Shrub removal in arid climate (room, cost, basement, tile)

[JrzDefector]

I have 3 large shrubs (one is more of a tree) in front of my house in Denver. I hate 'em. And my housemate refers to them as "spider hotels." I want to have them pulled out, but I have heard that they pull water away from the house.

I do most of my living in my basement and there has been some problem with water seeping in at the back of the house during extreme weather events. I've addressed this by getting an industrial-grade sump pump and putting down tile in the room that has the tendency to take on water. It seems to be working.

I don't think the shrubs help with the water issue because two are at the front of the house at the top of a slope down to the street and the third is at the bottom of the slope.

Am I risking taking on water at the front part of the basement if I pull out those shrubs? I plan to put in other foliage (like rose bushes), but it could take a couple years before I have that kind of money.

[Restrain]

Divert any runoff away from the basement walls, preferably a 6' wide overall slope away. If you are having problems with water penetration, look at sealing the basement walls.

Shrubs that are not drought resistant can be water hogs. Won't prevent water penetration into to the basement but can cost you to have to maintain them. There is alternative low-maintenance drought-resistant native plants you can use in your landscaping.

Hope this helps.

[JrzDefector]

Originally Posted by Restrain

Divert any runoff away from the basement walls, preferably a 6' wide overall slope away. If you are having problems with water penetration, look at sealing the basement walls.

Shrubs that are not drought resistant can be water hogs. Won't prevent water penetration into to the basement but can cost you to have to maintain them. There is alternative low-maintenance drought-resistant native plants you can use in your landscaping.

Hope this helps.

Yes, this is a huge help. I'll yank the shrubs and get on with my plans for landscaping the front yard

I'm hoping the measures I took last year continue to work, but I will look into sealing the basement walls if there's any further issues.

Thank you!

[txfriend]

I just had all my shrubs and two trees removed from the front and back yard that I planted 32 years ago.