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Landscape Design

evergreen roots near driveway

12 years ago

We have a 3 foot piece of land next to our driveway that we would like to plant some evergreen trees for privacy. Are there some that would be less damaging to a driveway?

Thanks!

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Comments (5)

karinl
12 years ago
Well, how high does your screening have to go? If you want serious trees that will grow 20-30 feet high, you may have something to worry about. But since your strip of land is only 3 feet wide (if I understand correctly), you probably want hedging type-plants and want to keep them to a certain height.

In the latter case I would simply suggest that you consider the installation relatively temporary - that is to say, requiring replacement every 10 years or so, all at once or staggered, depending on what size you buy.

Another aspect to consider is how to induce your plants to stay away from the driveway. I'm guessing that one reason that roots gravitate (no pun intended!) to the underside of concrete surfaces is that moisture collects there. If the plants are reliably watered in other areas, their roots will not have to go to the driveway, or at least not as aggressively.

A friend once asked me what might be wrong with the plants in the front yard of the townhouse she had inherited from her mother. They were fairly large shrubs. I looked around a bit and suddenly realized that underneath the mulch we were standing on was sheet plastic covering the entire front yard. Fortunately we live in a rainforest, and fortunately too the front yard was small, so in winter the ground probably got wet, but in summer, those plants could only get moisture along the underside of the plastic where it condensed. Predictably, the surface of the soil was a mat of roots that the same plants, planted normally and watered reliably, would have sent much deeper into the soil.

Karin L
kjmama
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you. I actually just looked more closely and I doubt we have any footage. We mow 3 feet, but it looks like the actual line is on the driveway. Our neighbors would contest this, which is the reason we'd like to do have some privacy. They put up 500 watt tv screen type security lamp and aimed it at our house:(
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In case Tony/Incognito doesn't answer right away about the herbicide impregnated root barrier, this product is used in urban street plantings where surface rooting is to be discouraged, and it actually does last for a very long time, but would probably need to extend at least 2 to 3 feet down vertically, or until you hit bedrock or a soil depth where there isn't enough oxygen in the soil to encourage tree root growth. The possibility always exists that tree roots can still grow under it and then into the new area, but typically it is the main principal roots that tend to serve as anchor roots for the tree's stability that do the most damage to pavement, and on older trees like pines these tend to stay near the surface, but that will vary greatly on your soil type and soil moisture conditions at different depths. Your arborist/consultant should be able to advise you more specifically if this herbicide impregnated root barrier makes sense to add against the new curb/wall to help protect it. I wouldn't rule out other sun loving bromeliads for this sunny situation, things like the more terrestrial growing Puya or Dyckia species might be good choices, and it also sounds like this thin soil, sunny area full of tree roots might be an excellent location for clumps of Agaves such as A. bracteosa, A. 'Sharkskin' or A. parryii cultivars, or in combination with things like Echeveria agavoides or Bulbine frutescens. Aloes such as A. saponaria or A. striata would also do well there. All of these plants would grow better if planted in a new layer of topsoil added over the tree roots, and given at least a monthly periodic good soak, or more often depending on how quickly/lushly you prefer them to look. California natives such as Mimulus aurantiacus, Salvia clevelandii or S. leucophylla 'Pt. Sal' could also look good here, or even more adventurous plantings like Metrosideros collina 'Springfire' or Metrosideros collina 'Tahiti'. A really cool looking green fuzzy flowered Aloe such as A. tomentosa would probably also do well there, or other Aloes such as A. castanea, A. camperi, A. rubroviolacea or A. vanbalenii.
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There is a product called Bio-Barrier which uses a system of controlled release antiroot chemical (for want of a better term)which is attached to a flexible sheet in little nodules. This is pretty widely used under driveways and sidewalks. It does work (for how long is another matter) but requires a lot of excavation and careful placement. I'm not at all familiar with the trees you want to use, but anything with roots this close to a foundation is courting future difficulties in my opinion. Bio-Barrier or something like it in a trench on the foundation side may indeed work, but it would involve a lot of digging and considerable expense. Digging right next to any foundation is never a terribly good idea anyway.
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55 years ago I mowed my neighbors yard. In front of his house he had two mature Catalpa trees. Those two trees are still there and are still very attractive in the front yard. There were no roots coming to the surface and it was very easy to mow around. I think the Catalpa tree is one of the most under rated tree for use in the landscape. Not only does it have a very attractive shape, in the spring it is very pretty when it is in bloom. The flowers are shaped like orchids, and have a very sweet pleasant aroma. SO in my opinion the positive well out weigh the large beans that form. (They are easily mulched up with the mower.) You can see these at least 80 year old trees on Google Street View at 817 South Webster Road New Haven Indiana.
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Both species, especially the spruce, have shallow roots. They are more likely to turn away when they contact the edge of your driveway (4-6" thick?) than to burrow under it and buckle it. You can always drive a shovel down into the ground along the edge of the drive to sever any small roots headed underneath. The trees can spare them.
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karinl
12 years ago
Then you clearly need this book about gardening directly on hard surfaces - if you can give up a bit of driveway to build some planter boxes (or to put containers) you may still be able to do your screening.

You can also drill into the driveway to install posts for a trellis, perhaps, if you don't think you can accommodate enough dirt to grow hedging plants. One vine can grow a lot out of a single big container.

Karin L

Here is a link that might be useful: Gardening on hard surfaces
missingtheobvious
12 years ago
They put up 500 watt tv screen type security lamp and aimed it at our house:(

Talk to the local police and ask them if the placement of the lamp violates any local ordinances or would be considered as constituting a nuisance and/or harassment. As well, talk to your city government, HOA, etc. If you have a lawyer, you might also talk to him/her. Take photos that show the lamp's location and its impact on your house; show the photos to whomever you speak with.

If there are other problems, document everything.

You might be interested in this thread:
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/decor/msg04235659394.html

To me it seems odd to have a driveway that abuts the property line. Was the driveway there before you bought the house? Is that allowed by your local building code?
kjmama
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you for the 2 links, karen and missing. I will check them out. The driveway was redone at some point, I think it was widened.
I appreciate both of you offering helpful input:)

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