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Originally Posted by misher
To be honest most of the costs of trees are actually related to maintenance. You need a specialized company with a boom to go up and cut the damn branches. The greenery+shade causes large amounts of rot/mold on buildings (especially the old wooden ones), the roots of trees almost always penetrate the membrane eventually resulting in large leaks+levies such as this one for $550,000 https://bc.ctvnews.ca/554k-price-tag-to-replace-iconic-tree-at-top-of-condo-building-1.3401073. This is one crazy example as trees will penetrate the concrete with roots much more aggressively if they are not well watered (such as during 3 months of water restrictions) and the city required that the tree be replaced which is a giant cost considering how high up it is. The costs associated with trees come close to doubling the maintenance of some low-rise wood buildings (not counting in the cost of utilities). The roots are strong enough to penetrate concrete like tofu. In a certain Vancouver shopping centre you'll notice that there back trees have demolished the back road and parkades of neighboring properties.
For planters, especially above ground ones, the membrane fails quickly and results in leaks. This requires you to dig up the planter to get at the leak (which is a huge cost).
Trees do look great and buildings with landscaping above the ground floor look cool. But the cost in maintenance is insane. There's this new building in Richmond (along minoru I believe) with above ground planters going up the side with no access and I have no idea how they will maintain those planters economically.
We're also having more and more buildings put common area planters in places that require unit access to reach. As you can imagine, getting Owners to cooperate and let landscapers in every month during a weekday is an effort in futility.
Anyway sorry for my venting. I just wanted to explain landscaping from a maintenance perspective as people always discuss the pros/cons of having greenery without realizing the long-term costs. |
Wow, going against one of the last vestiges of keeping climate change at bay, also landscaping reduces the urban heat island effect, reducing the need for air-conditioners and the energy they consume, exacerbating climate change in themselves. This was a rain forest until very recently you idiot and is surrounded by forest. There's spores in the air thus Moss grows and things rot when they get wet.
Also I am now one of the numerous people who must tell you to read the articles you post:
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But he said the massive bowl holding the soil and tree needs to be re-waterproofed anyway, so "maybe it's a blessing in disguise."
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The tree died because the watering mechanism stopped working while the suite was vacant and nobody knew until it was too late, owned by a foreign investor nonetheless. Also all architectural landscaping in new buildings are watered by automatic systems, they don't get people with cute watering cans to do that anymore. Most architectural trees are grown for their specific use to not need much maintenance like trimming.
Anyone who knows
anything about building maintenance,
as you claim you do, knows that membranes on foundations, planters and balconies need to be replaced/rebuilt every 30 or so years.
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This is one crazy example as trees will penetrate the concrete with roots much more aggressively if they are not well watered
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Suddenly concrete buildings are natural water storage aquifers?
and suddenly the high demand, high skill job of "digging up planters" is going to sink the cost of all landscaping so we should go back to a paved paradise?
What landscaper (likely hired by your parents) told you that 'digging' was expensive? You... are a tool, and not one of those useful tools like a shovel for all that expensive digging!
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