One homeowner was ready to sue when their neighbor carried out a plot to destroy their banana trees.
It happens from time to time: an entitled neighbor decides that the trees are blocking their view or dropping too many leaves on their lawn. They wait until the other homeowner is away, then cut the trees down or hire a company to do it, claiming the trees are theirs. The real owner comes home to find that a valuable feature of their yard that took decades to grow is gone in an instant.
This Brevard County, Florida, homeowner asked for guidance on r/legaladvice, a U.S.-based subreddit that answers a wide range of legal questions.
"The trees are on the corner of the property of her yard, our yard, and property the HOA owns," they explained. "A month back she had the trees on her property cleared out; all good, it's her yard. We went out and confirmed the property line with her and the guy cutting the trees and said don't touch anything on our property."
Sadly, the Redditor said that only lasted until they were away for a day. "Fast forward to today and he's back and has cut 15 of our 20 banana trees down and poured salt all over the roots and new sprouts, which will kill the root system, before we could stop them," they said.
Killing off the trees not only reduces the value of the homeowner's real estate, it also deprives them of the cooling shade the trees provide and the clean air they produce. Plus, salting the ground will make it difficult to grow anything there, and it could also contaminate the freshwater lake that the original poster said lies right alongside their home.
According to the homeowner, the neighbor simply refused to believe the trees were on the homeowner's property, although the homeowner had recently had a survey done. "We straight up said 'you need to replace those trees,' and she said 'no' and laughed," the original poster added in a comment.
As commenters pointed out, the path forward was clear. "File a police report for trespassing and vandalism," said one user simply.
Another user recommended calling the local water management district about the possibility that the salt might harm local wildlife.
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