NEIGHBORnetwork

Janet Crouch

A Crusader in Greening Your Homeowners Association

By Jamie Oberg

A homeowners association, or HOA, is a private entity that markets, sells, and manages homes in a residential subdivision. HOAs make rules about subletting homes, what vehicles can be parked where, trash pick-up, storage, and more. They are also responsible for the visual appeal of a neighborhood, making them very invested in landscaping. Often, HOAs will advocate for and enforce the use of turf lawns despite the harm such lawns do to the environment. For passionate and environmentally conscious Maryland gardener Janet Crouch and her pollinator garden, this wasn’t going to stand.

What is your background and are you native to this area? I am a life-long Maryland resident, having grown up in Bowie and lived in Howard County for over 30 years. I have been surrounded by beautiful gardens and discussions about plants and flowers for as long as I can remember. Both of my parents received degrees in floriculture and my father, Roger Lawson, earned a doctorate in plant pathology and worked at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, where he directed the florist and nursery crops laboratory and served as a national program leader. Our garden in Bowie reflected my dad’s passion for flowers and landscape design. After moving into our own home many years ago, my husband and I began to plant a garden and have been greatly influenced by my sister, Nancy Lawson, author of The Humane Gardener. We are drawn to the basic tenets of gardening with native plants, understanding that we have an opportunity to support flora and fauna with the choices we make in our yard. Given the opportunity to not only benefit pollinators, provide food and shelter for wildlife, and positively contribute to the environment, we have chosen to garden in an environmentally friendly manner with mostly native plants for the last 20 years.

Can you explain the issue you had with your homeowners association? What motivated you to fight back? We have nurtured an environmentally friendly garden in Beech Creek, a Columbia outparcel (not part of the Columbia Association) since approximately 2004. Our garden’s footprint had been in place for over a decade when the Beech Creek Homeowners Association’s hired law firm sent us a “Notice to Cease and Desist” letter demanding that we replace our entire garden with grass in 2017. We fought back because we believed that the HOA board was abusing its authority, not following the HOA architectural guidelines, and treating us differently from other neighbors. In bullying letters and court documents, the HOA’s lawyer wrote that gardens with plants that help birds, butterflies, and other pollinators do not belong in our community or in any planned community. Even though we pointed out that this was untrue and that the nearby Columbia Association promotes eco-friendly pollinator gardening and that such gardens are found throughout Columbia, the Beech Creek HOA dismissed us and required that our garden be replaced with grass. After nearly two years of living under the threat of having our garden destroyed, we filed suit against the Beech Creek HOA in August 2019. We feel very fortunate to have worked with Jeff Kahntroff of Skipper Law, the only law firm in the area dedicated to helping defend homeowners against HOAs. Jeff’s understanding of the law, as well as HOA tactics used against homeowners, were invaluable in helping us through this process. Through our lawsuit, we learned that this all started because of the complaint of one neighbor. The HOA had ignored him until he began using his work title and .gov email—for his high-level assistant inspector general for Investigations, Legal Services Corporation position—in his communications pushing for replacement of our garden with turf grass.

What was the resolution of that fight? After three long years and over $60,000, we settled our case in December 2020 and were able to retain virtually all of our garden as long as it was set back a few feet. The HOA spent approximately $100,000 on attorney fees in this matter without even making the community aware of their activities. Around the time we filed our lawsuit, my husband and I began attending environmental events in our community and meeting our state legislators. Our

ordeal led to the introduction of a bill that was passed into law in Maryland effective October 1, 2021. The law prohibits HOAs from requiring turfgrass and requires them to allow gardens that benefit wildlife and the environment.

