Fuming mad at my neighbor.

[TarainNC]

I live in an older established residential neighborhood. I have 6 neighbors that share my fenceline because of the size of my lot. My neighbor behind me put poison on my grape vine several years ago ( on my side of the fence) because she did not like it. The grapevine has probably been there for 40 years. I didn't say much then because I had just moved in. Today i go out to feed/water the chickens and turn the sprinkler on my garden. The grapevine is turning brown and it looks like it also got my squash and tomatoes on the first row next to the fence. I am soooooo angry. It is quite obvious the vine is mine and the garden is there. Not to mention my little girl, dogs and chickens play out there, too. I am so mad, I did not go over there yet because I am so mad. She is an older lady and I want to respect that, but this poisoning my garden. Any suggestions on how to handle this? My husband will be home soon and I am sure he is going to be even madder. He was so excited with our tomatoes and I think we could loose them all.

 

[ruby]

Make sure she knows your child it plays out there and you have lost food for your family because of her actions. Bad neighbor for sure!

 

[klf73]

I would put a cam out there then press charges....especially when children are involved.. just my 2 cents

 

[bawkbawkbawk]

Good fences usually make good neighbors but apparently not in this case.

She probably resented that grape vine for decades and poisoned it when the old neighbors moved out. The rub is that if you plan to live next door to her for a long time, you want to keep some semblance of harmony - it's no fun to be in open warfare with neighbors. Maybe drop her a note and indicate that you are aware she killed the grapevine but let her know it is having further consequences and that you are worried about the well-being of your child/pets/garden so please refrain from any further activity of this nature.

You may own the fence but do you own the plant that grows on her side of the fence? I don't know what the law says about that and you may want to check on it before you stir up the hornet's nest further. If she's willing to poison an heirloom grapevine, who knows what else she might try!

 

[fuzziebutt]

That's what my thinking is, too. You have alot more at stake than vegetables. Take her some eggs, and ask her what could be killing your vine and vegetables. That may start a civil conversation. If it isn't civil, then call the law, But be prepared for what may be poisoned next. Sorry!

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

Quote:
Yeah, I would do this. "You know my chickens and my children eat those vegetables, I really need to know that they aren't being poisoned...."



I get the grape vine thing, but how far over did she poison that it's killing everything else??

 

[Carols Clucks]

I would first call the cops and document the damages, this would be the value of the plants and what they would have produced.

They will let her know she now owes you damages.


CalTrans was spraying the weeds on the side of the road on a windy day, the spray killed several orchards worth of avocados. Not only did the gobernator come for a helicopter tour, the ranch owners got a multi million dollar check from the state for not only the value of the fruit for that year, but for all the years to come that it would take for new trees to be planted and grow. You can still see the orchards they sprayed over 5 years later!

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Sounds like your fence is too short

 

[desertdarlene]

I would talk to your neighbor in a non-confrontational way. Say something like "For some reason, my vegetable garden has been dying off like it's been poisoned. Would you have any idea what might be causing that?" Then, tell her that you will be putting up a hidden camera in case someone's poisoning it so you can catch the person and send the tape to the police. I wouldn't accuse her outright and I would pretend that I didn't suspect her. If at all possible, I would make it so that she can't reach over or through your fence with anything from now on.

Is there any possibility that the poison from a few years ago is still in the soil? Some poisons don't break down easily and can remain toxic for a long time.

 

[Laurajean]

Quote:
If it were ME, I wouldn't eat anything from that garden even if it did survive. You have no idea what she used, you could poison yourself or your family if you eat it. Even if the plant looks fine, the poison can dissolve into the soil and leach into your veggies. I wouldn't risk it. (I manage a Pest Control company and when we use certain insecticides, we tell our customers not to plant any food plants there for YEARS. Termite chemicals for example can last 7-10 years in the soil).

I don't understand why anyone would poison a grape vine! I think they're pretty! I'd be tempted to make up an elaborate story. Go over and tell her your child was sent to the E.R. and it turns out she ate something poisoned from the garden, and that they'll be doing an investigation....

Seriously though, poisoning FOOD? That's incredibly dangerous. I don't care if she's elderly or not. I have a saying that elderly "witches" are just witches who got older.

In the meantime I would try somehow to fence off that area so the chickens and kids don't play in it. You can tell your kids, but chickens don't listen as well.

I'm honestly not sure how to handle it. I suppose the only thing you can really do is go over and say "Are you poisoning my food garden?" and see where it goes from there. It's really ridiculous how neighbors can be. I've told some crazy stories here about my neighbors here, and their incessant gossip, but at least they stay the heck off my land!! Although now that I said that I just realized that I am abutted on one side by vacant property for sale, and on the other side by "the good neighbor", who is actually a great guy. Once I apologized to him that my rooster crows ALL day long, and he said "That's okay, I kinda like it, makes me think of my childhood." So I guess I lucked out as far as that goes.

Anyway, I'm sorry this happened, good luck and keep us posted, this is just crazy!