We would like to add a couple of trees to our landscape. We wanted to plant
a weeping higan cherry tree and a japanese maple in two different locations
near our house. Is 3 feet from the house too close? What is minimum
distance we should maintain from the house? Do these trees grow deep or
shallow roots? How wide will the roots spread?
thanks,
Matt

"Matt" wrote in message
m...
We would like to add a couple of trees to our landscape. We wanted to
plant
a weeping higan cherry tree and a japanese maple in two different
locations
near our house. Is 3 feet from the house too close? What is minimum
distance we should maintain from the house? Do these trees grow deep or
shallow roots? How wide will the roots spread?
thanks,
Matt

3 feet is too close - you need to allow sufficient room for both trees to
develop normal canopy spread without encountering any obstructions like the
side or roof of your house. Neither tree is a huge spreader, canopy-wise so
you CAN plant them close - just not that close. Cherries tend to have a lot
of surface roots, as do J. maples, but neither have so invasive a root
system as to be a concern with the house foundation - they will simply grow
around obstacles or along the side. FYI, tree roots can spread a good
distance. As a rule of thumb, figure 2-3 times the width of the mature tree
canopy.

pam - gardengal

On Tue, 06 Apr 2004 13:58:54 GMT, "Pam - gardengal"
wrote:
"Matt" wrote in message
om...
We would like to add a couple of trees to our landscape. We wanted to
plant
a weeping higan cherry tree and a japanese maple in two different
locations
near our house. Is 3 feet from the house too close? What is minimum
distance we should maintain from the house? Do these trees grow deep or
shallow roots? How wide will the roots spread?
thanks,
Matt
3 feet is too close - you need to allow sufficient room for both trees to
develop normal canopy spread without encountering any obstructions like the
side or roof of your house. Neither tree is a huge spreader, canopy-wise so
you CAN plant them close - just not that close. Cherries tend to have a lot
of surface roots, as do J. maples, but neither have so invasive a root
system as to be a concern with the house foundation - they will simply grow
around obstacles or along the side. FYI, tree roots can spread a good
distance. As a rule of thumb, figure 2-3 times the width of the mature tree
canopy.
pam - gardengal
I have asked this question myself and wondered at some of the replies.
The information may be accurate but they also mean that the average
suburban yard (.15-.25 acre) would not have room for any trees.

Isn't 2 times the mature canopy for a dogwood is 40'-50' away! Maybe
along the very back of yard right up against the fence.
I would agree that 3' is too close, but no trees even small ones
within 40' seems like too far away. Can this be correct?

Swyck

"redclay" wrote in message
...

Matt wrote in message
m...
We would like to add a couple of trees to our landscape. We wanted to
plant
a weeping higan cherry tree and a japanese maple in two different
locations
near our house. Is 3 feet from the house too close? What is minimum
distance we should maintain from the house? Do these trees grow deep or
shallow roots? How wide will the roots spread?
thanks,
Matt
Yes three feet is too close. Both are shallow rooted and the roots will
spread a long way. You ought to plan on having the tips of the limbs no
closer than 20 to 30 feet from the house. As in plant the tree 30 feet
away
if the spread is 20 feet(20/2+10).


30' ...??? Yesterday while driving around town, I took notice of trees
planted near peoples houses. I must have seen 50 trees in excess of 24"
diameter, literally 4 to 6 feet from different houses. Somehow I think our
little japanese maple and weeping cherry will be just fine within 10' of the
house.
thanks,

"Matt" wrote in message
om...


30' ...??? Yesterday while driving around town, I took notice of trees
planted near peoples houses. I must have seen 50 trees in excess of 24"
diameter, literally 4 to 6 feet from different houses. Somehow I think
our
little japanese maple and weeping cherry will be just fine within 10' of
the
house.
thanks,

Stop and inquire at a few of these houses and ask them if they would plant
the trees if they had to do it over!
If I had to do it over after 25 years, I would never plant a large tree
within 200 feet of my house or a small one within 30 feet for that matter.
Frank

On Tue, 06 Apr 2004 12:17:29 -0400, wrote:


Isn't 2 times the mature canopy for a dogwood is 40'-50' away! Maybe
along the very back of yard right up against the fence.
I would agree that 3' is too close, but no trees even small ones
within 40' seems like too far away. Can this be correct?

