The HOA Approved His Garden — Then a New Board Fined Him $750 for It

HOA garden — Written HOA approval may not be the only permission a front-yard garden needs. Local codes, setbacks, maintenance rules, and documentation can matter if complaints arise. Olga Leschenko/Shutterstock

Imagine spending years turning your front lawn into a productive garden, getting written approval from your homeowners association, and then discovering that the approval doesn’t necessarily end the argument. That’s essentially what happened to Michael Sherman of Chino, California, whose front-yard “food forest” contains everything from passionfruit and Swiss chard to banana trees and sunflowers. The garden had reportedly received written HOA approval, but a later board objected to the landscape, neighbors complained, and the dispute eventually reached city code enforcement. Chino officials ultimately issued Sherman $750 in fines over alleged code violations, according to reporting on the dispute. His experience offers an important warning for anyone considering an HOA garden: permission from your association may be only one piece of the paperwork you need.

His Front Lawn Became a Food Forest

Sherman began converting his conventional front lawn into an edible landscape around 2019, creating something very different from the manicured grass-and-shrub combination found in many suburban neighborhoods. His food forest eventually included passionfruit, radishes, calendulas, sunflowers, aloe vera, Swiss chard, banana trees, and other vegetation, according to published accounts of the garden. Sherman has said food prices and concerns about commercially grown produce helped motivate his decision to grow more food at home. He also shared some of the garden’s produce with neighbors, showing how much food can potentially come from land that would otherwise require mowing, watering, and fertilizing. For a frugal gardener, replacing ornamental lawn with productive plants can sound like an ideal use of expensive residential real estate.

The HOA Had Approved the Garden in Writing

This wasn’t reportedly a situation in which a homeowner simply ignored the rules and started digging. Sherman said his HOA garden had received written approval from the association before a subsequent board took a different position, a fact highlighted in coverage of the dispute. That’s an important detail because many associations require homeowners to obtain architectural or landscaping approval before making substantial exterior changes. Requirements differ by community, but an HOA’s Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions—usually called CC&Rs—are generally the first documents homeowners should review before changing landscaping. Most importantly, don’t settle for a verbal “looks good to me” from a board member when you’re about to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on a project.

A New Board Wasn’t the Only Problem

The $750 figure needs some clarification because reports indicate that the actual fines came from Chino city code enforcement rather than directly from the new HOA board. City officials said multiple complaints had been received about Sherman’s property and cited several alleged code violations, according to reporting detailing the enforcement action. Officials reportedly wanted overgrown vegetation removed, sightlines maintained, and crops kept at least 15 feet from neighboring yards. Sherman appealed the enforcement action, while maintaining that the garden had previously been approved by his HOA. The case demonstrates why an HOA garden may need to satisfy two different rulebooks: association requirements and municipal ordinances.

Keep Every Landscaping Approval You Receive

One of the cheapest forms of garden insurance is a folder full of paperwork. Save the original application, drawings, HOA approval letter, emails, receipts, dated photographs, and any documents showing exactly what was authorized before construction or planting began. If leadership changes, memories fade, or a neighbor complains three years later, you don’t want your entire defense to be, “The old board said this was fine.” Similar HOA disputes have demonstrated how useful documentation can be; in another recent case involving an approved low-water landscape, a homeowner reportedly assembled his application, approval letter, emails, and photographs when a new board challenged the project, after which the violation was eventually rescinded, according to The Cool Down. Take a few extra photos whenever you complete an approved HOA garden project so you can document what the property looked like at the time.

Check City Rules Before Spending Money

An HOA approval letter shouldn’t be mistaken for a blanket exemption from local law. Cities and counties may independently regulate issues such as vegetation, setbacks, sidewalk clearance, visibility near intersections and driveways, nuisance conditions, water use, or structures incorporated into landscaping. That’s particularly important with food forests because plants that begin as small nursery specimens can eventually spread far beyond the dimensions shown on the original plan. Before buying plants, check both your HOA documents and the applicable municipal or county code, and keep copies of whatever rules were in effect when you planned the project. Ten minutes of research can be much cheaper than relocating mature plants after an enforcement notice arrives.

A Food Forest Still Needs Maintenance

There’s also a practical lesson here that doesn’t require taking sides in Sherman’s particular dispute. Dense edible landscaping can be beautiful and productive, but fallen fruit, blocked sightlines, plants creeping over property lines, and extremely dense vegetation can create conflicts with neighbors or code officials. Maintain obvious pathways, prune plants before they obstruct sidewalks or visibility, harvest fallen produce, and keep vegetation from swallowing fences and neighboring property. A deliberately designed HOA garden is also easier to defend aesthetically when beds have visible borders and the landscape looks maintained rather than forgotten. Frugal gardening means getting maximum value from your space, not allowing a $3 seedling to grow into a $750 headache.

Your Garden Plans Should Include a Paper Trail

Sherman’s experience doesn’t mean homeowners should abandon plans for edible front yards, native landscapes, or alternatives to conventional lawns. It does show that gardeners should research the boring stuff before getting excited about fruit trees, raised beds, pathways, and seed catalogs. Get required HOA permission in writing, read local ordinances, photograph the finished project, maintain your landscape, and save every approval indefinitely. If a dispute arises, those records can establish exactly what you requested and what the association approved, although homeowners facing significant fines or threatened legal action may want advice from a qualified local attorney. Think of documentation as another gardening tool—just one that lives in a filing cabinet instead of the shed.

The Cheapest Garden Protection May Be the Paperwork

A productive front yard can reduce lawn maintenance, provide fresh food, support pollinators, and turn otherwise decorative space into something your household actually uses. But an HOA garden can become unexpectedly expensive when association rules, changing boards, neighbor complaints, and municipal codes collide. Sherman’s case is especially instructive because written HOA approval did not prevent the garden from eventually becoming part of a larger enforcement dispute. Before making a major landscaping investment, know who regulates the property, obtain approvals in writing, understand local maintenance requirements, and preserve the documents afterward.

Would you replace your front lawn with a food garden if your HOA approved it, or would you worry that the rules could change later? Share your thoughts in the comments.