Some Cary, N.C., residents are unhappy with a bit of gardening that CSX Transportation did near its railroad last month, the Cary News reports. Workers came through with a large machine and tore apart trees along several stretches of rail in Cary, residents say.

"It's carnage," said Betty Landes, a manager at the Heritage Pines subdivision. "They literally went along the edge of the railroad track and went whacky-whacky-whacky."

CSXT appears to have cut back some bushes and scraggly trees that dotted the railway across the street from Heritage Pines. The company left many nearby trees intact, but split trees and debris lined the railroad's right-of-way there and in other parts of town last week.

"They didn't clean up any mess at all," said Kathryn Kuhn, a Heritage Pines resident.

CSXT crews trimmed plant growth along 20 miles of railroad in the name of safety.

"We trimmed the area to prevent damage to our freight trains, and we do this regularly across our 21,000-mile system to support safe operations," Carla Groleau, the company's communication director, wrote in an e-mail. "In this specific area there was a visibility concern brought to our attention by a deaf couple."

CSX employees trimmed the plant growth with brush cutters and tractors, she said. The company doesn't plan to pick up the debris; it says the wood and plant matter should decompose naturally.

Cary Councilman Don Frantz said he saw the crews tear up trees behind Frantz Automotive Center on West Chatham Street. "I used to have a nice buffer between my shop and the railroad tracks ... but no more," Frantz said. "It looks like a mini tornado came through."

CSXT usually comes through every few years and trims branches, he said. But this time, "they came through with this ginormous machine that just went to town on those trees."

The company destroyed evergreens and pine trees near his property that were as thick as 12 inches, he said. He understood the railroad company's need to deal with dangerous trees, he said, but thought the crews went above and beyond reasonable trimming.

For some sections of the railroad, the town could have legal recourse.

A provision in the town code says that Cary property owners must dispose of fallen trees, stumps, limbs, leaves and vegetation debris and bars property owners from leaving that kind of debris on property within town limits.

Most of the railroad right-of-way is outside of the town's jurisdiction.

For violations inside town limits, the town code calls for town staff to notify property owners of violations to the debris ordinance. If the owner doesn't respond fast enough, the code authorizes the town to "abate the violation" - clean up the debris - and charge the property owner the clean-up costs, plus 10 percent.

Ricky Barker, Cary's associate planning director, said the town would need to investigate the matter. If there is a code violation, town staff would talk to CSXT representatives, he said. Frantz wasn't sure progress would come easily.

"I've got a feeling this one's going to be a battle," he said.

Groleau, the CSXT representative, said last week that she would share information about the possible violation with the coordinator of the vegetation-clearing project.