Sally Thompson wrote in message ...

Two years ago we planted a mixed deciduous hedge to support the
wildlife: this included hawthorn, blackthorn, guelder rose, dog rose,
hazel and field maple, and has done amazingly well, reaching 8ft high
in parts and flowering and producing many berries for the birds. We
have been thrilled with its progress.

However, we have the misfortune to have acquired an extremely odd
neighbour who refuses to talk to anyone (especially us) and seems
obsessed with his privacy.

There are lots of problems that neighbours can create- I'd
suggest that 'not talking' is one of the most minor. You're
lucky.

He has now planted a leylandii hedge all
along the other side of this boundary. This in itself does not
particularly disturb us, since he is on our north side and it has
probably not occurred to him that it will be his own light which will
suffer, not ours. This man gives every appearance of not being a
gardener. However, we are upset that in planting the leylandii he has
(or has had) our own deciduous hedge cut back - probably beyond the
boundary, but it is difficult to prove that of course.

This is the crucial bit. He's entitled to cut anything back to
the boundary. If that's all he's done then there is no point
trying to assert your preferences in his garden.

If he's gone past the boundary then I don't understand why
it's difficult to prove it. The cut ends of the hedge should be visible and
a two-year old hedge shouldn't be impenetrable
for you to check it.

They have
removed growing tips of the wild roses and have also today cut off
some branches of an existing ash tree which was right on the boundary
- and thrown them over our side.


That suggests to me that the neighbour is well-informed as
to the law, and that he thinks that the tree is on your side of
the boundary.

We are sure that our hedge will recover (and hope his dies quickly!)
but is there anything we can do legally about what he has done to the
ash tree? I've looked on the hedgeline site but it doesn't really
help.


If it's on your side of the boundary then he's entitled to cut off
any branches which overhang his garden (presumably
those are the branches that he's cut off?). The branches
belong to you, and you have no right to dangle your property
over his garden. If the tree is on his side then he can do anything he
likes to it, unless there's a tree preservation order in place.
If the tree is exactly on the boundary i.e. shared, then he's
still entitled to cut off any branches which overhang his side,
though he should dispose of them himself.

Sorry to sound off, but you can all imagine how we feel!

Not quite. Your priority might be a wildlife-friendly hedge-
his seems to be privacy. You seem to be upset that he
hasn't allowed your hedge to encroach on his garden. If
he has trimmed the hedge back beyond the boundary, he's
a naughty boy, but his other actions merely suggest that
he wants his garden his way, not your way. I'd suggest
that you take advice from the CAB or somewhere as the legal
rights and wrongs before getting offended.

--
Anton