Storms, specifically the rain, have been good for gardens and grasses across North Texas, but perhaps too good.
Uncut grasses are growing taller and taller and in doing so, are violating city ordinances and bringing potential dangers, too.
Home and property owners say they're struggling to keep up with the growing plant life in their yards.
"I don’t normally do yard work, I don't have to," said Susan Braddock. "But if you look at these bushes, they’ve literally grown 12 inches in the last month."
Braddock spent her off day pulling weeds out of her front yard by hand. She's already had to cut back four bushes and trees once this season and expects to do that again in the coming weeks.
She's like a lot of Fort Worth residents dealing with a side effect of the all the positive rains that have fallen this year.
"It’s tough this time of year, it seems like you mow it and you wake up in the morning and it grew four inches over night," said Brandon Bennett, Code Compliance Director.
Bennett's Code Compliance department is also feeling the pain of the growth. There are currently 700 mowing orders out for the city and Bennett expects that number to grow as the season and, perhaps, more rains continue.
Code Compliance officers are following up on complaints from the public and finding problem lots themselves.
At 12 inches or taller, grass is in violation of city code. Code officers will document the problem, figure out who the owner is and notify them to cut it. It takes about two weeks for that notification process to play out and if the owner doesn't remedy the problem, the city will send a mowing crew to take care of it. The city will then bill the property owner and if they don't pay, they could face liens on the property.
Most of the lots the city deals with are vacant, where there are no structures. Some homes are also found to be in violation, mostly those in foreclosure or have no occupant.
"Some folks need a reminder at 12 inches," Brandon said.
The city says it's best to cut your lawn by the time it hits six to eight inches tall, that way it doesn't become a fire hazard during the summer or attract mosquitoes and even other unwanted creatures.
"I saw a snake in here a couple of days ago, it wasn’t poisonous, but you know holy moley," Braddock said.
It's something the city hopes residents will take care of on their own properties and notify them of nuisance properties.
You can report issues to the city by calling 817-392-1234.
The issue had not been a major problem in recent years due to the drought, but with significant rainfall this year, it's clearly a growing problem.
