Leaves are supposed to be on the ground under trees: they are nature's way of improving the soil and keeping the trees healthy. They also insulate and keep the ground warmer in the winter.

Putting the leaves in the woods is a great way to handle them. Your neighbor sounds like a smart person who is concerned about the environment and is taking better care of it than people who are bagging their leaves for large, gas-guzzling trucks to haul away.

Instead of telling my neighbor to stop doing this, I would start doing this myself and also encouraging my other neighbors to do the same. So much healthier for the environment overall.

Free firewood! Score!!

Here's an idea: Can you even out the piles with a leaf blower so that it's not a mountain but an even layer on the ground? Leaves are great for for the soil.

We have woods behind our house (county owned). Most of our neighbors drag their leaves and other yard debris back into the woods, some do it by way of our yard. It doesn't bother me as long as they don't leave a trail behind in our lawn.

After a year in the woods your leaves should be pretty well decomposed. Why would you remove them? Making a leaf pile in the woods is way better for the environment than bagging them. It's like mulching mowers rather than bagging grass.

It sounds like what you need is a fence. Then you won't see the woodpile and wont have to worry about leaves blowing into your yard.

Leaves belong in the woods. It's better than sending them to a landfill in plastic bags.

Also, if a few blow into your yard, just deal with it and put them back in the woods. Once they get wet, they won't be blowing around any longer.

And there's nothing wrong with a stack of firewood. That's what you might call a renewable "biofuel."

You really are too much. Get a hobby.

it's a great place to put leaves and you are being dumb.

Anonymous wrote:What’s the problem with the firewood? You don’t like the way it looks and it blocks your view of his yard and the back of his house? I don’t think you can do anything about that. It’s on his property, right?

It could be on his property, but it is unlikely. I would have to go and measure his property...But, it is mostly likely in the wooded common area as the other two neighbors with backyard fences do not have fences that go that far in. What makes me think even more that firewood is not on his property is that part of it is behind couple of large trees in the wooded area. This same neighbor has some weird peace of string held on what I assume are his property lines, hang on tall sticks around his house. Have no idea what that is about.

Can you approach him and tell him to stop?

What’s the problem with the firewood? You don’t like the way it looks and it blocks your view of his yard and the back of his house? I don’t think you can do anything about that. It’s on his property, right?

Anonymous wrote:I live in the woods. OP does not she just has a 'wooded area'.

I would hire someone to pick up the leaves that my guy shoved back in there and pick up the neighbors as well.

I understand the OP's concern. If leaves are snowed on before they are raked up, it kills all the grass.

The wood pile issue I would save for another time. Get the leaf issue resolved first.

Maybe your neighbor can put his leaves in a pile right before whomever you hire comes to pick them all up. Or maybe alternative hiring removal?

That is a great idea. Thank you. First year we moved in, DH and I actually picked all the leaves from the wooded area and removed them, even though it wasn't our property. I looked up pedantic and I see that it can mean fussy, perfectionist, but that is most often refers to learning. I thought it referred to general fussiness.

Anonymous wrote:Who owns the wooded area? Can you talk to your neighbor? Nicely? Tell him the leaves he puts there are spreading into your property

The wooded area is a common area that HOA takes care of. Mostly common area is maintained by a landscaped hired by HOA to mow the areas with lawn. I should inquire about it. Most of the neighbors are very good about lawn care and will take care of common areas close to their property.

"Fussy" or "picky" might be a better word choice.

And yea, it's going to be hard for you to say something if you left your leaves there last year. And assuming the wood pile is on his property, even if its the edge of his property, I don't think you've got any rights to gripe about that either. Maybe next year you can ask about the leaves. But in general, I'd suggest you deal with it. Or consider moving farther out where you can more land and not see your neighbors.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would your neighbor think you have a problem with this, since you did the same thing last year!? And don't say it was your lawn guy and not you -- it was your property and you didn't have him remove the leaves.

This exactly.

"I did something last year, and although I now claim it bothered me, I never remedied it then. Now that my neighbor is doing the same thing, I believe it is "not a nice thing" to do, even though I did the same thing and left it that way for the past year. Oh, and firewood - that's bad too."

I didn't remove it last year because I was sick with Lyme disease and DH was working overseas. This was the only year this happened, neighbor has been doing it for 6 years that I am at this house. But, I can see your point.