Protecting your foundation from damage means more than clearing water out of your basement after a day of heavy rain. If you plant certain types of trees and bushes too close to your home, their root systems can destabilize the structural supports keeping your home in place.
Why Are Some Trees and Bushes Dangerous?
Some types of trees and bushes grow at faster rates than others. Other plants’ root systems can expand far beyond the canopy of the tree or bush in question. These types of additions to your yard may be beautiful, but they can cause significant damage to your foundation, basement, or crawl space in the years that it takes them to establish themselves.
It’s not always easy, though, to determine which plants in your yard or landscaping ambitions might cause you problems. As you’re designing your future plans, then, or debating how best to remodel a yard that’s already been landscaped, you can work with professionals at your local nursery to determine what plants might suit your land best.
To get started, consider what trees you might want to add to your yard. Some of the safest trees to plant within the general vicinity of your home include:
- Crabapples
- American Dogwoods
- Hawthorns
- American Hollies
- Pawpaws
Do note, of course, that you’ll want to keep these types of trees at least twenty feet away from your home if you want to avoid foundation damage in the years to come. Pawpaws and crabapples, of course, can stay within five feet of your premises, but even slower-growing trees like Hawthorns can cause premature sinkage if you plant them closer than twenty feet to your home.
If you want foliage that can compliment your main walk or any flowers you might already have in place, then what would suit you better than an array of bushes? Though they are smaller than trees, bushes can still have a negative impact on your foundation’s structural integrity if they’re planted too close to your home or if they’re of a particularly aggressive genus.
Some of the safer bushes to plant near or around your home include but are not limited to:
- Dwarf Fothergilla – must be planted at least three feet away from your home.
- Smooth Hydrangea – must be planted at least three feet away from your home.
- Sweet Pepperbush – must be planted at least four feet away from your home.
- William Penn Barberry – must be planted at least three feet away from your home.
- Buttonbush – must be planted at least two feet away from your home.
- Border Forsythia – must be planted at least four feet away from your home.
- Tatarian Dogwood – must be planted at least eight feet away from your home.
- Chinese holly – must be planted at least five feet away from your home.
The Process of Protecting Your Home From Root Damage
If you’re concerned about foundation, basement, or crawl space seepage, thoughtful landscaping can ease some of your concerns. When you make a point of planting trees and bushes that grow slowly, and when you keep those landscaping additions a safe distance away from your home, you won’t have to worry overmuch about root-based damage to your home’s structural supports.
That said, there are other steps you can take to protect your home from landscaping-related water damage. Root barriers and home waterproofing measures can both prevent the growth of tree and bush roots towards your home. In turn, home waterproofing measures, including vapor barriers and sump pumps, can help you redirect any water that might otherwise try and make its way inside of your home.
If you’re ready, then, to start landscaping with your foundation’s health in mind, you can reach out to a professional contractor in your area.