A renter was left heartbroken after their new landlord's landscaper paid a visit to the property — but members of the Reddit community may have helped turn their day around.
"Native pollinator garden weedwacked today! Three years of work, you all know how much it takes. All gone because some landscape dude was told to, 'Tidy it up,' by the new landlord," the renter shared in the subreddit r/NativePlantGardening. They added that they had permission to plant the garden from the last homeowner.
Other Redditors were quick to share their own experiences of disappointment, commiserating with the OP, but also provided hope that things may not be as bad as initially feared.
"I'd be so upset," one person wrote. "I will say that an unknown wildflower I planted from seed last year was weedwhacked by my spouse this past summer, right when close to budding. It grew back so well…I think your garden will come back even stronger next spring."
"It sucks but think of it as a natural disturbance event. It's similar to a bunch of bison grazing! Some may die, but many will regrow next year," another person said.
Roughly one-quarter of all Americans live in communities run by homeowners associations, according to iPropertyManagement, while more than a third of the United States population are renters.
Unfortunately, many strict HOA or tenant rules meant to benefit communities end up having the opposite effect.
Native plants — which can sometimes be mistaken for weeds — provide a haven for vital pollinators and other wildlife, as well as decrease the risk of flooding and lower the need for lawn maintenance, per the U.S. Forest Service.
However, some HOAs have tried to get them removed for not meeting visual guidelines.
Meanwhile, one property management company went as far as trying to evict tenants for hanging their laundry out to dry, and an HOA in Missouri tried to prevent a homeowner from installing solar panels.
All of these practices also help people save money on bills and reduce harmful pollution.
"Can you convince the [new] landlord to leave it and/or add some cues to care to make it more palatable? Like pollinator signs," one Redditor suggested to the OP, perhaps alluding to how some people have worked with their HOAs to find compromises. Or, in some cases, figured out how to change regulations.
"Even though I own my home, I still had to register my pollinator habitat with the city and get their approval so they wouldn't regard it as unmanaged weed growth and send somebody to cut it down," another person shared.
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