The Devil's roots

Do any of you masterful gardeners know if there is any way to control the nasty little secondary roots of a Norway maple?
My little house in Bethlehem came with a back yard unattended since the Boer war..
Clay mud and dust..Only green thing was masses of monk's weed,

I have, hard to believe, dug out as many roots as I could get at , some as large as anacondas, added as much compost as was humanly possible, planted clover, then grass seed and it is beginning to look like a yard and not a city dump.
(Did the same with the raging privet which I was able to barrier with aluminum flashing.)

But the maples create a soil eating underground root-monster octopus.
I can't out the trees as this is a rental..
If they cannot be controlled, how long do I have before the yard reverts back to it's previous dreadful state?
Any other masterful maintenance advice?
Thank you from the bottom of my garden!!!!!

(Also posted in 'invasives'..hope that's ok)



* Dave's Garden

Since you're renting would you get in trouble if you purposely killed it?

There are two, and are taller than a 12 story apartment house.
Not possible.

Not that I know of. They have some nasty, hairy, strong roots that are quite near the surface. I removed all my Norways.

Anything you plant in the ground instantly becomes the property of the property owner, so you cannot dig it out and take it with you when you move?

Maybe suggest container gardening on top of the soil, in wine barrels, etc.

That way you can take the containers with you when you go.... then, you can just plant hardy ground covers on top of where the roots are problematic?

I have a similar situation with my mulberry tree.

Oh la. the other giant tree is a mulberry...
I'm really only interested in just getting grass to grow..
That alone will be a gift from the Gods..
I dug down about 10 inches in many places and pulled up as many of the feeders as I humanly could.
25 trips to the compost place and gallons of grass/clover seed has made a staggering difference.

This yard was a garbage dump when I rented...I don't believe any previous tenant set a foot out the backdoor...except to toss out broken glass..
After hauling away 5 huge bags of garbage
I've terraced, build rock walls, made a brick patio,created flower beds, planted wildflowers bent the giant untended privet down to the ground like they do in italy thus creating total privacy, , planted wisteria and lilac against the back fence and rose of sharon where once were broken concrete blocks,put down sod where the privet roots(also gone) had eaten what was left of the lawn and put in ground cover to retard the erosion resulting from the extreme slope.
None of which the property owner could care less about...

My question really has to do with maintenance ..
If I continue to add compost everywhere, will I be able to keep the ravages of the feeder roots at bay?
Or is it all going to revert back to it's Bronx tenement backyard state if I take too long a nap?

I am wondering if the trees are so dense that no light is making its way to the ground / grass.

Maybe, you could thin out the branches of the maple and mulberry .... I know mulberries can take severe pruning and bounce back.

I just harshly pruned my mulberry back from about 30 foot to the gutter line (13 foot?).

Now there are weeds popping up all over under the mulberry where nothing used to sprout.

I am thinking that maybe your biggest problem might be more of a lack of sunlight, than the roots preventing the grass from growing?

gp - that is a lot of work to do for a rental - i think you should think about containers as well - so you can bring them with you when you move. for instance those rose of sharon have very small root systems

I'm doing this for the land, not the landlord..
I hate to see it so neglected and trashed..

Most people in the world would be aghast at such thoughtless behavior and are mindful of even the smallest piece of land..

And thanks to friends donations, stones I've dug out of the ground and stuff I have ferreted out of all sorts of deserted places, I have spent almost no money except for seed and some sod.

Not only is it great exercise, the place is beginning to look lovely..if a bit eccentric.
Regarding the trees, they are old and huge ...trimming them would require much more than I can manage alone..

I do not think it is a matter of lack of sun as there is some during the day due to the angle of the property.

There was just absolutely NO viable soil until I pulled the feeders and composted..

The clover and grass seed seem to be taking and are nearly 2 inches tall now..
And before a rain I scatter a layer of sifted compost over all..
Hopefully doing so is not a fool's errand because of the deep incline, but my rock wall terracing should help...
What happens after the winter snows I have no idea..
But I love hearing any feedback..I am soooo working my way through this.

Would love to see some pics of your labor of love ..... is that possible??

What a lovely thing to say!!!!
But of course thats very scary as you are the professional and I am the poster child for A.D.D whose only gardening experience is with my 100 NYC apartment north-light houseplants...



There are as yet no flowers to speak of as there is still too much clay in the beds..


But I will borrow a camera and bite the bullet...
I stupidly did not take any 'before' pics...
It was too grim..