Overheard a landscaper say elm roots are worse than concrete anchors

I was at a coffee shop near my clinic in Denver last week and two landscapers were talking at the next table. One of them said elm roots will crack your foundation faster than a frost heave and the other laughed and said he has a sawzall blade dedicated just for elm. It got me thinking about my own tree work on the side. I planted a small elm in my backyard about 5 years ago and now I'm wondering if I should dig it up before it becomes a problem. The roots have already pushed up a section of my patio pavers by almost 2 inches. Has anyone else had to deal with elm roots breaking stuff and did you end up removing the tree or just cutting the roots back every season?

3 comments

3 Comments

price.tara1mo ago

Jump right in and pull that elm while you can still get a shovel around it. I gotta say though, @phoenix331, cutting roots back and them growing back thicker isn't exactly the tree being mad, it's just how elms work. They send out feeder roots really aggressively when you trim them, kind of like how a hedge gets bushier when you shear it. So yeah, cutting roots back is a losing game unless you're ready to trench and install a barrier every single year. Better to yank the whole thing now and plant something with a less nasty root system that won't wreck your patio.

brian_ramirez13d ago

Pull that elm now before it pulls your foundation apart. I learned the hard way after my patio pavers looked like a skate ramp and my back still hurts from trying to dig out a 6 year old stump solo. Your back and your wallet will thank you later.

phoenix3311mo ago

Ended up pulling a 4 year old elm after the roots buckled my driveway apron. Cutting roots back just made it grow back thicker the next season like it was mad about it. Get that tree out now while it's still small enough to dig, trust me.