A neighbor moved into her townhouse 20 years ago and there were no roots
in her backyard.

Now they have a beautiful yard with perfect grass and benches facing the
woods and other nice stuff, but roots have reached into the yard, one 40
feet from where it surfaces, which is about 10 feet from the closest
tree, all of which are outside their property.

There are 4 other root which have gone 20 feet.

The part of the roots that show start off neear the trees as about 3
inches wide, but most of them is under the grournd. They must be 6
inches in diameter.

The trees are growing in the stream bed and the base of the trees are 2
to 4 feet below the level of their lawn. That means the roots start out
that deep but rise to the surface within 10 feet of the tree (assuming
it's the closest tree. The sun was in my eyes and I haven't identified
any of the trees.)

A She would like to get rid of them because the yard would be nicer.

B. She is worried that they are heading for her basement, one that is
6.5 feet below grade, with a one fooot high window at ground level,
It's made with cinder blocks.

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?


I suggested cutting a 6" gap in the big roots which would stop them from
growing, but she said something else bad would happen and she told me
what it was, but the phone was noisy and I missed it. Is she right?


Problem A, again. As to getting rid of the roots, would they be hard to
dig up? I assume that even though sub-roots aren't coming out of the
top, they are coming out of the bottom and holding the bigger root in
place, and that every foot will be a struggle.

On 5/11/2015 7:33 PM, micky wrote:
A neighbor moved into her townhouse 20 years ago and there were no roots
in her backyard.

Now they have a beautiful yard with perfect grass and benches facing the
woods and other nice stuff, but roots have reached into the yard, one 40
feet from where it surfaces, which is about 10 feet from the closest
tree, all of which are outside their property.

There are 4 other root which have gone 20 feet.

The part of the roots that show start off neear the trees as about 3
inches wide, but most of them is under the grournd. They must be 6
inches in diameter.

The trees are growing in the stream bed and the base of the trees are 2
to 4 feet below the level of their lawn. That means the roots start out
that deep but rise to the surface within 10 feet of the tree (assuming
it's the closest tree. The sun was in my eyes and I haven't identified
any of the trees.)

A She would like to get rid of them because the yard would be nicer.

B. She is worried that they are heading for her basement, one that is
6.5 feet below grade, with a one fooot high window at ground level,
It's made with cinder blocks.

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?


I suggested cutting a 6" gap in the big roots which would stop them from
growing, but she said something else bad would happen and she told me
what it was, but the phone was noisy and I missed it. Is she right?


Problem A, again. As to getting rid of the roots, would they be hard to
dig up? I assume that even though sub-roots aren't coming out of the
top, they are coming out of the bottom and holding the bigger root in
place, and that every foot will be a struggle.


I'd cut them off myself.
Since trees are not even on her property she can't harm the trees.
I've done it to my own trees.

On 05/11/2015 06:33 PM, micky wrote:
A neighbor moved into her townhouse 20 years ago and there were no roots
in her backyard.

Now they have a beautiful yard with perfect grass and benches facing the
woods and other nice stuff, but roots have reached into the yard, one 40
feet from where it surfaces, which is about 10 feet from the closest
tree, all of which are outside their property.

There are 4 other root which have gone 20 feet.

The part of the roots that show start off neear the trees as about 3
inches wide, but most of them is under the grournd. They must be 6
inches in diameter.

The trees are growing in the stream bed and the base of the trees are 2
to 4 feet below the level of their lawn. That means the roots start out
that deep but rise to the surface within 10 feet of the tree (assuming
it's the closest tree. The sun was in my eyes and I haven't identified
any of the trees.)

A She would like to get rid of them because the yard would be nicer.

B. She is worried that they are heading for her basement, one that is
6.5 feet below grade, with a one fooot high window at ground level,
It's made with cinder blocks.

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?




Not too far from here, the city cut some tree roots when they did
street work. Next big storm, the tree fell over.

Though the roots might be a bit unsightly, it's probably better to allow
them than to have to tree fall over on her house.

