Building Around Trees and Other Green Stuff

In the pursuit of political correctness in our society we see ourselves doing a lot more in order to show how sensitive we are to our environment. Going beyond political correctness it could simply be said as trying to do the right thing.

Now more than ever, we see this sensitivity being brought to the forefront of the interface between the built and the natural environment which is best represented by the ever popular "respect the tree" paradigm.

It is now of course better to build around existing trees rather than to bulldoze them over as would be the case years earlier when builders were of a more unenlightened lot. These are after all more enlightened times and to do otherwise might be simply viewed as barbaric.

The Mt. Malarayat Experiment

Respecting the environment in design and construction is a commendable effort. An effort which has been more and more pushed onto the psyche of a lot of the younger designers out there. No thanks in small part to the Mt. Malarayat clubhouse design built by the Active Group people which showcases the ultimate in "tree respect" as they built their lobby around it.

Of course, notwithstanding the numerous times they did try to get rid of it initially and were met with a series of unfortunate events, their resulting redesign of the lobby was and is inspiring to the green at heart.

Of course giving the Active Group credit for doing what they did as a first in the Philippines will probably bring a lot of people to howling. Of course they were not the first to think of building around a tree, just ask some Filipinos who live in forests and some who actually build homes on tree tops.

The high profile of the project doesn't hurt though in bringing the concept to a wider audience though.

More and more designers are doing this approach now which is a good thing. Saving the environment is a good thing.

However, it is true that more and more designers are hopping onto the green wagon but the thing is, most are just hopping in without really bothering to know why.

Building Around a Tree is Good

Well yes, most of the time, but only if you know how. Sometimes building around a tree instead of just cutting it down is actually sentencing it to die as well but only in a much slower way.

Of course, with technology not seeming to slow down its progress anytime soon, anything is somehow seems possible.... as long as you have the money though.

Placing rootguards, having automatic and customized irrigation, hydroponics and other available and soon to be available products will allow you to plant or build around trees almost anywhere.

Of course reality always comes knocking on imagination's doors invevitably.

Building around trees can get financially restrictive but it doesn't have to be. The key is to simply understand trees better.

The Way of the Tree Root

Of course, one of the best ways to understand a tree is to understand its roots.

Tree root systems consist of large perennial roots and smaller, short-lived, feeder roots.

The large, woody tree roots and their primary branches increase in size and GROW HORIZONTALLY. They are predominantly located in the top 6 to 24 inches of the soil and usually do not grow deeper than 3 to 7 feet. Root functions include water and mineral conduction, food and water storage, and anchorage.

In contrast, feeder roots, although averaging only 1/16 inch in diameter, constitute the major portion of the root system's surface area. These smaller roots GROW OUTWARD AND PREDOMINANTLY UPWARD from the large roots near the soil surface, where minerals, water and oxygen are relatively abundant.

So much for the thought of just building around a tree and wishing the roots grow downwards instead of horizontally, upwards or deeper.

The thing is, unless we genetically or physically modify the tree we are building around somehow we have to respect the space it needs to grow and not just the immediately visible part of it such as the trunk and branches.

Easy with the Construction

Another thing to consider is the construction activity to be done around the tree as well. Root destruction, soil removal and soil compaction from construction equipment and activity do happen and should be taken into consideration.

One of the biggest killers of trees (especially in the urban areas)is soil compaction. Soil compaction restricts water and oxygen uptake by roots, and is associated with roads, parking lots, foot traffic, construction machinery, livestock, poor soil preparation, and a host of other factors.

Changes in soil depth around trees also can cause injury to root systems. The addition of only 4 to 6 inches of soil over a root zone drastically reduces the amount of oxygen and water available to the roots. Removal of soil around a tree can expose and injure roots, change the soil conditions where roots grow, and reduce water availability as well.

Serving Solutions

Oftentimes the least expensive and simplest solution is the one we overlook.

Just going onto a site and having a survey done before drawing out a plan would have been great. Issues with trees or other visible and not so visible landmarks could have been dealt with right away and the design wouldn't have to be compromised.

Of course, anyone well versed in construction knows that it is really what's underneath the surface of the site which matters most of the time and is the cause of a lot of adjustments in the design. Hence the better argument of scoping out trees before they are dealt with since they do have a lot going on underneath.

Build it Where it's Bad: Humanap Ka ng Pangit!

If you really want to do something about the environment and would want to leave our trees alone, maybe you should start looking at the worst site possible to build on instead of the best ones on your next project.

We do have different crierias for what makes a site the worst and what makes it the best. Let me qualify my words first before we proceed so we'll all be on the same page. My qualifications for the worst and the best are in the purely aesthetic. The best being one with good green grass and healthy trees and the worst being the ugly almost barren land.

Given the choice between these two where we should build, granted that they are equal in soil stability (e.g. bearing capacity, etc.) we more often than not go for the beautiful one.

I say, why don't we choose the worst one instead since we'll be covering it with concrete or whatever anyway.

Not building on the "best" our lands has to offer is one way we can minimize impact on the enviromnent not to mention preserving a lot of good natural amenities. And actually, building on the "worst" areas and turning them into one of our "best" as well is not bad. It's a good thing.


Note: Tree facts in this article are taken from the Colorado State University Cooperative Extension as reported by J.M. Sillick, former Colorado State University student, and W.R. Jacobi, professor; bioagricultural sciences and pest management.

Ben Tumbling loves architecture and the environment as much as he loves to tumble.