Etiquette for cutting in neighbor's yard

[Wingman]

I will be cutting up a mulberry in a neighbors yard caddy corner to me. The tree apparently took out some lines in late summer early fall and has been sitting partially cut by the line crews since. I finally went and asked the neighbor if I can cut some up for firewood which they had no problem. What would you guys do about all the little limbs that you wouldn't use? It would take a lot of time to clean all the stuff up, but I feel I am doing them a favor for taking all the big stuff and leaving them the little stuff.
Leave it as it lies, cut and stack it to the side or cut and wrap it for the yard waste crews to take?

 

[LLigetfa]

Some people would not only expect you to clean it all up but to also grind out the stump. Your neighbor's expectations may be skewed by craigslist and you may need to manage them. I'd start by asking them what their expectations are.

 

[thewoodlands]

I will be cutting up a mulberry in a neighbors yard caddy corner to me. The tree apparently took out some lines in late summer early fall and has been sitting partially cut by the line crews since. I finally went and asked the neighbor if I can cut some up for firewood which they had no problem. What would you guys do about all the little limbs that you wouldn't use? It would take a lot of time to clean all the stuff up, but I feel I am doing them a favor for taking all the big stuff and leaving them the little stuff.
Leave it as it lies, cut and stack it to the side or cut and wrap it for the yard waste crews to take?

+1 on what LL said.


Happy New Year
Zap

 

[burntime]

Grab the wood. I would not worry about the branchs and brush. Take all that you can burn. It would cost them money to get rid of it otherwise... I have responded to CL and people said its an all or none thing. I usually just laugh and say I can lie and tell them ok and just never come back for the brush or be honest and help load it if THEY want to haul it out. They usually say, "well, come on over, at least your honest." The few that don't well no loss...

 

[Thistle]

If its a neighbor you've known for a while,take all the wood down to the size you want (for me its pretty much everything over 2" if decent),if there's no snow on the yard rake up the shavings & small broken twigs.Most people I've dealt with either want the stump fairly flush with the ground,or left up to a foot high to set a planter or something else on.No one's ever mentioned doing more than that.The few times I scored on CL this summer the person was glad just to have the wood removed,they never mentioned hauling away any brush or leaves.

Mulberry is great wood,be patient & let it dry a year,2 years if you can spare the space.You wont be disappointed.

 

[Mcbride]

Personally I would clean up the branches and mess if it were me.

But I would not think it my responsibility to do extras for them, like say grind the stump.

ps. I burn any branches I get.

 

[JustWood]

U dohnt wanna no whut eye'd dew if'n it wuz meye naybor!

 

[NH_Wood]

I'd first talk with them as mentioned above. But, I'd think that taking the small branches and piling them in a fairly neat, small area is all that should be required. Again, you have saved them either the time to do it themselves (which they were apparently not all that interested in doing!) or the money to have it removed. Cheers!

 

[rdust]

Take branches 3-4 inches and up and stack the rest neatly.

 

[SolarAndWood]

While you have the saw out anyway, lop the smaller stuff into manageable pieces for them. If they are out there, they can probably pull it to the curb as fast as you can lop it and it will keep it out of your way.

 

[LLigetfa]

U dohnt wanna no whut eye'd dew if'n it wuz meye naybor!

As always, there are two sides to the coin. A neighbor has some obligation to maintain his yard too.

I had two large Spruce blow down once in a Winter storm and I just cut the tops that had fallen across the road and folded them back. This was the middle of Winter with bitter cold and lots of snow. A neighbor asked me when I was going to clean it up, offering to to take it for firewood if I didn't want it. He said he really didn't need the wood, just wanted to see the trees gone. Aside from sheer laziness, not wanting to wade through waist-deep snow, I had left it where it fell as it kept the snowmobilers on the other side of the road and out of my yard, and planned to clean it up come Spring.

As you can imagine, a Spruce tree leaves a lot of branches and not a lot of quailty firewood so I wondered, had I said yes to the neighbor to take it for firewood, what would have become of the branches? Out in the sticks, we don't have curbside pickup for yard waste. We make burn piles or drag it off to the bush.

 

[CountryBoy19]

While you have the saw out anyway, lop the smaller stuff into manageable pieces for them. If they are out there, they can probably pull it to the curb as fast as you can lop it and it will keep it out of your way.

It depends if it's a "neighbor" or "just the guy down the street". If it's my neighbor I would help him take care of the brush. If it's just the guy down the street the above is about the limit that I would do. I will make sure the brush is cut to a manageable size and will try to keep it somewhat piled up.

 

[Got Wood]

To me setting expectations ahead of time is the key... then exceed them.