On Mon, 11 May 2015 19:33:58 -0400, micky
wrote:


I suggested cutting a 6" gap in the big roots which would stop them from
growing, but she said something else bad would happen and she told me
what it was, but the phone was noisy and I missed it. Is she right?


Problem A, again. As to getting rid of the roots, would they be hard to
dig up? I assume that even though sub-roots aren't coming out of the
top, they are coming out of the bottom and holding the bigger root in
place, and that every foot will be a struggle.

Trees have roots. You cant have trees without roots. If there's one
particular spot where people trip on the root, toss some topsoil over
it. If you remove roots, the tree will die or can actually tip over from
a storm. There are some things in nature that we can not control!

writes:

On Mon, 11 May 2015 19:33:58 -0400, micky
wrote:


I suggested cutting a 6" gap in the big roots which would stop them from
growing, but she said something else bad would happen and she told me
what it was, but the phone was noisy and I missed it. Is she right?


Problem A, again. As to getting rid of the roots, would they be hard to
dig up? I assume that even though sub-roots aren't coming out of the
top, they are coming out of the bottom and holding the bigger root in
place, and that every foot will be a struggle.

Trees have roots. You cant have trees without roots. If there's one
particular spot where people trip on the root, toss some topsoil over
it. If you remove roots, the tree will die or can actually tip over from
a storm. There are some things in nature that we can not control!

I think it's very unlikely that cutting one root will kill the tree
or cause it to fall over.

As far as it damaging the foundation, also very unlikely.
Covering the root is just as bad as cutting it.

So, I say cut it if it bothers you. Don't do that to a rare specimen,
but otherwise have at it.


--
Dan Espen

On Mon, 11 May 2015 20:55:20 -0400, Dan Espen
wrote:

Covering the root is just as bad as cutting it.


WHY???????

Roots are made to be underground. Some just seem to surface, probably
due to a rock or another obstruction.

On Mon, 11 May 2015 19:33:58 -0400, micky
wrote in

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?

Yes, eventually.
--
Web based forums are like subscribing to 10 different newspapers
and having to visit 10 different news stands to pickup each one.
Email list-server groups and USENET are like having all of those
newspapers delivered to your door every morning.

On 05/11/2015 07:33 PM, micky wrote:
A She would like to get rid of them because the yard would be nicer.

B. She is worried that they are heading for her basement, one that is
6.5 feet below grade, with a one fooot high window at ground level,
It's made with cinder blocks.

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?

I've seen the damage tree roots have done to foundations and I've seen
the damage caused by storms so yes, fire up the Stihl and take that bad boy down.

On Tuesday, May 12, 2015 at 4:39:23 AM UTC-4, Mayhem wrote:
On 05/11/2015 07:33 PM, micky wrote:
A She would like to get rid of them because the yard would be nicer.

B. She is worried that they are heading for her basement, one that is
6.5 feet below grade, with a one fooot high window at ground level,
It's made with cinder blocks.

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?

I've seen the damage tree roots have done to foundations and I've seen
the damage caused by storms so yes, fire up the Stihl and take that bad boy down.

most homes live in peaceful co existence withtree roots.

in my back yard llives a sycamore, it was a mature tree when the homes were built in 1950.

i addeded a basement toilet in 1991 and tore up some of the basement floor for the plumbingdrain connection.

some of the roots were so large i used a chainsaw on them, and these were 7 to 8 feet under the surface plus at leaset 3 feet under the basement floor....

mature trees add thousands to property values, enhancing the appearance of your home and helping shade it from sun etc.

surface tree roots are mostly a cosmetic issue.......

The first thing I'd want to know is how old is your neighbor?

If your neighbor only has 10-20 years left, they shouldn't worry about it.

clipped

The trees are growing in the stream bed and the base of the trees are 2
to 4 feet below the level of their lawn. That means the roots start out
that deep but rise to the surface within 10 feet of the tree (assuming
it's the closest tree. The sun was in my eyes and I haven't identified
any of the trees.)

