Need opinions on my tree please (US zone 8a). My house is about 8 years old, tree was planted by the developer. I'd estimate it's 16-18 ft. It hasn't seemed the healthiest since the 2.5 years we've been here, now I can see why: the previous homeowner gave this poor thing a mulch mountain (which previously was rubber, BTW) and then surrounded with pavers.
Last year I ripped out the rubber mulch and refreshed with normal mulch (less amount) and left a ring around the base. This year I realized this is still way too much mulch. I've removed one row of pavers and the ensuing mulch (5"). I guess the "before" tags on the pics can be confusing – "before" as in before I removed one row of pavers and subsequent mulch. Not before starting anything, which had the roots buried.
Now I need advice on if I've hit the "real" root flare or are these new roots from being buried too deep? In other words, do I need to keep digging/clearing? There's lots of thin/delicate roots
by unrealgeforce
8 Comments
I guess the “before” tags on the pics can be confusing – “before” as in before I removed one row of pavers and subsequent mulch. Not before starting anything, which had the roots buried. Sorry
Now prune the lower branches at the base
That’s what our chickens do to our apple trees.
Imo those roots at the third picture are adventitious roots and if any of those looks like it will choke the tree, cut it.
I’m curious as well. My 1st thought was that wasn’t the real root flair, but I’m not 100%.
I think you need to remove one more layer of pavers as now you’ve got a depression right at the root flair. Also that’s not the true root flair.
You gotta get rid of the rest of that tree ring. See the photos in the Tree Ring section on this page: https://old.reddit.com/r/Tree/wiki/tree_disasters#wiki_tree_rings
You’ll have to do some landscaping around the tree afterwards, because the tree is obviously higher than the rest of the ground around it, but if you want that tree to survive for your grandchildren then you have to give its roots room to grow. As it is, they’ll reach out, encounter that wall, and start spiraling around the tree. They need a large bed of mulch (at least as far out as the dripline).
I’m also not convinced you’ve made it down to the root flare – the trunk doesn’t look flared at the base to me, I think you’ve hit some roots coming from higher up on the trunk because it’s been buried so deep for so long.
The roots directly underneath the crown are structural and in the “critical root zone”. With the pavers where they are, they can’t even reach to the dripline at all.
We often imagine roots like a mirror image of the tree’s branches, but actually most of them are within the first 8” of soil and spread out 2-4 times the size of the crown. This tree will not be stable enough to stay standing without the ability to reach its roots out and grab hold of the soil. It’ll also help you with erosion on that hill over time, if you free it from its paver prison!!
Is that just a sycamore? Go dig one up along a highway, it’ll be that tall in no time