hi all. we had an addition put on the house and GC graded and added a ton of dirt to our back hill. Spent my last two days trying to unearth a black gum tree base. Black gum sits about 4 feet = 1 broom or roughly 7 bananas from the neighboring sugar maple. The horizontal roots appear to be coming from the maple, not gum tree. Looking to do what's best for both trees because they sit right next to the house and provide nice shade. What are my next steps? Plan to start working around the maple base after finishing with the gum tree.
by CatnipCricket-329
2 Comments
a red circle would help identify the tree in question
I can try to give you some basic advice, but I strongly recommend you hire a Certified Arborist who is Tree Risk Assessment Qualified (TRAQ) to come out and check the trees and the site in person.
You say the area was regraded and “a ton of dirt” was added over the root system. This is generally considered to be a Bad Thing. Adding any more than an inch of soil over the root system of a tree (especially with heavy equipment that is compacting the soil) can cause root suffocation. Even “temporary” storage of soil over the root system can have long lasting effects (think of it this way: if I cover you over your head in soil, even if it’s “temporary”, how long will you live?).
Picture 1 shows what might become a girdling root. But that tree also shows a double trunk, which can be unstable during wind storms. If this tree is near your new construction, this could be dangerous.
Again, hire a Certified Arborist and find out if any of these trees can be salvaged.