my neighbors did not use Bayers tree and scrub so I have all this sticky mess on my strawberry and tomato plants in my raised planter. The tomato plants are dying, and the strawberries are not producing anymore. Could the sap be the problem? Next year I am going to have to move my planter to another location.

Yes! You need to send them a letter letting them know! Putting it in letter form helps you in case you need to take them to court. We deal with the same thing here and it's hard on the dog.

What kind of tree is it?
Legally you can cut off any parts of the tree overhanging your property.

NMoasis, nope not true. You need to request that they take care of their trees. Here you can be sued for doing so. If the tree is on their property it's their responsiblity.
It took us 30 years to get our neighbors to take care of their trees out. We had to take them to court, provided them with an arborists letter and every time their trees damaged our fence they would say act of god. We proved that their trees were dangerous and cost us hundreds of dollars. Also check your insurance policies.

Karma, I believe in CA the law I stated applies. Obviously a reasonable person wouldn't do major trimming without first consulting with their neighbor and discussing options.
https://www.eskridgelaw.net/ne....

I put paper in their mail box several times to control the sticky mess. No response. I also had told her gardener one time. I can trim the limbs over the property line, but the wind and because the trees are tall, the stickyness is blown into my yard. Yes, I also have a pool that has cost me more money in repairs because of their trees, leaves, flowers, sticks etc. I have no trees that flower and fill my pool. I have to replace my skimmer bag and my pool man has to treat more because of the stuff. Thank you for all your responses. Do you know of anything that I can wash my strawberry plants with. I hate to have to throw them all out and start over, but if I have to I will. Thank you again.

That's a shame. Other than a canopy over your crops of clear plastic or row cover or something similar. I'm not sure of a practical way to wash them. I would try diluted dishwashing liquid and then rinse like crazy. I know that tree sap and insect honeydew is tough to get off my car.

Can you see if the trees are infested with insects?

Sticking a paper in their mailbox is also illegal. You need to send them a letter that is certified that they need to sign for, so you have proof that they received it if you tend to go to court. Zoe, different states have different laws. Here you can't even cut the roots that come into your yard let alone limbs without their permission. One needs to check with their city or county or even state codes. Arborists need to also be consulted to have it on record what it's doing to your yard. If the trees are not properly maintained or trimmed only on one side there could be more issues. Just protect yourself with information. I just love neighbors that plant on property lines and don't care what mess their neighbors have to deal with.

In CA, you can cut branches and roots back to the property line. The law says falling leaves are a natural occurance so unregulated. However, a good neighbor would be concerned about the drippy stuff. Maybe you can gift them some systemic next spring?

I'm also curious exactly what tree or trees are causing the sap? If it's from an insect infestation that's not being treated, like scale and the constant honeydew it drips through fall, it just might kill the offending trees and problem eventually solved. But it would amaze me if they're being intentionally unresponsive to caring for the trees to save them, or maybe they just don't know any better?

do you live in an HOA and if so are there any rules there that would help with this?
Most states you can cut off anything that hangs over into your property, but that wouldn't fix this issue.
I have never heard of tree sap being so bad that it covered things in the neighboring yard and killed other plants. Correlation is not always causation, yes the sap may be there, but do you know that is what is killing the plants?
The neighbors may not be able to afford to take them down or treat them. If they are large as it sounds, it could literally take gallons and gallons of solution and special sprayers/equipment to treat them-yearly= lots of money. They may also be against using chemicals for obvious reasons.

I don't know the laws but in my opinion which isn't worth anything you have no more right to have something in your yard than they do. Trees drop leaves, nuts, sap, ect, it's their nature and so basically an 'act of god' so to speak. Other than trimming what is on your side, I don't see that the neighbors are responsible for anything. Leaves, sap, fruits, and bugs ect always will end up in a pool from all over the surrounding area, that is just part of caring for a pool. Just move your plants to a different area of the yard and see if they better.

Fir and evergreens are a sappy mess. Also harmful is ingested.

karmahappytoes said: I just love neighbors that plant on property lines and don't care what mess their neighbors have to deal with.

We don't know that that is the case, and usually it isn't. Most town yards have tiny yards and even just one average tree can fill it and the wind can blow leaves, sap/debris for yards. Animals like squirrels and birds can move hundreds of nuts/fruits a day. Many people move into a place and the trees are already there, they didn't put them there on purpose themselves. Many people may like to have them down but can't do it or afford it. Then there are people who practically worship trees, and think you go to the bad place if you cut one. You can't please everyone. One could just as easily say that most people know when they buy a house that the house next door, with a postage stamp size yard, has a tree in it that is too large for the space. Then after they move in, they complain about it and want their neighbors to fix it. That was one thing I specifically looked at when buying our last house, that the neighboring yards did not have huge trees that would interfere w my garden plans.

There are some city/county areas that do not allow homeowners to cut any trees down even on their own property, without permission-the trees are protected. If the sap is as bad as it has been presented, simply trimming them back is really not going to fix it. And in only a few short years the tree will fill back in and the problem will still be there.

karmahappytoes said: Fir and evergreens are a sappy mess. Also harmful is ingested.

Who is going to go outside and eat tree sap? I have not seen any city anywhere say people can't plant or have certain trees, or have to maintain them a certain way because their sap is harmful if someone eats it

@Strikeo hasn't told us what kind of tree it is or if it's sap or honeydew. In many trees, sap runs high in spring, less in summer. I suspect honeydew, but we also don't know from Strikeo if there are visible signs of insect infestation. So at this point we're speculating about causes and nature of the "sap."

I too live in northern California. My first thought was aphids in the Modesto ash trees. Modesto ash lose their leaves at inappropriate times and drip aphid dew all summer. You can't see the aphids but you know they're there when everything under the tree is covered in a shiny sticky sheet. The treatment is simple. In early spring when the trees start to leaf out, buy some liquid systemic, mix it in a 5 gallon bucket and pour it under the drip line of the tree. Walking down the street, I know which homeowners used system and which didn't.

That's the same treatment I used for a really bad infestation of Magnolia scale, and the honeydew that came from that huge tree was just disgusting, it was everywhere, made everything under it shiny... shiny evergreen needles, shiny hosta leaves, shiny wrought iron railing (and icky to touch), discolored sidewalk and driveway, couldn't park anywhere near it. I'm also thinking it's honeydew what Strikeo is describing. The sap from some evergreens usually isn't that big of a concern, it's for a short time in the season only.

LUCY68. Sounds like what we have. Yes, you can go down our street and see who uses the liquid systemic and who does not. But this year my back yard planter is a mess. We have the phone/PG&E lines that run down the back fence. So, I have used PG&E to trim the limbs back to her yard and off the lines. Actually, she is moving and hopefully my new neighbors will take care of their trees. The HOA also recommends the liquid systemic on trees. When the leaves fall, they are sticky and stick to your shoes and you track them into your house. Thank you for all your suggestions. I will just pull out everything and start over in my new spot.