Neighbors SORTED

By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics and access other forums reserved for members. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today by clicking here.

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 5:01 pm

So here is my tale of woe. The neighbors have not mowed their lawn in over a month. Given that where I live it is prime growing season for anything, their lawn is now VERY tall. I'd post pictures, but I did not take any.

So who cares? Well I live outside the city limits so there is no ordinance that covers how high your grass can get (I checked with the local government).

In the US in a subdivision it is often customary to have rules that you agree to abide by when you buy the house. These often cover mowing the lawn and the like. Our subdivision does not have any (both a blessing and a curse).

So short of spraying grass killer all over their lawn does anyone have any ideas of how I get them to mow?

They are not the most sociable people. They don't even wave back when you wave at them when you drive by. I have not seen them out and about for a while, but the car keeps moving positions in the drive so someone is coming and going.

Baiting Guru Joined: 03 May 2007 Posts: 18313

Maybe you could try going over and asking them to mow it? Laughing

Does it border your yard without a fence? If so, you could do what I do with my slack neighbors and mow further and further into their yard so that it looks like I'm stealing it and guilts them into mowing theirs.

Not quite a Newb Joined: 14 Jul 2005 Posts: 41

Practice crop circles.

Baiting Guru Joined: 08 Jul 2004 Posts: 11857 Location: UK

Use Photoshop, knock up a fake document from the local government, that talks about new rules concerning people who let their gardens get out of hand, and that their garden has been spotted by new garden wardens whos job it is to find overgrown gardens, say that it needs cutting back before legal action is taken, and if they do not comply, local government gardeners will visit their home, if they are out and get no answer, they will commence work there and then and bill them for it, print out and stick it in their mail box Very Happy

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 5:12 pm

Find an article about snakes living in tall grasses, then mail it anonymously. Razz

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 5:15 pm

Ima:

Tried to go over and ask them to mow, repeatedly. No one answers the door.

I am writing a letter to them advising that they need to mow or they will be "Reported". Not saying to WHO (since there is no legal body with authority to make them mow).

As for mowing, the property line is a row of pine trees (their trees not mine) so no option to just mow an extra couple more feet each week until I hit their house Sad

Snerd: Crop circles with weed/grass killer it might have to be Twisted Evil

I have a friend who is a farmer so I could get the really strong stuff that will make sure the grass does not grow back for a good long while.

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 6:18 pm

I don't know about the US but in the UK, a lot of birdseed has seeds of a certain Mary Jane in them, so get sewing. Shame if your neighbours were growing a crop of this in their front lawn. I'm sure your local constabulary would be interested. Twisted Evil

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 6:22 pm

That's tough, no rules and they don't want to do what you want, so you can't make them do it. Do they wash their car often enough or is that dirty too? Wink

Living close together doesn't make things easy, but you bought the house so close to a neighbor with his own opinion about gardening.

Easiest solution is not killing the grass, that's destroying property and would set any cop or judge on his wrong foot. (plus give you lots of weeds that now can't survive in the grass.

Go talk and if you really can't live with it, mow it yourself with their permission. Else there's not much you can do then to going in to politics and make a new local law and get it approved. He might have moved out by then though Laughing

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 6:28 pm

Ahaha. I had a neighbor like that once. They grew their lawn to about 3 feet I think. (No idea why.) It was hilarious.

Just let it go... I mean, yea it might be annoying, but their bad choices of lawn care won't have a negative reflection on you. If anything, if you keep your grass really nicely trimmed, it will make you look much better.

Master of Master Baiters Joined: 06 Feb 2008 Posts: 720

Agent orange Twisted Evil

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 6:50 pm

The funny thing is I am not the neighborhood lawn nazi. The neighbors on the other side have grass that looks like a freaking golf course green they keep it so well trimmed.

I am just frustrated at driving past it every day and seeing how BAD the lawn (and frankly the rest of the house) looks.

Our county government does not give a rat about it. The problem is it most certainly causes a decline in property value. Not that I am looking to sell right at the moment, but it is better to nip a problem in the bud as it were.

I would be happy to offer to mow it for them every now and again, but they won't/don't answer the door when I knock. By all accounts there are a couple of women living there and they appear to be able bodied. They mowed frequently last summer, but now not so much.

