When is a hedge not a hedge? Germany’s top court grappled with this gnarly question on Friday as it ruled on a neighbourly dispute.
The Federal Court of Justice was asked to decide whether a group of bamboo plants had to be cut back, after one neighbour complained that the bamboo’s total height of 6-7 metres was simply too high for it to be called a “hedge.”
According to the law in the state of Hesse, where the fast-growing bamboo was planted, a hedge can be a minimum of just 75cm from a neighbour’s property – closer than, for example, a tree or a bush which require a greater minimum distance.
If the bamboo were to lose its “hedge” status, therefore, then a legally ordered prune would certainly follow.
In the end, the judges on Friday ruled that the bamboo’s considerable height did not exclude it from being classified as a hedge.
The intrinsic properties of a hedge were more in its demarcation and protective function, the judges ruled, meaning the lofty bamboo can grow on unhindered – and the neighbour’s plant problem will be returned to the lower court.
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