A She would like to get rid of them because the yard would be nicer.

B. She is worried that they are heading for her basement, one that is
6.5 feet below grade, with a one fooot high window at ground level,
It's made with cinder blocks.

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?


I suggested cutting a 6" gap in the big roots which would stop them from
growing, but she said something else bad would happen and she told me
what it was, but the phone was noisy and I missed it. Is she right?


Problem A, again. As to getting rid of the roots, would they be hard to
dig up? I assume that even though sub-roots aren't coming out of the
top, they are coming out of the bottom and holding the bigger root in
place, and that every foot will be a struggle.


I would do nothing to the trees without expert advice, because:

If the trees drink a lot, they might help keep a balance of groundwater
in yard.

Cutting roots often prompts plant to grow more! It is called root pruning.

Surface roots, if injured (by mowers, etc.) will grow a new stem/plant
from the injured spot.

That said, the variety, height and distance from building would help in
estimating danger to the basement.

On Tuesday, May 12, 2015 at 9:26:37 AM UTC-4, NorMinn wrote:

A lot we don't know here. Starting with, it's a townhouse,
which, in some cases, means it's a condo type arrangement
where the association has control over the outside stuff.
Regarding damaging the foundation, sure they could if the
trees are close enough that the roots can get there. From
the description, it's not clear what the distance is, but it
sounds kind of far.

Finally, removing tress roots like that is not an easy job.
I sure wouldn't want to have to do it, unless absolutely
necessary. As some have suggested, it may be easier to bring
in a load of topsoil, cover them up and plant a new lawn.
That may only be a temporary solution though, but it would
probably be many years before the problem resurfaces.

On 5/11/2015 8:55 PM, Dan Espen wrote:
writes:

On Mon, 11 May 2015 19:33:58 -0400, micky
wrote:


I suggested cutting a 6" gap in the big roots which would stop them from
growing, but she said something else bad would happen and she told me
what it was, but the phone was noisy and I missed it. Is she right?


Problem A, again. As to getting rid of the roots, would they be hard to
dig up? I assume that even though sub-roots aren't coming out of the
top, they are coming out of the bottom and holding the bigger root in
place, and that every foot will be a struggle.

Trees have roots. You cant have trees without roots. If there's one
particular spot where people trip on the root, toss some topsoil over
it. If you remove roots, the tree will die or can actually tip over from
a storm. There are some things in nature that we can not control!

I think it's very unlikely that cutting one root will kill the tree
or cause it to fall over.

As far as it damaging the foundation, also very unlikely.
Covering the root is just as bad as cutting it.

So, I say cut it if it bothers you. Don't do that to a rare specimen,
but otherwise have at it.



Actually, Jerry is mostly correct. There are three solutions to
surfacing tree roots.

1) Remove the tree and it's root system
2) Place 4 inches of soil over the root system
3) Place 4 inches of mulch over the root system

Cutting one root usually doesn't harm the tree (depending on size of
root) but it will eventually grow back.

On Tue, 12 May 2015 02:16:27 -0500, CRNG
wrote:

On Mon, 11 May 2015 19:33:58 -0400, micky
wrote in

This is the big, more important question? Are the roots going to
damage her foundation?

Yes, eventually.

That's not necessarily true. Some tree (types) have more roots than
others. One thing most people dont know, is that tree roots generally
travel out as far as the branches. So, if the branches hang over your
house, the roots are probably up to the foundation. If the branches are
not over the house, there is little to worry about as far as the
foundation.

writes:

On Mon, 11 May 2015 20:55:20 -0400, Dan Espen
wrote:

Covering the root is just as bad as cutting it.


WHY???????

Roots are made to be underground. Some just seem to surface, probably
due to a rock or another obstruction.

Well, this is from memory, but once roots surface they form bark.
Bury it and it's just like piling dirt around the base of a tree.

--
Dan Espen