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LASN January 2011 Letters: Java Plum Saga01-30-10 | News

LASN January 2011 Letter: Java Plum Saga

The Java plum (Syzygium cuminii) is a tropical evergreen in the flowering Myrtaceae plant family, native to Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Indonesia. The Exotic Pest and Plant Council of Florida considers it a ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Java Plum Saga
Hello Mr. Abbey. Your column on ordinances is the first thing I read when I get my Landscape Architect magazine. I always enjoy reading your perspectives, especially on tree codes. I?EUR??,,????'?????<

My question to you is this. The tree isn?EUR??,,????'?????<

We are not talking about a newly planted tree. This is a tree that has been on the site for a while.

I used to work for the neighboring county as a landscape plans reviewer and we would never have let a case like this come before the code compliance board, because it seems more a civil case than a code violation. We used the code to prevent trees that were noxious from being planted, but we never used the code to go after a tree that was existing, unless there was a building permit for a site that needed to be approved and the owner would be required to remove exotic prohibited species as a condition of the permit. I am hoping to sidestep code issues and wear only my arborist hat. ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Mark Lerch, RLA (Florida)
International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist

Buck?EUR??,,????'?????<
I am pleased that you enjoy my column in Landscape Architect & Specifier News magazine.

Since you are on a short deadline, I will give you my first reaction without even looking at the Punta Gorda ordinance you sent me.

I am not an attorney, but for a neighbor to tell a neighbor what to do or not to do on their property is out of line. Not constitutional!

Since the local code does not even ban the Java Plum as an invasive, I think the offended neighbor does not have a point to stand on. The only potential problem might be if the tree (Syzygium cumini) has poisonous parts or is in danger of falling on the offending neighbor and damaging person or property.

Even though the Exotic Pest and Plant Council of Florida names this species as invasive, it does not allow them (EP&PC) to make decisions about what one should do with their private property. If Punta Gorda does not ban the Java plum, the offended neighbor is out of luck. For the city to force the tree to be removed could be looked at as a ?EUR??,,????'?????<

The offended neighbor might offer to pay for its removal and replacement with a better species of tree. You may cite my opinion on this matter if you wish.
Please let me know how this case ends.

Buck Abbey, ASLA
Robert Reich School of Landscape Architecture
Louisiana State University

The Outcome
Dear Editor: I attended the code compliance hearing and was asked to verify the tree was indeed a Java plum (Syzygium cuminii), which I did. I was asked what was significant. I explained that the tree was considered a Category 1 invasive exotic by the Florida Exotic Pest and Plant Council and that it was on the city?EUR??,,????'?????<

Most of the trees that would survive the removal of the Java plum were well-established palms that would be only negligibly impacted if the Java plum was removed.

The outcome of the hearing was the code compliance board required the removal of the tree, because it was a species that was on the list of the prohibited trees in the city of Punta Gorda tree ordinance.

Mark Lerch, RLA (Florida)
International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist

Editor?EUR??,,????'?????<