Hi, we recently bought a plot of land in a new development area in Hesse, and our construction is starting soon.
Regarding our rainwater infiltration system, I asked our future neighbor to send me a house plan (to check the distance to the basement).
However, I noticed that it was actually a planting plan, which needs to be submitted to the authorities together with the building permit / planning permission application.
On it, I saw that he plans to plant a Norway maple quite close to our property line (about 3-4m (10-13 feet) away)!
These trees can already reach 4m (13 feet) in height after 10 years and up to 16m (52 feet) after 20 years, which is almost twice as tall as our houses!
Final height can be up to 35m (115 feet).
Who would want such a huge tree in their own garden?
So far, I haven’t found much information online except that you often have to accept a lot.
According to the building regulations / neighborhood law in Hesse, “very fast-growing avenue and park trees” must maintain a 4m (13 feet) distance from the boundary, and “fast-growing avenue and park trees” only 2m (6.5 feet).
Where does the Norway maple fall in this classification?
Is there anything I can do in advance? For example, can I apply to prevent him from planting it?
I know from my in-laws, who once owned a house and land, that you can’t just do anything you want on your own property. If the neighbor doesn’t agree, it’s not allowed.
I really don’t want such a tree because it would probably block sunlight from my entire garden.
Can I oppose this?
He also wants to plant a Japanese maple between our houses. But there are shrubs that tend to grow more in width than height. I could accept something like that.
I really hope there is a solution.
I don’t want a never-ending neighborhood dispute!
Regarding our rainwater infiltration system, I asked our future neighbor to send me a house plan (to check the distance to the basement).
However, I noticed that it was actually a planting plan, which needs to be submitted to the authorities together with the building permit / planning permission application.
On it, I saw that he plans to plant a Norway maple quite close to our property line (about 3-4m (10-13 feet) away)!
These trees can already reach 4m (13 feet) in height after 10 years and up to 16m (52 feet) after 20 years, which is almost twice as tall as our houses!
Final height can be up to 35m (115 feet).
Who would want such a huge tree in their own garden?
So far, I haven’t found much information online except that you often have to accept a lot.
According to the building regulations / neighborhood law in Hesse, “very fast-growing avenue and park trees” must maintain a 4m (13 feet) distance from the boundary, and “fast-growing avenue and park trees” only 2m (6.5 feet).
Where does the Norway maple fall in this classification?
Is there anything I can do in advance? For example, can I apply to prevent him from planting it?
I know from my in-laws, who once owned a house and land, that you can’t just do anything you want on your own property. If the neighbor doesn’t agree, it’s not allowed.
I really don’t want such a tree because it would probably block sunlight from my entire garden.
Can I oppose this?
He also wants to plant a Japanese maple between our houses. But there are shrubs that tend to grow more in width than height. I could accept something like that.
I really hope there is a solution.
I don’t want a never-ending neighborhood dispute!
Alex, I’m not trying to act big; I’m just genuinely liberal-minded. I like regulations only where necessary. As few as possible, with as much personal responsibility as possible.
Yvonne, I don’t like sorting by high-end or ordinary either. It’s enough that people sort themselves by social groups. If different social groups at least live mixed together, our municipality always includes resettlers, then refugees distributed decentral and integrated everywhere. The result is no ghettos, hardly any problems. But that is a broad topic.
Of course, we also have a development plan with regulations, but these are comparatively sparse. Plots range between 500 and 800 sq m (5,380 and 8,610 sq ft). Floor area ratio 0.25. Maximum 1.5 stories, no knee walls. Roof pitch at least 25 percent. Only gable or hip roofs. No shed or flat roofs. Only long-term rentals, no holiday apartments. No short-term rentals. Facade material doesn’t matter, roof colors limited to red, brown, black, anthracite with tiles or shingles, non-glossy. No paved driveways; as the land is sloped, nothing except terraces should be sealed. At least one tree per plot. To protect neighbors, the plots must be centered. No concrete slabs on pedestals, no deep excavation into slopes. Since rainwater drains poorly in clay soil, every house must be connected to rainwater drainage; each plot has drainage shafts. There must be at least five meters (16 ft) of space in front of carports or garages. The ridge direction specified in the building zone is binding. Tent roofs on square floor plans are allowed.