Now as for Ms. Mary Jane, that is not something you would find in grass seed in the US, but I think I might know where I could find some Wink

Baiting Guru Joined: 19 Mar 2007 Posts: 2628

There's always the possibility that they've been unwell or had some other crisis especially if they'd kept the place fairly neat up 'til recently.
Perhaps a freindly note saying you'd be willing to mow the lawn?

As for the Mj I had a pointy leaf plant growing under the bird feeder. I thought, purely in the intrests of science, that i'd see how big it would get.
It vanished one night, perhaps it was a triffid all along and wandered off.

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 7:27 pm

Like you, I chose to live outside of code enforcement jurisdiction, without a homeowners' association. I do know what it's like to look at a neighbor's eyesore. But that's part of living where I live. It's more of a blessing than a curse to me because I have the freedom to do a lot of things that homeowners' associations and/or the city typically forbid.

If a neighbor's grass bothers you this much, then you might just relocate. You'd probably be happier living someplace where a committee, or the city, has authority over lawn care, among other things.

---

Edited to add:

If the neighbors *were* mowing regularly, but aren't now, then they're probably having some sort of problem. You can look able bodied but have a major illness. Or have non-physical problems that make lawn care either impossible, or just very, very low on your list of priorities.

That being the likely case: I'd feel bad about posting a "You'll be reported" letter. It's likely that they're already having troubles. I'd hate to add to the burden.

Maybe, instead, a note along the lines of, "I've noticed that you haven't been mowing lately. Please let me help you"? You could post it on their door. They might really appreciate a nice gesture, instead of an empty threat that nobody can enforce. Smile

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 7:29 pm

Nanny's idea placed inside a friendly greeting card, and expanded to include an offer to help otherwise if you can might get them to open up. I also agree that illness or something major might have happened to where they no longer care about the lawn, or it isn't their first priority.

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 7:52 pm

Buy a goat or some sheep and sort of let them wander onto their property. Ooops, are my silly sheep out again?!

Elite Baiter Joined: 19 Jan 2008 Posts: 1043

Maybe they want a wildlife sanctuary in the midst of all your neatly mown lawns.

Ours got pretty bad the last couple of years as i was at uni and the mower blew up. I'll leave it there, you can make your own story involving those two facts.

Actual, the only wildlife that enjoyed our less than pristine lawn were the cats who thought it was a litter tray. That was not a fun lawn to mow when i got home for summer. Crap spraying everywhere. Watch out for that if you do mow their lawn.

Not quite a Newb Joined: 22 Jun 2008 Posts: 35

i am sorry. I will try to do better. It is hard to get to because I spend all my time staring at you mowing your lawn. I find sweat such a turn on..... unless of course its my sweat Wink

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:05 pm

Oh sure make me feel bad for having written (but not posted) the letter.... you all are probably right. Whilst their lawn care was not up to my other neighbor's standards, it was not BAD last summer. I'll TRY to be the voice of reason.

Then send them a letter when that does not work.

Maybe I can get a lad to write and post the letter for me?

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:07 pm

Some folks in our friendly neighborhood have slowed down mowing because of the cost of gasoline.

Small comfort, but you could count yourself lucky you don't live here in the Twin Cities, where there is an inspector whose only job is to drive around with a little ruler and actually measure the length of your grass. If you are over a certain length you can get cited. I am not making this up.

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:26 pm

@boh: I understand about the cost of gas. It takes me about 1 gallon to mow the lawn, and my neighbor has about the same size lawn so I guess about the same for them.

So I could understand if they went from once a week to every other or something.

If you want to have REALLY nice grass where I am (like my other neighbors) you have to mow twice a week this time of year. The stuff is growing that fast.

*sigh* I guess I'll be neighborly when I get home.

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:36 pm

^^ honey catches more flies... Wink

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:44 pm

The nice/helpful approach is probably best, but I do like Snerd's crop circle suggestion, it would be sad to let this idea go to waste. Confused

Trophy Videos · Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 9:22 pm

I'd tie up some goats in their front yard. Wink

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 9:58 pm

I'd try a friendly approach too. It's not worth sparking a potential neighbour dispute over some long grass. These things have a nasy habit of escalating...

Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 11:37 pm

Well I went and knocked on their door on the way home from work but no answer. I know they are "around" as the car was not in the same place as it was when I went to work today, and there was another car in the drive as well.

Maybe to keep Snerd's ideas I'll MOW crop circles into their yard (then spray it with Agent Orange)....

The plot thickens, but now you all have me worried for their safety/health.