What would you recommend to people facing similar issues with their homeowners associations? In working with other homeowners who are being targeted by their HOA boards, I have found that boards often double-down on their demands when homeowners stick up for themselves. Given the innate power imbalance in HOAs, homeowners should become very familiar with their community’s governing documents and ensure that they are compliant with them. Once a homeowner is armed with the facts of their case and the community guidelines, they should try to work with their board to bring the matter to resolution if at all possible. If that approach is not successful, homeowners may consider familiarizing themselves with relevant state and local laws; retaining an attorney; seeking out local community groups or other homeowners who have been through similar experiences; and posting on relevant social media groups for assistance. We decided to hire a law firm right after receiving the first letter from the HOA lawyer because they threatened to destroy our garden and turn it into turf grass if we did not do it ourselves. Their extreme position and unwillingness to negotiate a reasonable solution led us to file our lawsuit.

Do you have any plans or hopes for home gardens moving forward? My hope is that more home gardeners become familiar with gardening with native plants and incorporate them into their landscapes. There is great joy in watching butterflies, birds, and all of nature’s creatures find habitat in your garden. Equally rewarding is witnessing children delight in the beauty of the flowers and butterflies.

What makes gardening important? Gardening has provided an opportunity for our family to spend time outdoors, improve our mental and physical health, positively benefit the environment, and connect with our neighbors. Seeing gardens through the eyes of neighborhood children has helped us maintain our love of nature and connection to the Earth.

What is the importance of native plants and wildlife-friendly gardening? Native plants are suited to local conditions and provide nectar, pollen, seeds, and leaves that supply food for butterflies, insects, birds, and other animals. Because native plants are adapted to the local weather and soil, they thrive if planted in the right conditions. People who garden with native plants typically go lighter on the Earth, avoiding pesticides and fertilizers. In contrast to turf grass lawns, many native plants have deep and intertwining root systems that absorb water and mitigate flooding and pollution of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Habitat destruction over time has resulted in fewer places for animals to live. Just one suburban yard such as ours with a mixed garden of mostly native plants can provide habitat for a wide array of birds, butterflies, and other animals seeking sanctuary. It brings us great joy to provide an oasis for wildlife in a community of mostly turfgrass lawns.

What do you think are the best local native plants and pollinators? It’s hard to rank them because they are all beautiful and helpful to someone, whether a bee or a rabbit or a bird or all three! For people nurturing habitat in residential gardens, the key is to have a layered garden of native tree, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers, and groundcovers that will provide food, shelter, and nesting opportunities for a diversity of wildlife. We love watching the hummingbirds sip nectar from the Turk’s cap lilies and scarlet bee balms while the goldfinches eat the seeds of native sunflowers and the rabbits nibble on violets in the pathways and the chipmunks gather nuts and seeds.

What are your favorite plants to grow in your personal garden? Some of my favorite plants in our garden are those that draw the most butterflies and hummingbirds. These include phlox, coneflower, Joe Pye weed, golden ragwort, and swamp milkweed. I am also very fond of the ferns in our shady backyard, including Christmas and ostrich ferns. We recently planted paw paw trees and I can’t wait for them to mature and ideally host zebra swallowtail butterflies.

What or who would you say is your biggest inspiration in life? My beloved father passed away last year and I continue to be inspired by his endless curiosity and determination to make positive change no matter the odds or the time it takes to do so. He was devoted to his family and also had an extraordinary career and found great personal satisfaction with his work. In his retirement years, he participated in numerous community activities and pursued his hobbies. He spent a few years before he passed away fighting the over-development of his neighborhood shopping center. He researched every law, attended every hearing, testified when he was able, and was determined to stand up to the developers to stop the project. Shortly after his death, the project was voted down with a razor-thin margin and the official who cast the deciding vote cited one of the arguments that my father advanced in opposition to the project. I am so proud of his life and legacy, and try to honor him in the way I live my life.

What do you do in your free time? In my free time, I like to spend time with my family. I enjoy traveling and if I’m not traveling, I am planning our next trip. Recent trips include Provence, Iceland, and Sicily. I also love to spend time in the garden and meet others who are struggling with HOA-related garden issues. Kind people helped us along the way and I want to extend a helping hand to others.

How should readers contact you? Email: j.crouch1@verizon.net. o

Jamie Amadea Oberg is a rising senior at the University of Maryland (UMD). Jamie is an intern this summer session with Washington Gardener.