#21 - Nov 2018 - Garden Stuff - © Sandy Lang - slang@xtra.co.nz
PROBLEM ROOTS November: Almost summer. Earlier I wrote about light and root competition from herbaceous weeds (get rid of weeds). Then about light competition from your northern neighbour’s tree, fence, house (move south, move up, move out). Now, it’s about competition from tree roots.
Big plants have big root systems so your neighbour’s tree roots are in your garden and vice versa. Tree roots create two problems…
Root-bound soil: Not much will grow if your soil is full of tree roots. Just too much competition for water and minerals and maybe allelopathic chemicals to boot (Google allelopathic).
Option-1 Remove the tree. If it’s your neighbour’s tree - there’s no Option-1
Option-2 Dig a deep trench twixt tree and garden, cut all the roots, backfill. Works till roots regrow (about 1-2 years). Also risky. Roots anchor trees in the ground. Eastbourne has high winds and sandy soils. You may cause a tree to crash on a house - there’s no Option-2
Option-3 If tree roots are very dense, grow your plants in tubs on pavers. Raised beds will soon be invaded by tree roots from below if not sitting on concrete.
Root-bound drains: Plastic drains are root-proof. But most Eastbourne drains are old earthenware ones with degraded joints. Tree roots just love the nutrient-rich water within. Pongy, root-blocked drains are common in Eastbourne.
Option-1 Plumber Most people wait for the pong, ring for the plumber, and pay. Usually at Christmas when you’ve got visitors. Embarrassing. Next year it’s the same - pong, ring, pay. And the next…
Option-2 Replace Replace earthenware with plastic. •Method-1 Requires a trench. But often drains run under a house extension and a driveway and across another property. Very costly. •Method-2 Reline your drain with pull-through plastic. No trench. Saves your extension and driveway and neighbour. Works well. Similar cost to Method-1 (all depends).
Option-3-Dosing If you have a root blockage, you need a plumber to clear it NOW - health and safety. But then, you throw away your plumber’s business card and ‘dose’ your drains regularly to avoid a recurrence...!
Dosing: Dosing drains with copper sulphate kills any roots that have found their way into the drain but doesn’t hurt the tree. The killed roots soon rot and wash away.
How often? Roots grow twice a year - spring and autumn. Not much in summer (the tree’s too busy aboveground) or winter (it's too cold). So, ‘dose’ your drains on 1 December (kills spring root growth) and on 1 June (kills autumn root growth).
How much? The cost is about $15 per dose, so twice a year costs about $30, so $300 over 10 years. This is very much cheaper than a new plastic drain and also very much cheaper than calling a plumber every year or so to clear the drain.
How? Buy copper sulphate (also called bluestone) from Bunnings. This is the blue stuff you used at school to grow lovely crystals. Dissolve 750 g of copper sulphate in about 4 litres of very hot water in a heat-proof container (not steel). I use a thick-walled, 5 litre, plastic jerry can.
Let it cool down to warm, then pour it into the loo (careful, don't splash) and flush twice - five minutes apart. Then don't run any more water down any drains for several hours (loos, kitchen or bathroom). I treat my drains in the morning of a sunny day before going to work. Copper sulphate stains stainless steel so take care round the kitchen sink.
What happens? The first flush sends the copper sulphate solution from the loo bowl into the U-bend just before the drain. The five-minute wait gives it time to mix in with the other water there. The second flush sends it off down the drain where it contacts the roots. There it sits till you send more water down to wash it away. I give it a few hours. This will kill any roots in the drain and it will also leak out into the soil at points where the drain is a bit leaky and the roots get in. It will leave a root-killing residue there too. ___________________________________
PROBLEM ROOTS November: Almost summer. Earlier I wrote about light and root competition from herbaceous weeds (get rid of weeds). Then about light competition from your northern neighbour’s tree, fence, house (move south, move up, move out). Now, it’s about competition from tree roots.
Big plants have big root systems so your neighbour’s tree roots are in your garden and vice versa. Tree roots create two problems…
Root-bound soil: Not much will grow if your soil is full of tree roots. Just too much competition for water and minerals and maybe allelopathic chemicals to boot (Google allelopathic).
Option-1 Remove the tree. If it’s your neighbour’s tree - there’s no Option-1
Option-2 Dig a deep trench twixt tree and garden, cut all the roots, backfill. Works till roots regrow (about 1-2 years). Also risky. Roots anchor trees in the ground. Eastbourne has high winds and sandy soils. You may cause a tree to crash on a house - there’s no Option-2
Option-3 If tree roots are very dense, grow your plants in tubs on pavers. Raised beds will soon be invaded by tree roots from below if not sitting on concrete.
Root-bound drains: Plastic drains are root-proof. But most Eastbourne drains are old earthenware ones with degraded joints. Tree roots just love the nutrient-rich water within. Pongy, root-blocked drains are common in Eastbourne.
Option-1 Plumber Most people wait for the pong, ring for the plumber, and pay. Usually at Christmas when you’ve got visitors. Embarrassing. Next year it’s the same - pong, ring, pay. And the next…
Option-2 Replace Replace earthenware with plastic. •Method-1 Requires a trench. But often drains run under a house extension and a driveway and across another property. Very costly. •Method-2 Reline your drain with pull-through plastic. No trench. Saves your extension and driveway and neighbour. Works well. Similar cost to Method-1 (all depends).
Option-3-Dosing If you have a root blockage, you need a plumber to clear it NOW - health and safety. But then, you throw away your plumber’s business card and ‘dose’ your drains regularly to avoid a recurrence...!
Dosing: Dosing drains with copper sulphate kills any roots that have found their way into the drain but doesn’t hurt the tree. The killed roots soon rot and wash away.
How often? Roots grow twice a year - spring and autumn. Not much in summer (the tree’s too busy aboveground) or winter (it's too cold). So, ‘dose’ your drains on 1 December (kills spring root growth) and on 1 June (kills autumn root growth).
How much? The cost is about $15 per dose, so twice a year costs about $30, so $300 over 10 years. This is very much cheaper than a new plastic drain and also very much cheaper than calling a plumber every year or so to clear the drain.
How? Buy copper sulphate (also called bluestone) from Bunnings. This is the blue stuff you used at school to grow lovely crystals. Dissolve 750 g of copper sulphate in about 4 litres of very hot water in a heat-proof container (not steel). I use a thick-walled, 5 litre, plastic jerry can.
Let it cool down to warm, then pour it into the loo (careful, don't splash) and flush twice - five minutes apart. Then don't run any more water down any drains for several hours (loos, kitchen or bathroom). I treat my drains in the morning of a sunny day before going to work. Copper sulphate stains stainless steel so take care round the kitchen sink.
What happens? The first flush sends the copper sulphate solution from the loo bowl into the U-bend just before the drain. The five-minute wait gives it time to mix in with the other water there. The second flush sends it off down the drain where it contacts the roots. There it sits till you send more water down to wash it away. I give it a few hours. This will kill any roots in the drain and it will also leak out into the soil at points where the drain is a bit leaky and the roots get in. It will leave a root-killing residue there too. ___________________________________