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A homeowner in Boise told me to just cut the roots hitting his foundation
I was looking at a big silver maple about 8 feet from his house last fall, and he was adamant that severing the main anchor roots was the fix. He said, 'It's just plumbing, right? Cut the pipe, problem solved.' I had to explain for twenty minutes how that would destabilize the whole tree, especially with our wind events. Has anyone else had to talk a client down from a seriously dangerous request like that?
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troy9966mo ago
Used to figure a few roots wouldn't hurt the tree much. Then I watched a big willow topple into a creek after the neighbor cut the roots on his side. The whole root ball just tipped over in wet soil, no wind needed. Made me realize how much we underestimate that anchor system.
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flores.jana7mo ago
Angela's question about a structural engineer is a good one. I used to think cutting roots was no big deal, just like that homeowner. Then I saw a huge pine tree fall on a shed after someone cut its main roots to fix a patio. The tree looked fine for a year, until a regular storm came through. It didn't just lean, it lifted right out of the ground. That changed my whole view on how much stability those roots really give.
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