Council has planted tree on my land.

Grumpa has suggested the most logical solution to sort the situation quickly.

I'm glad I don't work for Frank's council!

ana why are you anti council?

Where does anyone say they are anti-council?!

Just being logical perhaps?

Quite, jingl!

The original deeds to my house (1880s) include half the lane at the back of the house across the width of the house. I would guess the original deeds for the other eight houses in the street had the same agreement. There's no documentation in the enormous pack of legal documents and historical records that transfers ownership of this strip of cobbled back lane to the council. However, it is a public thoroughfare and there are parking restrictions – and clearly it no longer belongs to me in real life. Perhaps there are issues here whereby the Council thinks the particular bit of land belongs to it and HUNTERF thinks it belongs to him. Or maybe it is just a mistake.

I wish someone would come and plant a tree in my garden!!

Do good things, things to be celebrated, everhappen in your life, frank?

Re trees on borders. There was a sycamore tree (which is a kind of maple) just outside my parents front garden wall. When I was the age Minibags is now, I could swing up into it by standing on the wall and reaching the lower branches. Twenty years or so later the tree was not only blocking a lot of light from coming into the house, but it was knocking the wall down by undermining the foundations and by the ever-widening trunk leaning against it. It was also causing pavement upheaval. Eventually there would have been road upheaval as well.

My parents asked the council to come and deal with it. Council removed the tree, rebuilt that section of the wall and repaired the pavement.

Sycamores are not really suitable trees for streets, unless the streets are very wide and there is plenty of pavement width. Some of the small maples are entirely suitable. Even sycamores look lovely in autumn when they go yellow.

Tell us a happy story that doesn't involve money one day, frank

Something really nice is going to happen on Sunday!

Oh york46! What a cri de coeur. Perhaps someone will – I hope so. I had the reverse problem when I moved from London. I had masses of plants, including some well-established shrubs in pots on my paved patio. My buyers insisted that they should be removed but I knew there was insufficient room for all of them in the little paved yard in my new house. Consequently, a neighbour and I transplanted almost all of them in the little park opposite where I lived and I understand that some of them at least have flourished.

( was to jingl, BTW)

How do you know it's a maple Frank?

Frank I believe that inside your ^bolshy^ persona there is a bag of laughs bursting to get out. Surprise us...please!

...and make it soon...

Frank has probably got a tree identification chart Orca. I have got one too.

The type of tree isn't really the point, anyway.

Don't tell Frank that...I need to tear myself away from all this jollity.

flupping 'ell some people get steamed up about the strangest things. if someone gave me a free maple and planted it as well, I would be very happy.

Me too...

So would I but it wouldn't survive in our garden. We had a small one that had been a third birthday present for Minibags. Deer ate it.

Ahoy! frank! Get a goat!

I've tried three different Japanese maples 'cos I really like them, but all have died. I don't think there'd be room in our garden for a full size maple. The walnut might object.

When we first moved on to an open plan estate the powers that be thought it rather nice to plant a flowering cherry in everyones front garden. Fifteen years later the pavements were death traps and the tree roots were wrapped round drains and utility pipes and creeping towards the house walls. I love trees but to plant them so close to a house is not sensible.

Using what JO? Maple is deciduous and identification by buds is very difficult.