Trees Being Overgrown?

While I have been enjoying the lush, fragrant growth in our natural areas lately, I see more and more areas being taken over by vines such as honeysuckle. For example, there is a lovely magnolia tree on the path that runs along Claibourne between Ellzey and Waxpool. It doesn't seem to be as lush as in past years, and it seems like its "space" is being invaded by other growth.

My question: Is this a problem? Is this something that the HLS folks are on the look out for and can take care of? While I understand that this is the "natural" way, it's obvious that the magnolia (and other trees) that were planted years ago to add beauty to our Broadlands are being overrun in some places.

 

Mr. Linux-
The HOA can do what it wants with its Common Areas. If you're interested, contact HLS, show them specific areas, and find out how much they will charge to go around removing vines and "cleaning up" vegetative debris from Common Areas. I suspect that the answer will be a financial money pit that could absorb whatever amount of money we choose to give them.
If there are a few specific locations, then the amount would be less.

 

As I mentioned at the Annual Meeting, if residents would like to contribute time to beautify their community, that can be worked out with the HOA.
I have Common Area behind my house that I am constantly removing vines, pickers, dead branches, etc. from.
I wouldn't expect the HOA to do it, nor would I go after the HOA if I hurt myself.
We used to have an Open Spaces Committee, but it is currently vacant. Anyone interested should contact the HOA Office and coordinate activities through Wes.

 

We also go into the woods abutting our yard and remove those mile a minute vines that leave tangles in the trees, the honeysuckle, and pesky wild rose bushes. They're the hardest to remove because of the thorns. But the area is much prettier after the clearing and the native plants look happy. All of these non-native plants are invasive and should be removed. I have gone 25 feet into the woods behind my house and my neighbor's house, removing these plants. Unfortunately, they all come back because of the areas that were not cleared.

 

I spent a good several hours removing vines and sticker bushes from the common area behind our house early this spring. The Virginia Creepers were as thick as some of the trees!

 

I like the vines and the wild roses.

 

What are homeowners allowed to do? I thought that we had to leave the wooded areas in their natural state (including vines, branches, debris) as cleaning up the area did more damage than good and caused soil erosion. This was in the newsletter, probably from a couple of years back.

 

If you see areas that you would like to clean up, contact the HOA Office to discuss what you would like to do and where.
We've had many instances of neighbors getting together and cleaning up Common Areas.
We've even had boy scout projects cleaning out Common Areas.

 

What if a homeowner's backyard backs to one of the walking paths and they want to plant trees, bushes or plants outside of their property line in the common area, can they do that or do they need to go thru HOA?

 

i have a path behind my house..and there's some nasty prickly vine that's been getting bigger over the past year or two...it's an area maintained by the HOA_--and guess what--next time i buy some Round UP---it's gonna be a dead vine!

 

Yes you do need to go through the HOA. Common areas belong to everyone in the community and are managed by the HOA so we need to know what you propose to do. In most cases the addition of plants, bushes and trees is approved.

 

Does removing poison ivy & oak from the common area behind our house that is choking a nice little purple flower tree also needs to be approved?

 

If the vines are encroaching on your property they can be removed. What we are trying to avoid is having residents clearing out the underbrush, small trees, fallen limbs etc. The purpose of having natural areas remain natural is to provide habitat for the local wildlife and to maintain the unstructured open space look that was designed into the original plans for Broadlands.

 

I believe if these vines are "invasive aliens" we should not have any problems to get in and take them out... but they are aggressive. If there is interest, we can create a invasive removal task force in Broadlands. May be HLS can help us with this.. It can be a lot of work.

 

Good idea. The wooded area behind our home is ripe with vines. They are killing many of the trees and weeds are the only think that grows along with them.

 

Oh yes, it's a big job. When you pull at the vine and think you're coming to the end (the mother root) you come across multiple feeders/trailers going in different directions and it continues non-stop. :scaredeyes:

 

It's taken me about 5 years of continually going after them to get them somewhat under control in the little Common Area behind me. But i still have to remove some every year.