From: "Randy Story" story at caltech.edu> on 2002.12.16 at 17:23:08(9739)
Linda,
So sorry to hear about your problems with your less-than-enlightened
neighbors. Very, very sad. As an owner of a very wild garden (in pots
only), I am lucky to have very tolerant neighbors and a landlord.
I realize you are being inundated with questions (and a lot of support) but
here are a couple more:
You say that the newspaper articles were a week after the story
started--have they followed up since the fining began? A nice community
outcry would help.
Does your homeowner's organization demand other things, such as a mandatory
lawn and mandatory holiday decoration? (I understand such things are
common).
How many us (all over the country/world) are stuck by all of these and can
only maintain our (interesting) plant collections in their backyard? I
suspect you are not the only one. I've also heard that in many
drought-prone California neighborhoods it is impossible to get rid of the
ubiquitous front lawn and replace it with more arid-tolerant plants.
(Luckily my mom doesn't live in such a neighborhood--Dracunculus vulgaris
was one of the plants that bloomed in her front yard this year in a space
formerly occupied by lawn!). I suspect that some of the worst are the
"gated communities"--any experiences?
I guess my overall question is how many of us are suffering under such
homeowner agreements and what can be done about them now and in the future.
Good luck,
Randy
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