According to Texas A&M Agrilife, persimmons may be the easiest fruit tree to grow in Travis County. If you have it on your property, is it fair for your neighbors to pick it? (Photo by:Marco Simonini/REDA/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
REDA/REDA/Universal Images Group via
Austin is prime real estate for various types of fruit trees.
If your botany game is strong, your front or backyard might have prime fruit trees, including persimmons, peaches, plums, apples, and more.
Article continues below this ad
Of course, those with fruit trees in Travis County have to deal with foes such as squirrels, invasive insects, and poor weather conditions.
Then there’s another potential visitor: your next-door neighbor.
Is your fruit forbidden to your neighbor, or is it fair game for anyone to pick? Here’s what to know about legal boundaries for Austin fruit trees.
Is it OK to pick fruit from someone else’s tree, bush or vine?
Is plucking fruit from a neighbor’s tree petty theft? There’s some legal gray area.
Article continues below this ad
Most Texas cities lack ordinances specifically regulating fruit picking on someone else’s property, but they do require property owners to maintain overgrown vegetation, effectively sidestepping the issue.
Late attorney Jedediah Mannis provided this legal analysis in an article on Nolo, a self-described legal encyclopedia that the official Texas State Law Library cited in its neighbor law guide.
“If the trunk of a fruit tree is on your neighbors’ property, the tree and the fruit it bears belong to them — even if fruit-laden branches overhang your property,” Mannis wrote.
What if the trunk of the tree borders your home and the neighbors’ property?
Article continues below this ad
“If the trunk of a tree straddles the boundary line between your property and your neighbors’, it’s a “boundary tree,” Mannis noted.” “Each of you owns all of it, jointly.”
Can I trim my neighbor’s fruit tree if it’s hanging over my yard?
According to NOLO, if you have a fruit tree that grows in the front yard, you still own the fruit even if its branches borders public property like a sidewalk. (Photo credit should read Costfoto/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Imag
Generally, you can trim branches and limbs that extend onto your property without your neighbor’s permission.
Article continues below this ad
The Nolo book “Neighbor Law: Fences, Trees, Boundaries & Noise,” referenced by the Texas State Law Library, says property owners generally have a common-law right to cut branches and roots that cross onto their property.
“Property owners in every state have the right to cut off branches and roots that stray into their property,” according to Nolo.
“In most states, this is the only help provided by the law, even when damage from a tree is substantial. This right to cut away at somebody else’s property is not written down as a state statute or local ordinance. It is a common law right, created by court decisions.”
But there are some considerations before you grab those power tools. According to Southern Living, here’s what to keep in mind:
Article continues below this ad
Trim only branches that extend to your side of the property line. If the tree trunk is on your neighbor’s property, you’ll need permission to go onto that property or cut beyond the property line.
Stay on your property while pruning. Ask permission before entering your neighbor’s property.
Dispose of the branches you cut rather than throwing them onto your neighbor’s property.
Local rules also may apply. If you’re uncertain about your legal rights or potential liability, consider consulting an attorney before trimming.
If fruit falls from a tree into my property, can I eat it?
Your Austin neighbor is showing hospitality with their peach tree but some of that fruit has fallen and crossed your front yard.
Article continues below this ad
Is it still off limits?
The question of whether you can eat an apple that has fallen from someone else’s tree is often debated on Reddit and legal advice forums online.
“A talk with your neighbors will likely lead to informal guidelines about what everyone can and can’t do,” Mannis said. “Perhaps you’ll plan a pie bake-off! Most people allow neighbors to pick or gather fruit that’s on the their side of the property line, regardless of the law in their own state.”
Previous posts on Reddit have broached this topic.
Article continues below this ad
Are people wrong for taking a piece for fruit that they did not grow? See this debate in this Reddit thread below.