A distraught homeowner asked r/arborists for some much-needed advice.
The OP's neighbor hired contractors to trim their tree line without their consent. "During the early summer months [the tree] hosted thousands of fireflies and gave our backyard a lot of shade," the OP said. "Now I'm scared that it is going to fall towards the backyard neighbors guest house."
The contractors chopped off large sections of the tree, discarding the OP's property markers to do so. They included a few before-and-after pictures, and the difference is stark. What was once a healthy, whole tree is now skinny and unbalanced.
"I'm at a loss, " the OP continued, "I'm pretty upset about it, and don't know what I should do."
Commenters were firmly on OP's side. Most agreed that they needed to hold their neighbor legally accountable. "Time to lawyer up," one said.
This clear violation of OP's rights isn't just a property issue. An analysis conducted by the Nature Conservancy found that planting trees in cities is beneficial to residents' health. Trees reduce both heat and air pollution, shielding people from the worst effects of the planet's warming.
Your yard also provides vital resources for your local ecosystem. In the OP's case, their tree was a haven for thousands of fireflies. More generally, flowers, trees, and other plant life benefit pollinators, which keep plants healthy and stabilize our food systems, per Pollinator.org.
Unfortunately, situations like these aren't as uncommon as you'd think. From burning brush destroying acres of property to dumping branches into other people's yards, some neighbors just don't know when to stop.
While approaching the neighbor and de-escalating the situation is ideal, some people take it too far. In cases like OP's, the neighbor's actions can have legal consequences; plus, it seems like this neighbor isn't willing to talk it out, anyway.
"This is probably the worst violation I've seen posted here," one commenter said. "You cannot overreact to this kind of attack on your home and trees …"
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