A short story. This past August we had a "macro burst" (similar to micro burst but covers larger area) hit our area. I lost a couple trees in the front yard. A nieghbor a couple houses down also had a couple smaller trees blow down. As I was working in my front yard cleaning up she (divorced single mom) pulls up and asks "I know you have a lot of wood already but would you be interested in my trees that came down". Now at the time, its August and really hot and I have my own mess to clean up. I told her that I would gladly help her out but I probably wouldnt be able to get to it until the fall when the weather was cooler and I wouldnt be able to take all the branches. This lady is nice enough but drives me nuts with her endless chatter. So I waited for a day I was available and noticed she wasnt home(so I could do my thing w/o dealing with her)... then one fall day I saw her leaving so I grabbed my gear and headed over. I processed the trees, taking the usable wood and then neatly piled up the branches in a corner pile. I also did a little extra clean up leaving the yard MUCH nicer than it was. I dont run into her much and it wasnt until a couple weeks later she drove by and stopped and thanked me. Fast foward to xmas eve....door bell rings and she is there with a big cookie basket "just to say thanks".

 

[tcassavaugh]

i've always found cutting and taking the firewood was the easy part. it was the small branches that were the pain in the a$$. probably best to ask.

cass

 

[Backwoods Savage]

For me, if I cut wood on a neighbor's property, especially a lawn, I would cut as little as possible in order to haul it home. When finished I'd take a rake with me to clean up the neighbor's lawn. As for the brush, you could bag it and haul it to your place. The point is that it is your neighbor and they did not have to let you get the wood. Show your appreciation by leaving them a clean yard.

 

[LLigetfa]

It's all in the eye of the beholder. Some people would consider my "front yard" a mess because what is visible from the public road is where my wood processing is done. It's all relative... one neighbor raises cattle and the yard is strewn with farm implements. Another neighbor has a scrapped airplane in his front yard. Yet another adorns her front yard with a sink, toilet, bathtub, and bags of trash. Further down the road, one guy collects scrap metal.

You might insult a neighbor by offering to clean it up.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I highly doubt anyone, even the most unkempt, would be offended by cleaning it up. Also, notice I said clean it up and not offering to clean it up. Just do it, or, do the right thing because it is the right thing to do.

 

[Wingman]

Wow, thanks for the good responses. This is just "a guy down the street and across the creek" who doesn't seem to care how his yard looks. The tree has been sitting and not changed since late summer, so anything I do is going to be an improvement. Also, it is a back yard and a lot of the brush is on city, sewer or electrical right-of-way. Which is still, more the responsibility of the owner than anything else.
I was thinking the least I could do is cut it into manageable branches and stack it. I think two of my friends are going to help me with this so we may kick this out in no time.
I'll let you know what happens.
ps
I have been burning 9 month to 1.5 year seasoned mulberry this year and longer ago in my regular fireplace and I have loved it.

Thanks,
Joe

 

[LLigetfa]

I highly doubt anyone, even the most unkempt, would be offended...

Well, I was offended, particularly when he said he didn't really need the wood and he knew I burned wood. My stacks with the big blue tarps were unmistakable. I had just bought the place a few months before and there were lots of downed trees behind my house that the contractor just bulldozed. My neighbor didn't ask for any of those.

When I cleanup a deadfall or standing dead on my property, I prefer if I can, to just cut the limbs up small so they lay to rot rather than have to drag them to my burn pile. If someone dragged them out and piled them up, they would just be making more work for me. If the branches were on my lawn that would be a different matter.

 

[btuser]

The brush is the hardest part. Anyone can take the gravy.

 

[tcassavaugh]

Wow, thanks for the good responses. This is just "a guy down the street and across the creek" who doesn't seem to care how his yard looks.........

Thanks,
Joe

yea, the guys in this forum aren't normally shy....be prepared for answers, like them or not. Happy New Year.

cass

 

[Wood Duck]

I typically cut the branches into managable pieces and pile it up. I'll drag it and pile it if there is an obvious place for a brush pile, or if the curb isn't too far, or just pile it neatly in place if not. I figure that any work requiring the saw -such as cutting the branches up - is very reasonable to expect from me, but dragging and stacking brush is extra and I do it to be neighborly.

 

[LLigetfa]

The brush is the hardest part. Anyone can take the gravy.

Hardest in what way? You'd have to scope out the job before making such a blanket statement. If you can't drive close to the tree and they are big rounds, lugging them out could be the hardest part.

When I worked as a saw hand on the pipeline hydrostatic testing, a lot of what I did was cleanup work. When the pipe would rupture, the force of the water could mangle an area of forest the size of a football field. It looked like a tornado went through. We'd go in cut up the small stuff so it would lay flat to rot but all the big stuff we had to cut to 8 foot length and carry it out.

 

[JBinKC]

Urban firewood- You should try to take it all. The small branches can be used as kindling and in your case scoring mulberry the small stuff would also be great for smoking poultry.

 

[ChillyGator]

Take the gravy....diesel fuel and a match to the litter ;-P