A woman from Zegge has been refusing to remove her weeds for a long time. She has let her driveway and front yard become overgrown. She sees the plants as ‘living beings that you should not kill’. But the housing association did not accept that and went to court. She has now determined that she really needs to have her weeds removed from the front garden and also the backyard. You are obliged to do this if you rent a house. And then you can have all kinds of opinions, but ‘personal views do not detract from this obligation,’ the judge ruled.
She has been ordered to maintain her garden. The weeds must be gone in two weeks, the ruling states. That judgment also includes a ‘to-do list’.
‘Remove weeds between paving stones of driveways, access paths and terraces and keep them removed. Mow the lawn and keep it mowed. Prune hedges, hedges and growing trees in the front and back garden and keep them pruned. Remove plants that have died and keep them removed, in such a way that the garden makes a well-maintained impression and does not cause any nuisance or damage to local residents or the rented property.’
Bill
The judge therefore gives the woman another two weeks to do something herself and prevent it from being expensive. If this does not happen, the Thuisvester housing association has permission to carry out the garden maintenance itself, the judge states. But then the woman has to pay the costs of that maintenance. The judge did not impose a penalty.
The judge also emphasized that the garden maintenance is not a one-off, but that she must continue to do it as long as she is a tenant there. In addition, she receives the bill for the lawsuit, more than 950 euros.
The problems have been going on for years, according to Thuisvester. In January 2021, the neglect of the garden was already visible. But the resident did not respond to requests to do anything about it. In 2022 she sent away a pruning team. Neighbors started complaining about the damage to their living environment. When neighbors removed weeds from their own gardens, the woman called them ‘murderers’.
‘Murder of living beings’
Before the judge, the woman’s lawyer explained her approach to life. “Madam sees weeds as living beings. She sees mowing and weeding as murder of living beings.” This also fits in with the latest insights into how to deal with nature, the lawyer explained.
“Sidewalk plants are a source of insects, just like we go to the chip shop,” the resident added.[[
Rules are rules
But the housing association emphasized: “We are only concerned with compliance with garden maintenance,” says Thuisvester’s lawyer. She referred to the general rules that apply to all tenants.
Thuisvester says that the housing association also kept coming up against a closed door. “We have tried for a very long time to do this in good consultation. Now no contact is possible anymore.”
Stress
According to the resident’s lawyer, the woman is suffering from a lot of stress due to all the hassle. “The consequences of a negative decision can be disastrous. This has an impact on her psychological and physical condition. She now numbs herself with alcohol.”
An emergency worker confirmed that things are going badly. The woman no longer leaves her house. The tensions can become too much for her. Admission to the Mental Health Service is imminent, she warned two weeks ago during the summary proceedings.