When you own a home, some of the things you may work on are your landscaping, a garden or backyard improvements. If space permits, planting a tree may seem like a great idea. In most cases, it is. Trees can offer plenty of benefits to your property. They may provide shade, reduce soil erosion, absorb carbon dioxide, and some may even bear fruit.
There are many choices as to where you can plant a tree on your property, but knowing the safe distance between your home and the tree when it’s fully grown is integral to keeping your home and its foundation safe.
If planted in the wrong place, a tree can do more harm than good.
Many homeowners plant trees in the middle of the yard. If positioned too closely to your home, a maturing tree can take root and slowly push your house out of the way. We recommend planting trees at least 15-20 feet away from your house to prevent problems with roots or overhanging branches. There are of course exceptions to this, but here are some general rules of thumb to consider when planting trees near your home.
- Small and medium trees can typically be planted 15 feet away from the house, and 35 feet or more apart from each other, according to research by The University of Missouri. You can read more about shade movement during the different times of the year in that article as well, particularly if you are planting a tree to provide shade.
- A large tree, which can absorb up to 48 pounds of carbon pollution a year when fully matured, should be planted at least 20 feet away from the house in most cases.
- Do some research to learn about the appropriate distance from other features of your property such as the house itself, so that the tree, when matured, can safely live. Tip!The little tag on a small tree when purchased from a nursery or store will usually tell you how large the tree will grow.
What to do when a tree is already rubbing up against your home.
While inspecting the foundations of many thousands of homes over the past 20+ years, we’ve seen mature trees rub up against the homes causing damage to the home’s structural integrity. A tree planted too close to a home can cause major issues in the future, so be sure to do some research before getting started.
If a previously planted tree is already causing damage to your home, we recommend having an arborist come out to assess the situation. If you are located in the Los Angeles metro, we would gladly take a look and perform an inspection of your home’s foundation to determine the level of damage caused by the tree. Homeowners in the area can schedule a free inspection with us.
CONTACT A TREE REMOVAL SPECIALIST.
Other actions that you will most likely need to take are having the tree trimmed or having it removed altogether. A tree service company will be able to advise you on the best course of action in this case. In the home pictured above, our client had to get the tree removed to prevent any future movement of the house caused by the growing tree.
DO plant trees, and lots of them, but NOT so close to the home that they later have to be taken out, and then the foundation needs correction as well.
