The previous owners placed these trees right next to the sidewalk. It seems like a pretty dumb idea, because the sidewalk is not usable. I’d love to hear your ideas about what to do in this situation and the pros/cons. So far I have some ideas but lack the pro/con details
– leave it and deal
– remove the trees completely. (Killing trees is not my favorite thing)
– prune the trees back. Maybe it’ll look weird?
Thanks
by maitri27
9 Comments
It probably started out as a weed. You’ve listed your options.
What kind of tree is it? Is it native? Are you attached to it at all?
What is this area? Concrete path leading to a field of small river rocks?
Looks more like a weed lol I don’t get peoples obsession with trees. Trees are meant to be harvested, just like any other crop. Trees are not meant to lord menacingly over our lives risking falling into our living room or up ending our foundations in our homes.
Kill the weed and go plant 10 trees in a location where they wont harm anyone and feel go about yourself you hippie.
That is a large multi-stem shrub behaving like a small tree. If you try to prune that back to clear the walkway you are going to end up with a lopsided mess that looks like a bad haircut. You will be fighting its natural shape every single year just to walk past it. It is the classic definition of the wrong plant in the wrong place. Forcing it to fit a narrow gap ruins the natural structure and creates an ugly focal point that throws off the balance of the whole yard.
Rip it out completely. I know people hate killing plants but holding onto a badly placed shrub is just punishing yourself and your landscape. Remove it and plant a low sweeping groundcover or a tight cluster of native perennials that connects the bed to the surroundings without swallowing the concrete. If you are absolutely dead set on keeping that specific plant you need to pry up those concrete slabs and reroute the walkway further out into the gravel area so the canopy has room to breathe.
Cut it down. There is most likely a parent tree nearby and this is just a seedling that the previous owners did not take care of. When you cut it down, I would suggest spraying or brushing some brush killer on the cut ends to reduce the chances of it coming back. You will also want to look at it weekly to see if anything new is sprouting and then put brush killer on it
Why does it matter to you ? The sidewalk looks like it leads to nothing. Just leave it alone
Where the sidewalk ends
Just remove it. It’s ugly anyway