One of the most common issues encountered with any type of cementitious paving surface is the damage that growing tree roots can cause. Upheaval is a common problem in any city that places trees in sidewalks.
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| Photo gathered from: lancaster.unl.edu |
Trees depend on water and nutrients to reach their root tips and in a natural setting, the roots grow in such a way as to collect those nutrients. In a concrete area, they must accomplish the same goals, but the concrete can prevent much of the water and many nutrients from reaching the root system. So the tree roots pop up, causing major damage to walkways.
Pavingstones have long been a way to reduce the costs of damage that trees can cause, since you can pull out individual units, trim the roots, reset the base and replace the pavers. Otherwise you would need to cut out the concrete, or have a grinding tool.
But what if you didn't have to do any of that sort of maintenance? Is there a way to have a safe walking surface and be able to get water to the roots?
Permeable Pavers can be a great solution to this problem. Permeable pavers allow a hardscape surface to act more like a natural surface by allowing water to penetrate to the roots.
Below is an example of a project using Hydro-Flo Technology Permeable Pavers for a specific area. The homeowners really liked this tree, and wanted to keep it where it was, but they were also interested in having paved access to the back of the property. As a result, they chose Hydro-Flo Permeable pavers to negate the impacts of paving over the roots.
You can see how some areas are absorbing water to be passed to the subsoil and to the roots. This installation required minimal destruction of the roots as well. There you have it...you CAN have the best of both worlds!
