The planting of maple trees needs to be carefully considered on properties with limited space. This also applies to the magnificent blood maple, which comes directly from the strong Norway maple (Acer platanoides). This guide takes a close look at root growth and explains possible damage to masonry.
How do you protect walls from blood maple roots?
Blood maple has heart-rooted to shallow-rooted roots, with the root strands extending horizontally. To prevent damage to the wall, a distance of at least 200 cm should be maintained and a root barrier should be installed, which effectively prevents the roots from penetrating the masonry.
Knowledge of root growth eliminates concerns
Blood maple thrives as a heart-rooted plant with a pronounced tendency to be shallow-rooted. From this point of view, there is no need to fear conflicts with walls as long as you maintain an appropriate distance when planting. However, the legally required border distances of most federal states with an average of 200 cm are not sufficient.
Unless you cut your blood maple, the Faassens Black variety reaches a width of up to 10 m over the years. Accordingly, the majority of the root strands expand horizontally. The columnar blood maple Crimson Sentry, whose crown and roots reach a maximum extension of 4 m, makes do with significantly less space.
Root barrier prevents wall damage - this is how it works
With a root barrier (€24.00 on Amazon) you can effectively prevent wall damage from the outset. Root barriers are made of sturdy plastic, do not rot and are impenetrable to tree roots. How to use the barrier correctly:
- Dig a 60 cm deep planting pit in the diameter of the expected crown expansion
- Digging out the edge of the pit with the root barrier
- Connect the overlapping ends with an aluminum rail
- Plant the blood maple in the middle while maintaining the previous planting depth
- Drive support posts into the ground and connect them to the trunk
- Tamp down the soil and water it
So that the root barrier fulfills its function perfectly, it should protrude about 10 cm from the soil. Otherwise, the strong root strands could overcome the barrier. With ground cover underplanting, you can quickly hide the black plastic from the viewer's eyes. Alternatively, spread a layer of bark mulch on the root disk.
Tip
With his book “The Secret Life of Trees”, Eifel forester Peter Wohlleben opened our eyes to the importance of roots. With the help of their root strands, the majestic forest dwellers communicate, exchange information and warn each other about pests or diseases. It is therefore taboo to cut he althy roots when planting.
