Want To Redo Your Landscaping By Removing Trees? Make Sure They Really Need To Go
The desire to improve the landscape around your home can lead to fantastic new designs and interesting new plants -- and sometimes the removal of existing trees to make room for all those new plants. Yet trees really shouldn't be removed solely for the sake of a new garden layout. If your desired plan involves removing one or more trees, run that plan by an arborist and do a little more research. Sometimes trees need to be removed, sometimes they should be removed, and other times, they need to stay where they are.
The Health of the Tree
If the renovation of your landscaping was inspired by the news that a tree in your yard is ill or dying (or dead), then yes, that tree needs to go as soon as possible. Dying and dead trees can topple or drop heavy branches, which creates a danger to people, animals, and structures that are nearby. If the tree is completely healthy, however, you may be better off leaving the tree and working around it. Healthy, fully grown trees provide shade, and newer trees (or no trees) in its place won't provide as much for many years.
Defensible Space and Foundation Safety
Defensible space is that area surrounding your house that is supposed to be landscaped to reduce the chances that fire will spread to your house. The idea is that, if the tree catches fire but is far away from your house, then flames are much less likely to spread to your house from that tree (sparks can fly, but there's no direct contact and flames can't stretch across the yard to reach your roof). If you've bought a very old home that has trees right next to the roof, you might have to remove the tree -- or you might just have to trim the branches back.
Likewise, if the tree is close enough to the house so that the roots present a danger to the foundation, then yes, the tree needs to go.
Light-Blocking Placement
What if the tree is healthy and away from the house, but you just don't like the looks of the trees? Observe the trees throughout the day. Those "ugly" trees may still have a purpose; whoever planted them may have used them to block hot afternoon sunlight. If you remove them, you could make your house a lot more unpleasant to be in during hotter weather. In that case, trim the trees and see if there is a way to modify the shape, but don't remove them.
If you're unsure if a tree should really be removed, consult an arborist. Trees are too important to simply remove without reason, and an arborist or tree trimming service can help determine which trees really need to go before you start your garden remodel.
