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Hi. We would like to plant a Newport Plum to provide shade for our patio. The tree grows to about 15 feet high and wide. We would like to plant it as close as possible to the patio to take advantage of the shade canopy. What is the closest I can go to avoid having growing roots damage the patio?
It would seem that plum trees put out lots of roots near the surface. The best info i could find indicates root spread and suckering to be about 9 feet (3 meters) in all directions.
You can plant the Plum in the middle of the patio if you would like. You could build a raised planter and install your Plum in the middle. Our company installed a beautiful 4" caliper Paper Bark Maple this way and it has done wonderfully for 6 years.
Plum roots are not aggressive. In fact - Plum trees typically die or are blown over because the canopy grows 2-3 times faster than rate of the root system. If you get a Plum make sure that you prune the canopy once or twice a year to promote better root growth.
Here is the key - the further away you install the tree the longer it will take to shade the patio. Also, the Plum tree has very low hanging branches - its natural growth habit. If you want to sit under the tree or have the tree hang over the patio for transition between spaces (patio and planting bed) then I would recommend another type of tree or maybe install a pergola.
