fence line. You can google how to do it. It will take about 10 days for everything growing in the salted strip to die, and it will stay dead for about 3-5 years. One and done, but you won't be able to plant anything right next to the fence on your own side, either.

 

[kymom99]

My step daughters in laws own a home that they have basically abandoned. They moved out of the area and the house just sits empty. They tried getting them to clean it out to put it up for sale but they wouldn’t cooperate. The city cuts the grass and sends them a bill.

 

[barkley]

In some neighborhoods, the home owners have even gotten together and came up with a series of bylaws to make sure property is kept up.

nothing like the hoa b.s.. the law i speak of deals with the 'crack house' situation the o/p mentioned. generally speaking, the presence of one in a neighborhood creates a danger to the public and greatly diminished property values. if a public municipality refuses to address it then private property owners should be within their rights to protect themselves and their property values through the civil court process.

 

[MillauFr]

In some neighborhoods, the home owners have even gotten together and came up with a series of bylaws to make sure property is kept up.

The problem with that approach is the solution is 10x worse than the initial problem.

 

[VandVsmama]

I'd like to hear from those of you who've had to deal with a situation like this. What did you do about it and the outcome.

My neighbor doesn't take care of his yard. There is a chain linked fence between the yards that I'm guessing the previous owners of my house installed since the ugly side is facing my yard. My question is, who is responsible for the weeds growing up the fence? Am I responsible since it's my fence? Or are the neighbors responsible since the weeds started in their yard?

Weed whack your side of the chain link fence. After doing so, put down some pre-emergent herbicide pellets...Home Depot and Lowes sells it. That will prevent weed seeds from germinating in your yard going forward. Reapply every 3-4 months.

 

[ohiomom28]

There's a "nice side" to a chain link fence?

That's what I'm trying to figure out.