# Tree base landscape ideas



## Canuck Mike (Jul 23, 2018)

Any suggestions on how to landscape the base of this maple? The roots are close to the surface so I can't have grass up to the trunk.






Top dressing the garden over time causes a ramp in the grass making it hard to mow low around the tree. 





After cutting the sod and much leveling this is what I have now. Its not bad but I'm just not that happy with it yet.

Any ideas would be great, thnx.


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## Miggity (Apr 25, 2018)

There is a circle already in the sod ~2 feet further from the tree than where the sod ends now. Cut and remove the sod near there. That will give you enough room to mimic a small version of the rest of your landscaping, which looks great BTW.


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

I agree with miggity. Don't fight mother nature. Make the bed bigger and plant more flowers around the tree to match the landscape.


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## pennstater2005 (Jul 17, 2017)

@Canuck Mike I moved this into the landscape sub forum.


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## Canuck Mike (Jul 23, 2018)

Miggity said:


> There is a circle already in the sod ~2 feet further from the tree than where the sod ends now. Cut and remove the sod near there. That will give you enough room to mimic a small version of the rest of your landscaping, which looks great BTW.





g-man said:


> I agree with miggity. Don't fight mother nature. Make the bed bigger and plant more flowers around the tree to match the landscape.


Thank you for the suggestions, it so happens that is what we had there before. Thats why you see the larger ring, grass hasn't filled in yet.




I just wanted to get away from the black loam because of the way it runs off in heavy rain. But I may go back to it and try to stay on top of the build up around the edges. See below.


Thank you guys


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## samjonester (May 13, 2018)

I think the small mulch ring looks a bit unproportional for the size of the trunk. The mulch looks good, just a bit too small of a ring around the tree. Also, those girdling roots at the base may have been caused by the mulch line being too high up the trunk, you should only mulch to the root flare on a tree.

Size aside, if you'd like to keep the mulch, and want a change from the ground cover, I always think that a stone boarder of some sort around the mulch line looks sharp when I see it walking the neighborhood. It creates a nice contrast to the mulch and grass. I've got a couple large maples like that. I've mulched around one, but the other is in my side yard (next years lawn project). I'll probably be putting a stone ring around them next year.

Here's an example (not my picture):


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## Canuck Mike (Jul 23, 2018)

samjonester said:


> I think the small mulch ring looks a bit unproportional for the size of the trunk.


I agree with you. I had seen the black mulch on other properties and liked it. Something wasn't right when I did mine. Chances are I'll be cutting a larger ring in the spring.  That new PRG was just getting on its feet.


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