Worst plant

Darb starts with ...
Hi all , does anyone have any ideas about which plant would be the worst to live next to. I would like to put some on my Boundry fence

snottiegobble says...
The white poplar (the leaves are silver on the back) grows into a reasonable tree, but it sends out numerous suckers so instead of one attractive tree you will end up with an evergrowing copse! Dirt roads are no barrier, they will pop up on the other side!

Tom says...
Careful, Darb – besides Amanda’s good point, there may be laws in VIC which would compel you to take responsibility for a thing gone bad. I’ll bet in VIC your system is Common Law like ours since we’re both mostly derived from the English system. There may be statutes which say things like: “A landowner has the right to demand that the branches or roots of a neighbor's trees, bushes, or plants that extend over or into his property and interfere with the enjoyment of his property be trimmed at the expense of the neighbor” or “We are responsible, not only for the damage occasioned by our own act, but for that which is caused by the act of persons for whom we are answerable, or of the things which we have in our custody.” (Yep - those are real here - yours might be similar just with the "u" in "neighbour".)

That being said, I feel your pain of a rotten neighbor and like BJ’s suggestion of the running bamboo since you might be able to keep it in check by mowing around it and it may make a thick screen in a short time.

amanda says...
It's a good point Tom. Darb - what do want to achieve here? Your post sounds like u want to vexatious to me?

Brendan says...
Male guava tree or Icecream Bean tree.

Jimmy says...
Oleander, brazillian pepper, \\

www.problemhedges.com.au


leylandii type trees

Phil@Tyalgum says...
In Vic I found the Grey Poplar/Aspen one of the most invasive if that's what you're after.. almost the last straw in deciding to sell the farm. Suckers come up many metres from the parent grove.

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1

Nick says...
I wouldn't plant something edible if I was you, they might like it ;). I (had) a massive apple tree that overhung my annoying neighbours fence and I often caught her picking some!:P

John Mc says...
Mate, you will never find a more formidable hedge than a Kei Apple, Dovyalis caffra. They can only propagate via birds spreading the seeds if you're in the sub tropics and I have never seen a thorn more nasty than these buggars.
I have used the 50mm long thorns as gramaphone needles in the past.
My tree grew to 3m then got blown over, so I've had to go googling to find a decent photo.

I've looked around for a couple of links:

http://www.daleysfruit.com.au/fruit%20pages/kei.htm

http://www.beautanicals.com.au/Dovyalis%20caffra.html

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1

Mike says...
Stray roots on your side from an unwelcomed boundary tree can be an opportunity for control.All you need is a drill,blackberry killer and a dispenser.Thorny and stinging or vigorous plants will cause as much harm to you as a neighbour.A little bit warmer and some of the thorny options would be great.Stinging tree (Dendrocnides moroides) can survive light frosts as can Calamus motii and it can stay a clump.Naranjillas are a good standard for those seeking discomfort for the unwary.

Nick says...
http://blog.gardenersworld.com/2010/11/26/stinky-plants/. Isn't gingko biloba supposed to smell too?

Tom says...
If it’s stench that you’re after, Darb, and if the fence isn’t always downwind from you, then you’ll have to stink it up with something you can handle too. In that case, how ‘bout you plant something you love and fertilize the hell out of it? Fish emulsion or cow manure. Fish emulsion AND cow manure – the Surf n’ Turf platter of the plantae.

Sorry, Julie, the state statutes I mentioned are from Florida not Victoria – didn’t mean to suggest that VIC does indeed have those quoted articles. I was just supposing that the English who initiated Common Law here might have set you up for some similar laws down under since you use their system too. (I only know about those laws because we have an idiot neighbour who planted a willow tree sapling four inches / 10cm from our fence; so we let her know that we’d compel her to trim the tree regularly since it would shade our established garden and that she’d be responsible for repairing or replacing the fence when it grew into it. She moved the tree.)

M Nash says...
You could do what I did when I once moved to a new area?
I simply asked my neighbours where the closest rifle range is.
I never heard a pip squeak from them god bless there cotton socks.