Enlarge image
gravel garden (symbol image)
Photo: imago stock / imago/Manfred Ruckszio
In Lower Saxony, the competent authorities can ban the controversial gravel gardens and order their removal.
This was made clear by the Lower Saxony Higher Administrative Court (OVG) in Lüneburg in its first trial on this subject.
Homeowners from Diepholz had complained.
With their decision, the judges in Lüneburg did not allow an appeal against a judgment of the Hanover Administrative Court of January 12, 2022.
According to the court, the plaintiffs had planted two gravel beds with an area of around 50 square meters in front of their single-family home in an urban area, in which only a few green plants were planted »punctually«.
The city of Diepholz, on the other hand, issued an injunction due to a violation of the provisions of the Lower Saxony building code.
This stipulates that all areas of a property that are not built over must be green areas unless they are used for other permissible types of use.
According to the court, the owners took the view that the gravel beds were already green areas within the meaning of the building code due to the embedding of individual plants.
However, the competent Senate rejected this argument.
Green spaces would be "characterized by natural or landscaped areas overgrown with plants," according to the OVG in its final decision.
Stone elements should only have "subordinate character".
The areas in question are »gravel beds«.
Gravel or gravel gardens with large stone areas without greenery have developed into a trend among some property owners in recent years, especially in new development areas.
A number of federal states and municipalities introduced regulations intended to prevent construction.
Supporters regard them as easy to care for, critics point to the negative effects on the streetscape, biodiversity and their contribution to soil sealing.
bbr/AFP/dpa