Trees provide shade, protect your home from strong gusts of wind and add aesthetic value to your backyard. However, not all trees offer the same benefits; certain species can make gutter guard cleaning difficult. Mr. Fix It Virginia lists the kinds of trees you should avoid planting in your yard.
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Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum) — Silver maple is one of the fastest-growing trees and favored for its cool shade. It is related to the sugar maple and grows at about the same rate. Its relatively fast growth rate makes the wood brittle and prone to breaking. It also has a wide, shallow root system that doesn’t present much defense against storms and may even pose a danger to the property itself.
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Cottonwood (Populus sect. Aigeiros) — Cottonwood is typically planted close to large bodies of water for timber production. Cottonwood is prone to rotting, attracts insects, and, like silver maple, has brittle wood. Cottonwood has a relatively short life span of up to 35 years, which makes it costly to keep.
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American Elm (Ulmus americana) — The American elm, also known as white elm or water elm, is notable for its extremely long life span of about 300 to 400 years. While it is a hardy species, it can get very expensive if you decide to have it removed. Also, elm bark beetle dwells in it, which can infect other elm varieties.
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Willow (Genus Salix) — Willows belong to the genus Salix, which is comprised of about 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs. Like the silver maple and cottonwood, willow trees have brittle wood, require a lot of water and have invasive roots.
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Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) — Black walnut is an important tree commercially. The wood is ideal for woodworking, while its nuts are shelled and sold as food. Black walnut trees are allelopathic, which means they excrete toxins from root to tip to ensure their survival. This turns the soil hostile to other types of plants, which makes it undesirable if surrounded by other vegetation.
Whatever tree you end up planting in your yard, protect your gutters with Gutter Helmet®. Once you have it installed, you won’t have to perform gutter guard cleaning ever again. To learn more, call Mr. Fix It Virginia at (866) 985-9437 or fill out our contact form. We serve clients in Ashland, Virginia and surrounding areas.
