Sychamore trees - advice needed

[Shaila Shah]

Hiya,

There are two sychamore trees quite close to the back of our house - some 40 foot and 55 foot away. Two years ago we had cracks appear suddenly, and deepen quickly, in our ktichen. It had been quite a dry season and the roots of three eonrmous leylandi (spelling??) trees had been held responsible following inspections and soil tests etc. The owner did the honourable thing and the leylandi were destroyed.

At the time, we wereadvised that the sychamore was also a potential threat. Sadly, nothing has been done by the occupier to get rid of these trees (and no doubt there are others that are growing as they tend to spread quickly). any advice as to what we could do? We don't want to be hit by another "excess" charge if repairs are needed.

Any sensible advice gratefully accepted! Thanks.

[Saffron]

Have more cracks appeared? Are you the free-holder, and on whose property are the trees?

Also, when the offending trees were destroyed, were new trees of any type planted? The reason I ask is that people are sometimes unaware that removing a tree can destabilise the water-balance of which that tree was part. This too can cause problems with cracks etc.

Would another soil test be possible?

[Alex K]

Forty foot, fifty-five foot, "quite close"?

Roots of trees extend laterally as far as do trees' branches. I boggle at the thought of a tree with a crown 110 feet in diameter, and I suspect that no such tree is in your vicinity.

LEAVE THE TREES ALONE. They REALLY are NOT bothering you.

[Shaila Shah]

Alex K Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Forty foot, fifty-five foot, "quite close"?

>

> Roots of trees extend laterally as far as do

> trees' branches. I boggle at the thought of a

> tree with a crown 110 feet in diameter, and I

> suspect that no such tree is in your vicinity.

>

> LEAVE THE TREES ALONE. They REALLY are NOT

> bothering you.

Interesting that you should say this...the trees thta had tp be removed a couple of years ago were more than three storeys or so high...their roots can come upto, if not under, our ktichen! One of these sychamores is as high as that...

[KidKruger]

I think Alex is correct, the roots willnot extend OUTWARDS and further than the branches do, so if the edge of the tree is yards and tards away you can infer the roots are also that far away.

Sycamore is a bastad tree and will generate many tree-lets very quickly. I let the ones in my garden grow to 30 feet before realising this, then dug them out by hand.

[Alex K]

Thanks, KidKruger. Shaila Shah, if the branches aren't scraping the side of your house (**grin**), you can probably breathe a git easier. And if you breathe easier -- so will the trees, who now worry every time that you step into your back garden you have a chainsaw behind your back...

[Shaila Shah]

Thank you all...

[Chillaxed]

With apologies for high-jacking the thread...

I have a Sycamore in my backyard, and though there's no issue with it affecting nearby houses, it provides too much shade for our liking and as KK notes, you can waste half your life digging up its many-numbered offspring.

So:

- can I trim the tree now, or should I wait for autumn?;

- if I cut it right back to the trunks (there's two main ones as far as I can tell, though I'm sure someone will tell me they're branches) will it regrow?;

- if I dig it out altogether, is this doable without heavy machinery (I?s say it?s about 8-9 metres high at the moment, with a 6 metre spread.

Thanks,

Chillaxed

[Saffron]

Generally you trim in the winter. It's easier, and it's better for the tree and the habitat it holds. Once the tree has leafed in the spring, you should wait until the autumn drop to trim. Yes, you can trim them right back, and they will regrow though it's stressfull for the tree.

[Saffron]

Shaila Shah, get a professional to look at the trees and soil again if you're unsure.

[chihlinf]

I let the ones in my garden grow to 30 feet before realising this, then dug them out by hand.http://www.jpopo.info/g.gif

[KidKruger]

Chillaxed:

My trees were as big if not bigger than the trees you're describing.

I did it entirely by hand (I was between jobs and fancied the exercise, which it most definitely is if youcomplete the job yourself).

- Get a ladder up the tree or climb up it and trim all the branches off with a bush saw (you'll need to think about where all this material is gonna be piled if you have a small garden)

- Trim off top of tree as far up as posible

- Cut lengths of remaining trunk, tryin to minimise the no. of times you have to do this (assuming you want less work)

- Dig a hole at least 4 feet diameter around the tree trunk, I went 3 ft deep. As you get 18" down you'll start knocking into the roots with your spade. Generally you'll get 8-12 big roots and end up with a big pit with a network of an upsid-down tree.