Swyck
I agree that roots may extend well beyond the reach of branches, but I
see no need to put a small tree like j. maple or cherry so far as 40'.
I'd say most of these trees reach a mature spread of 10'-15', so maybe
6'-8' from house would be a minimum. You could probably get away with
closer (I also agree it won't do any significant foundation damage)
but you'd get a far less attractive tree in the end, since it would
develop distorted form. Also remember that most j. maples need a
certain amount of shade or they will be sunburned all the time and
will never thrive (but you can find sun-tolerant varieties if needed).

good luck,
Keith Babberney
ISA Certified Arborist #TX-0236
For more info about the International Society of Arboriculture, please visit http://www.isa-arbor.com/home.asp.
For consumer info about tree care, visit http://www.treesaregood.com/

On Tue, 06 Apr 2004 13:58:54 GMT, "Pam - gardengal"
wrote:
"Matt" wrote in message
om...
We would like to add a couple of trees to our landscape. We wanted to
plant
a weeping higan cherry tree and a japanese maple in two different
locations
near our house. Is 3 feet from the house too close? What is minimum
distance we should maintain from the house? Do these trees grow deep or
shallow roots? How wide will the roots spread?
thanks,
Matt
3 feet is too close - you need to allow sufficient room for both trees to
develop normal canopy spread without encountering any obstructions like the
side or roof of your house. Neither tree is a huge spreader, canopy-wise so
you CAN plant them close - just not that close. Cherries tend to have a lot
of surface roots, as do J. maples, but neither have so invasive a root
system as to be a concern with the house foundation - they will simply grow
around obstacles or along the side. FYI, tree roots can spread a good
distance. As a rule of thumb, figure 2-3 times the width of the mature tree
canopy.
pam - gardengal
I have asked this question myself and wondered at some of the replies.
The information may be accurate but they also mean that the average
suburban yard (.15-.25 acre) would not have room for any trees.

Isn't 2 times the mature canopy for a dogwood is 40'-50' away! Maybe
along the very back of yard right up against the fence.
I would agree that 3' is too close, but no trees even small ones
within 40' seems like too far away. Can this be correct?

Swyck

In article ,
"Frank Logullo" wrote:


Stop and inquire at a few of these houses and ask them if they would plant
the trees if they had to do it over!
If I had to do it over after 25 years, I would never plant a large tree
within 200 feet of my house or a small one within 30 feet for that matter.
Frank

Listen to Frank. Tis much better to be too far than too close. Same
goes for foundation plantings. I've a little Japanese maple 20 feet
away from my house who has branches pruned due to hitting our home.
This after 30 years.
Please remember it is OK to make mistakes....also remember
transplanting a 10 year tree/plant is real work.

Bill

--
Zone 5 In South Jersey USA Shade
Consider Hearing all sorts of music at http://xpn.org/
"No Progress without contraries" William Blake

I have asked this question myself and wondered at some of the replies.
The information may be accurate but they also mean that the average
suburban yard (.15-.25 acre) would not have room for any trees.

I have to wonder at some of the replies too. It sounds like some of my
tree-hating neighbors who consider trees on their property to be enemy number
one in terms of leaves and potential damage. A 40 foot away from the house
minimum for a Japanese maple or even weeping cherry is more than a little
paranoid. We're not talking about sequoias, here. We're talking about
foundation plantings of small, ornamental trees.

And the slightly distorted growth habit that may arise is part of the charm.
The trees grow around the house and frame it, as a foundation planting is
supposed to.

Japanese maple in particular is very well behaved, and very slow growing. Gee
whiz, if it does become a problem in 40, 50, 60 years it can always be gotten
rid of. Chances are it will be the new homeowner's problem by then.

~flick

"Matt" wrote in message
om...


