Neighbour said roots will break foundations of my home?

[palm789]

I planted my windmill palm 2 years ago it's starting to get bigger leaves then I had a neighbour say to me

'' Ah be careful having that tree so close to your house the roots can break the house as it gets bigger

'' roots get bigger as the tree gets bigger

Will this palm break my property? 

Its trunk is planted 4ft away from the wall

Here is the pic

[Rivera]

Nothing to worry about. I'm sure your neighbor is well-meaning but it's a trachycarpus, not a sycamore.

[Darold Petty]

Your neighbors are ignorant and wrong,  images to come later today/  

[Billeb]

No. 
 

-dale

[tinman10101]

not gonna happen ... such a blanket statement without knowledge of different plant morphology

[PalmatierMeg]

No. Don’t listen to that neighbor

[Scott W]

Oak tree...yes.  Your palm tree...nope.  

However....it's not to say that if this were a much larger palm, like Bismarkia, that it might break some pipes underground.  I heard this exact thing happened at the UNF campus here in Jacksonville a few years ago.

[Darold Petty]

OK,  palm789,  your palm is fine and will never harm the foundation.  This is because of a fundamental difference between most trees and palms.  Oak trees and maples are Eudicot plants and palms are Monocot plants.  Palms lack cambium, which causes the growing diameter of roots.  Oak tree roots invade a tight space and then grow larger, exerting tremendous pressure on adjacent surfaces, like a house foundation.  Palm roots cannot increase in diameter, they can elongate and branch only.

  Here are images of the pathway in my garden, taken today.   I planted two Trachycarpus palms about 1.2 meters apart as small seedlings in 1983.  The paving tiles were installed previously,  in 1982.  They are concrete, 30 cm hexagons and are 5cm thick.  They rest on the compacted soil only and are mortared just on the thickness edge, one to another.  The palms now have about 5 meters of true trunk and they have never lifted these flimsy pavers,   So, do not listen to gardening advice from your neighbors !  (At least about palms!!)     

[BS Man about Palms]

Yes, to add to what Darold said, palm roots never  larger in diameter than about your middle finger.  There may be hundreds, but never bigger.
 

Exception is the Ravenea xerophila . they can be like tubers.. to retain water/nutrients .

[James B]

No way. This is a smaller sized palm that can get tall but does not have a large root system. 

[JubaeaMan138]

Maybe if you planted a jubaea chilensis there . 🤣

[Jim in Los Altos]

Your neighbor is wrong of course. These are just a few of the palms growing for many years just inches from my house without a worry. Your Trachycarpus is just fine where it is. 

[peachy]

I had a Roystonia regia make a tiny crack in a footpath once, but they are a huge palm. Some neighbours can be know alls but actually know very little. Leave you windmill in peace, it won't do any harm at all.

Peachy.

[palm789]

10 hours ago, Darold Petty said:

OK,  palm789,  your palm is fine and will never harm the foundation.  This is because of a fundamental difference between most trees and palms.  Oak trees and maples are Eudicot plants and palms are Monocot plants.  Palms lack cambium, which causes the growing diameter of roots.  Oak tree roots invade a tight space and then grow larger, exerting tremendous pressure on adjacent surfaces, like a house foundation.  Palm roots cannot increase in diameter, they can elongate and branch only.

  Here are images of the pathway in my garden, taken today.   I planted two Trachycarpus palms about 1.2 meters apart as small seedlings in 1983.  The paving tiles were installed previously,  in 1982.  They are concrete, 30 cm hexagons and are 5cm thick.  They rest on the compacted soil only and are mortared just on the thickness edge, one to another.  The palms now have about 5 meters of true trunk and they have never lifted these flimsy pavers,   So, do not listen to gardening advice from your neighbors !  (At least about palms!!)     

Thanks a lot you learn alot on here, thanks for education. 

[bubba]

Borrasus 

[Palm Tree Jim]

Darold is spot on.

Perhaps there is a learning moment for your neighbor. 

[Desertlife4me]

a couple of Trachys next to my FIL's house in Washington state

 

 

[amh]

The biggest threat to a foundation that palm roots could cause, is that the areas soil moisture could be drastically different causing a shift, but that is not a realistic situation.

 

Edited June 15, 2023 by amh

[The Palm Nut]

I've heard that comment many times but as others have said not a chance, they can get into stormwater and downpipes though.  

[SailorBold]

Plant 5 more trachies there..

[SLW]

On 6/15/2023 at 1:23 AM, Jim in Los Altos said:

Your neighbor is wrong of course. These are just a few of the palms growing for many years just inches from my house without a worry. Your Trachycarpus is just fine where it is. 

I realize this is an old thread, but I have a question about the palms being so close to the house.  Does the "wind sway" cause any issues?   We just had a patio cover built and the contractor built VERY close to my older palm tree...like 1" away at the roof.  I did not want to lose my palm since I grew it from a baby, but I also did not want the patio built so close to it.  I just got home and see what the builder did and I'm really annoyed.  We live in hurricane country (TX coast) and my concern is about wind.  Thanks for any advice. 

[Jim in Los Altos]

26 minutes ago, SLW said:

I realize this is an old thread, but I have a question about the palms being so close to the house.  Does the "wind sway" cause any issues?   We just had a patio cover built and the contractor built VERY close to my older palm tree...like 1" away at the roof.  I did not want to lose my palm since I grew it from a baby, but I also did not want the patio built so close to it.  I just got home and see what the builder did and I'm really annoyed.  We live in hurricane country (TX coast) and my concern is about wind.  Thanks for any advice. 

Sarah, One foot away is plenty of space. I have palms one inch from my eaves and roof and have never had a problem diluting windy weather. We never have hurricane horse winds here but some pretty strong gusts occasionally. One foot away is plenty, especially if it’s a wide girth trunk palm species. 

[SLW]

3 minutes ago, Jim in Los Altos said:

Sarah, One foot away is plenty of space. I have palms one inch from my eaves and roof and have never had a problem diluting windy weather. We never have hurricane horse winds here but some pretty strong gusts occasionally. One foot away is plenty, especially if it’s a wide girth trunk palm species. 

I appreciate your response, Jim.  I wish the tree was a foot away, but it's one INCH.  I have decided to tell the contractor tomorrow that he's going to have to trim back the roof eaves on that side because that's just unacceptable.  I'm surprised that an experienced builder would even do such a thing.  They are returning in the morning to finish the job but they will have to re-do that side.  Thank you again; I appreciate the info. 

[Merlyn]

@SLW I agree with your concerns about a 1 inch clearance.  If it is a ridiculously stout and strong trunk it won't move a lot, but even 6 foot diameter oaks will sway more than an inch in hurricane force winds.  To be honest I don't know how much they can move, but I have seen videos of palms swaying around quite a bit instorms.  Also consider fronds whipping and hitting the roof.  Fronds might seem flexible, but can rip off shingles or break tiles in storms.

[Las Palmas Norte]

On 6/14/2023 at 7:33 AM, palm789 said:

I had a neighbour say to me

'' Ah be careful having that tree so close to your house the roots can break the house as it gets bigger

'' roots get bigger as the tree gets bigger

 Now you can educate your neighbor.

[Harry’s Palms]

We get very strong , gusts of wind up here on the hill. Every year , the Santa Ana winds blow relentlessly for days . The gusts this last year were over 80mph. I have a large Howea planted very close to my house that caused no problem at all. The stucco is abrasive thought and makes the leaf tips tattered . Harry