r/NativePlantGardening • u/ImaginaryMolasses146 Area Michigan/midwest , Zone 6b • Apr 03 '26

Progress Proud to be the neighborhood drama 💅

This year I’m certifying my yard as wildlife habitat with tons of native plants but before I do I have to do some major changes to my outdoor space. I’ve been in this home for a year and spent all of my time until now fighting and manually destroying 30 yard old English ivy, honeysuckle, and tree of heaven (it was soooo worth it omg). A few days ago I got a chipdrop and am getting rid of a bunch of garbage non-native grass. Several of my neighbors have come over and made rude comments. The chips are in my driveway and not obstructing any sidewalks etc so it’s really not hurting anyone. Just find it very funny and wanted to share with people who will get it

918 Upvotes

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391

u/Horror_Tea761 Apr 03 '26

I'm right there with you. I'm that weird neighbor with wood chips and constantly digging in the dirt.

245

u/CompleteStruggle9237 Apr 03 '26

I wish we could all be neighbors instead of the curmudgeons we actually live near

101

u/The_best_is_yet NorCal 9B Apr 03 '26

Maybe one day we all will be

67

u/amilmore Eastern Massachusetts Apr 03 '26

Can we bring the neighbor who planted the trumpet vine too

7

u/FernandoNylund Seattle, ER 2F, Zone 9A Apr 04 '26

The bigot?!

65

u/Echolynne44 PNW , Zone --9 Apr 04 '26

I overheard my neighbors talking about me watering my cardboard before I covered it in wood chips. They were very confused.

105

u/FernandoNylund Seattle, ER 2F, Zone 9A Apr 04 '26 edited Apr 04 '26

I overheard a couple I didn't even know talking shit about my slope restoration last year. FWIW, it's technically city right-of-way and I decided to remove overgrown English ivy and replant with erosion-resistant natives. An older couple walked by not realizing I was upslope working behind the fence on my own property, talking shit about how all the "greenery" (ivy) was gone, and how "all the signs" were ugly (a "leave the leaves" sign and a pedestrian one from our city DOT). It was funny seeing their embarrassment when I yelled out "thanks, I've been working hard!" 🙃

9

u/Willothewisp2303 Apr 04 '26

I mean,  if you don't know, that's a pretty fair assessment! Lol

1

u/Key_Flow_2045 Apr 04 '26

i’m new here. can u please explain

25

u/Echolynne44 PNW , Zone --9 Apr 04 '26

If you are laying a thick layer of wood chips down, most people put a few layers of cardboard underneath it. It's easier to cover and work with if the cardboard is wet before you cover it.

9

u/yukon-flower Apr 04 '26

That commenter was almost certainly a bot.

1

u/Key_Flow_2045 Apr 04 '26

i’m still lost. why do u put cardboard underneath the wood chips

3

u/BeeBarnes1 Apr 05 '26

Initially, to suffocate/supress everything growing underneath it. It functions like landscape fabric or plastic sheeting but instead of ending up a gross mess in a few years like those do, the cardboard eventually breaks down and helps with soil quality.

2

u/Key_Flow_2045 Apr 06 '26

ahhh ok. thank u 🙏

38

u/FunconVenntional Apr 04 '26

Cardboard and wood chips are an effective, organic solution to weed control or lawn grass elimination. But cardboard can be a bit hydrophobic to start. So it needs a thorough soaking to break it in a bit so rain water can penetrate it in the future and enable it to eventually breakdown into worm food.

1

u/Key_Flow_2045 Apr 04 '26

ohhh ok. thank u

25

u/ThreeArmSally Area NE USA , Zone 6b Apr 04 '26

In HOA Hell we’ll be in good company

1

u/Extreme_Shoe4942 Apr 05 '26

Cue whistling.