By Wirleyt
United Kingdom 
Hi
I have growing in my garden a 30ft holly tree that is home to many birds. It has been in the garden now for at least 3o years and is pruned regularly .The back of my neighbours garden is at the back of the holly tree as is a wall , it is a wall made frrom open bricks made from moulds and that has also been there for about 30 years.
My neighbour has recently told me that she has found suckers from the holly tree growing in her lawn , and that she is now concerned that the trees roots may damage her wall .
I am in a dilemma as i do not want to get rid of the tree.
Could any one please advise if her concerns are correct and if so what can i do .
Many thanks Shirley
6 Jun, 2011
Answers
Hi Tugbrethil
The actual trunk of the tree is about 9ft from the wall.
7 Jun, 2011
Hmmm, right on the borderline, then. Outside of removing the tree, the best thing that you can do is to water more on your side of the the tree. This will reduce the incentive for the tree to grow roots in your neighbors yard. It may be possible to dig a 1/2 meter deep trench along your side of the wall, and line the side along the wall with copper mesh. If you run into any large roots while doing this, you will have to have some skilled pruning done to the top of the tree to keep it from going into shock. Once in place, the mesh will kill any roots that try to grow immediately under the wall foundation, reducing the chance of the roots heaving the wall over in later decades. On the down side, cutting roots will cause the sucker problem in your neighbors yard, to multiply. On the up side, since the roots are cut, she can use SBK on the suckers without damaging your tree.
There's always trade-offs! : }
8 Jun, 2011
How far away from the wall is the tree, Whirleyt? I would only be concerned if it was less than 10 feet from the wall.
7 Jun, 2011