- Cut the roots away from main trunk and as far along their length form trunk as possible, effectively removing a section of each root.

- Sever the tap root (main one straight under the trunk) as far down as possible (I dug anextra foot for this Mother)

- remove trunk stump

- lace all remaining root stumps with systemic poison (I then sealed each root end with a plastic bag and tape to seal in the poison and protect the soil.

For me the Sycamore is a weed and it's unfair to grow in a built up area with load of back-to-back terraces because everyone gets the seeds and has to deal with the problem.

[The Nappy Lady]

We've now paid a lot of money to have two Sycamores felled that we're in neighbours gardens but causing massive shade problems to our garden plus two others, not to mention the seedlings. The first tree cost ?600 to have felled plus poisen put into the stump to ensure no regrowth - the owner of the garden the tree was in was happy for it to go but unwilling to pay so 3 houses being affected by the shade shared the cost.

The second tree (again with the owners blessing) we've been trying to keep under control for a couple of years, but they grow so fast in the end we just delayed the inevitable and only allowed it to get even taller do that cost ?500 to have the same treatment as the first.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a tree lover but these trees are totally unsuitable for small London gardens and we will be on Sycamore watch for a while to ensure no seedlings survive - we have pulled hundreds up over the past couple of years. The light in our garden is now amazing.

My advice with Sycamores would always be to watch with extreme caution and get rid of them whilst they are small unless you have a very big garden.

[civilservant]

We inherited four large sycamores when we moved into our house. We now have two, one of which is less than 10 feet from the house, while the other is about 40 feet away. We plan to keep these, because they provide shade, screening from road/neighbours and are also very attractive to garden wildlife, especially squirrels and birds.

However, we don't want any more, as they've been expensive to manage (getting rid of two and keeping the others trimmed regularly so they don't drip sap everywhere. So we keep a vigilant eye out for the seedlings - the squirrels help by eating most of the seeds, and any seedlings that manage to escape them and germinate aren't really that difficult to catch and pull out early on, are they?

One of the things that I like most about SE London is the amount of greenery, especially large trees, in residential areas, not just the parks. Sycamores need a lot less space and care than oaks, elms etc, so are a reasonably good compromise if you want a tree.

[Annette Curtain]

"Sycamores are rather a nuisance, as are Ash"

(in the words of the man from Dulwich estates, today)

So, now you know

Nette

[Chillaxed]

Thanks for the responses, guys.

Just reading KK's post made me tired, so I think I'll get the professionals in after consultation with the affected neighbours (funnily enough no-one has said anything to me about the shade or seedlings, so maybe they like at least the former).

[Shaila Shah]

Interesting to see all these posts. The trees I refer to affect a few of us and are a nuisance. I have no idea why people opt to buy property with gardens when they really are not interested in doing any maintenance whatsoever...The professionals that Molly refers to...who are they? And can the council help in any way?

[giggirl]

There's a Sycamore on some land next to my garden. My builders chopped it down last year but it has grown back so I need to chop it down again and put that rubber stuff round the stump. Sycamore is a horrid tree. This one used to take all the light away from my poor little garden. It must die.

[mynamehere]

Did I hear right: The Council Will help manage trees on private land? Or is that only for elderly people? Or is that only elderly people with dead trees?

[Annette Curtain]

You'll notice those who don't like Sycamores dont call them "trees"

And with that tree-label-burden we can kill them without the slightest emotion

[civilservant]

Tree surgeons and sycamores already dealt with here - http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?30,894040,900462#msg-900462 I would recommend Hamish.

The council is not interested unless your tree is the subject of a TPO (or Tree Preservation Order to the un-initiated). But as it is a despised sycamore, it is unlikely to be honoured with a TPO.

Since I'm in the mood to be expansive - here's the Woodland Trust on sycamores - http://www.naturescalendar.org.uk/wildlife/factfiles/trees/sycamore.htm They have one or two good things to say about them. And here is a nice picture of a finch eating a sycamore seed. http://www.uk-wildlife.co.uk/greenfinch-eating-sycamore-seed-redwing-and-fieldfare/

So not really to be despised after all.

[Chillaxed]

I note the Natures Calendar website's third point on Sycamores:

"Stout twigs with fat, green buds"

Suffice it to say I won't be cutting down the thing if this is the case.