30' ...??? Yesterday while driving around town, I took notice of trees
planted near peoples houses. I must have seen 50 trees in excess of 24"
diameter, literally 4 to 6 feet from different houses. Somehow I think
our
little japanese maple and weeping cherry will be just fine within 10' of
the
house.
thanks,

Stop and inquire at a few of these houses and ask them if they would plant
the trees if they had to do it over!
If I had to do it over after 25 years, I would never plant a large tree
within 200 feet of my house or a small one within 30 feet for that matter.
Frank

On Tue, 06 Apr 2004 12:17:29 -0400, wrote:


Isn't 2 times the mature canopy for a dogwood is 40'-50' away! Maybe
along the very back of yard right up against the fence.
I would agree that 3' is too close, but no trees even small ones
within 40' seems like too far away. Can this be correct?

Swyck
I agree that roots may extend well beyond the reach of branches, but I
see no need to put a small tree like j. maple or cherry so far as 40'.
I'd say most of these trees reach a mature spread of 10'-15', so maybe
6'-8' from house would be a minimum. You could probably get away with
closer (I also agree it won't do any significant foundation damage)
but you'd get a far less attractive tree in the end, since it would
develop distorted form. Also remember that most j. maples need a
certain amount of shade or they will be sunburned all the time and
will never thrive (but you can find sun-tolerant varieties if needed).

good luck,
Keith Babberney
ISA Certified Arborist #TX-0236
For more info about the International Society of Arboriculture, please visit http://www.isa-arbor.com/home.asp.
For consumer info about tree care, visit http://www.treesaregood.com/

In article ,
"Frank Logullo" wrote:


Stop and inquire at a few of these houses and ask them if they would plant
the trees if they had to do it over!
If I had to do it over after 25 years, I would never plant a large tree
within 200 feet of my house or a small one within 30 feet for that matter.
Frank

Listen to Frank. Tis much better to be too far than too close. Same
goes for foundation plantings. I've a little Japanese maple 20 feet
away from my house who has branches pruned due to hitting our home.
This after 30 years.
Please remember it is OK to make mistakes....also remember
transplanting a 10 year tree/plant is real work.

Bill

--
Zone 5 In South Jersey USA Shade
Consider Hearing all sorts of music at http://xpn.org/
"No Progress without contraries" William Blake

I have asked this question myself and wondered at some of the replies.
The information may be accurate but they also mean that the average
suburban yard (.15-.25 acre) would not have room for any trees.

I have to wonder at some of the replies too. It sounds like some of my
tree-hating neighbors who consider trees on their property to be enemy number
one in terms of leaves and potential damage. A 40 foot away from the house
minimum for a Japanese maple or even weeping cherry is more than a little
paranoid. We're not talking about sequoias, here. We're talking about
foundation plantings of small, ornamental trees.

And the slightly distorted growth habit that may arise is part of the charm.
The trees grow around the house and frame it, as a foundation planting is
supposed to.

Japanese maple in particular is very well behaved, and very slow growing. Gee
whiz, if it does become a problem in 40, 50, 60 years it can always be gotten
rid of. Chances are it will be the new homeowner's problem by then.

~flick

"redclay" wrote in message ...
Matt wrote in message
m...
We would like to add a couple of trees to our landscape. We wanted to
plant
a weeping higan cherry tree and a japanese maple in two different
locations
near our house. Is 3 feet from the house too close? What is minimum
distance we should maintain from the house? Do these trees grow deep or
shallow roots? How wide will the roots spread?
thanks,
Matt
Yes three feet is too close. Both are shallow rooted and the roots will
spread a long way. You ought to plan on having the tips of the limbs no
closer than 20 to 30 feet from the house. As in plant the tree 30 feet away
if the spread is 20 feet(20/2+10).

One foot of distance for each inch of trunk diameter when fully grown
is a fairly good thumb rule.

One foot of distance for each inch of trunk diameter when fully grown
is a fairly good thumb rule.

I have a 10 inch diameter maple that really suggest s 1.5 foot for each
inch in diameter. This for upright types. I also have a japanese
maple which is 10 inch's wide an 6 inch's tall that is about 10 years
old. hmmm.

I was lucky to plant it where we did and was rewarded with many very
mutated maples which we were quick to remove from the mother plant.
Mom would kill them in time.

Have Fun

Bill

Into Moon babies at this time.

--
Zone 5 In South Jersey USA Shade
Consider Hearing all sorts of music at http://xpn.org/
"No Progress without contraries" William Blake