Some of these rules I wouldn’t consider necessary. For example, I would allow freedom in the roof shape. The 1.5 stories maximum without knee walls protects the neighbor’s sunlight. The mandatory tree? Well, Ms. Stolte-Kirchberg on the city council probably wanted to see herself reflected here. Unnecessary. Almost everyone plants one or more anyway. At the topping-out ceremony alone, three trees were given as gifts. The mixture of bungalows with semi-retired people and family houses with young people is healthy and good. The mixture of styles too; the area already feels not sterile. Since there’s no obligation to build fences or hedges, and hardly any have been built, the area where it has been developed longer appears natural, with stone walls, earth boundaries, and few plastic or wood fences. Some have chosen very low-maintenance landscaping with a lot of gravel and granite, which feels cold to me, but well, it’s their choice. A few took bold colors like turquoise or pink for the facade, which is kind of funny. Let them be. Besides brick and plaster, there are many wooden houses, which is also nice. Karsten
Yvonne, I don’t like sorting by high-end or ordinary either. It’s enough that people sort themselves by social groups. If different social groups at least live mixed together, our municipality always includes resettlers, then refugees distributed decentral and integrated everywhere. The result is no ghettos, hardly any problems. But that is a broad topic.
Of course, we also have a development plan with regulations, but these are comparatively sparse. Plots range between 500 and 800 sq m (5,380 and 8,610 sq ft). Floor area ratio 0.25. Maximum 1.5 stories, no knee walls. Roof pitch at least 25 percent. Only gable or hip roofs. No shed or flat roofs. Only long-term rentals, no holiday apartments. No short-term rentals. Facade material doesn’t matter, roof colors limited to red, brown, black, anthracite with tiles or shingles, non-glossy. No paved driveways; as the land is sloped, nothing except terraces should be sealed. At least one tree per plot. To protect neighbors, the plots must be centered. No concrete slabs on pedestals, no deep excavation into slopes. Since rainwater drains poorly in clay soil, every house must be connected to rainwater drainage; each plot has drainage shafts. There must be at least five meters (16 ft) of space in front of carports or garages. The ridge direction specified in the building zone is binding. Tent roofs on square floor plans are allowed.
Some of these rules I wouldn’t consider necessary. For example, I would allow freedom in the roof shape. The 1.5 stories maximum without knee walls protects the neighbor’s sunlight. The mandatory tree? Well, Ms. Stolte-Kirchberg on the city council probably wanted to see herself reflected here. Unnecessary. Almost everyone plants one or more anyway. At the topping-out ceremony alone, three trees were given as gifts. The mixture of bungalows with semi-retired people and family houses with young people is healthy and good. The mixture of styles too; the area already feels not sterile. Since there’s no obligation to build fences or hedges, and hardly any have been built, the area where it has been developed longer appears natural, with stone walls, earth boundaries, and few plastic or wood fences. Some have chosen very low-maintenance landscaping with a lot of gravel and granite, which feels cold to me, but well, it’s their choice. A few took bold colors like turquoise or pink for the facade, which is kind of funny. Let them be. Besides brick and plaster, there are many wooden houses, which is also nice. Karsten
Have you asked your neighbor if they really want to plant a Norway maple? We also had all kinds of plants and trees listed in the planting plan submitted to the building authority, but we designed the garden very differently. Maybe their construction company just included it without checking? Here, the plots in new housing developments are quite small. Plots for detached houses are sometimes not even 300 square meters (about 3,230 square feet), usually around 400 square meters (about 4,300 square feet). On such small plots, I also find a Norway maple inappropriate. I don’t think the leaves from someone’s trees should end up mostly in the neighbor’s garden, or that the neighbor should be left with only shade because of a huge tree. With larger plots, I don’t see a problem, but with tight building spacing, you really need to be considerate.
Best regards
Sabine
Best regards
Sabine
ypg schrieb:
Beauty is relative – a maple tree is beautiful And that’s it.We also had a fairly strict planting plan as part of the building permit / planning permission. However, in our case, it was not nearly as restrictive. Still, we tried to make sure that when planting, the neighbors would be disturbed as little as possible by shade or leaves. I think I would first kindly ask if they would be open to a smaller maple tree. It might not matter to the new neighbor at all, and you could be worrying unnecessarily.
305er schrieb:
However, a friend of mine who also wants to plant one said that you can keep it trimmed to 7-8 m (23-26 feet).I imagine that would be quite a hassle. Is the neighbor really willing to keep climbing up and trimming it all the time? Better to just choose a smaller one from the start.My grandmother has a 5-meter (16-foot) tall pear tree on her property. The shade it casts is quite limited. Only the area immediately around it is well shaded. As soon as I stand 3 meters (10 feet) away, I’m back in full sun. So, the shade from the maple will likely be limited as well. And it has to grow to 16 meters (52 feet) first!
But I understand your concern. I’m also looking forward to my nice sunny lawn.
Have you talked to the neighbors about the tree?
But I understand your concern. I’m also looking forward to my nice sunny lawn.
Have you talked to the neighbors about the tree?
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