Leaves From A Neighbor's Tree On Your Lawn? Here's Who Cleans Them Up

The fall colors are a delight to watch, but those leaves won't stay on the tree forever. Once they start dropping, you might feel like the chore of raking leaves will never end. You can alleviate some of that stress by using smarter, easier cleanup methods, but what if the leaves aren't even yours? If the leaves are from your neighbor's tree, what can you do?

While it might be tempting to just put them back on your neighbor's lawn, you shouldn't do this. If the leaves were blown by the wind, or even if they fell off the tree directly into your yard, it's considered an act of nature and not your neighbor's fault. Unless your neighbor is blowing leaves directly into your yard, or bagging them up and dumping them over the fence, the only thing you can really do is deal with the leaves like you would if they had come from your own tree. Talking to your neighbor might help if the leaves are coming from a branch hanging over your property, and you are legally allowed to prune that branch. However, you can't cross onto your neighbor's property or cut anything on their side of the line. You're also responsible for any damage done to the tree, so be sure you know how and when to prune a tree properly — or else hire a professional to do it for you.

If your neighbor is moving the leaves from their property to yours, that's a different story. Your neighbor does not count as a force of nature, after all. The best thing to do is start with a simple, polite conversation. There may be a perfectly reasonable explanation — maybe your neighbor doesn't know where the property line is, or maybe they think you might want the leaves to use in your compost. They may even think the tree is yours! When trees cross a property line, it can be tricky to figure out exactly who owns it, especially if the tree was there when you both moved in.

Start by asking why they're putting leaves on your lawn and if they could please stop. If they refuse to stop after that, you can take things to your HOA board or a mediator. Depending on your local laws around leaf blowing, you may be able to escalate things further and make it a legal matter. However, if you'd rather not get a third party involved, putting up a fence might be enough to end things and keep the peace. It's not a perfect solution, but it will stop the leaves from being blown onto your lawn.