Why are there tubes in the ground near neighbourhood trees?

August 14, 2007 10:23 PM

Why is black plastic tubing coming out of the ground next to trees in my street?

A number of trees in my street have black tubing coming 10-20 cm out of the ground next to them.

See http://img265.imageshack.us/img265/1267/pipesfc9.jpg

What are these for? They are very wide and get filled up with junk.

posted by cwhitfcd to home & garden (3 comments total)

I've wondered about these too. I'm not sure what they're for but have seen similar pipes around many new tree plantings. I guess I've always assumed they're a way of delivering fertilizer/ventilation/water to a tree's deep roots as it establishes itself after transplanting.
posted by contraption at 10:58 PM on August 14, 2007

I think what you're seeing is probably part of a aeration system somtimes built around trees to protect them during some types of construction.
posted by BostonJake at 11:14 PM on August 14, 2007

Those are root drains--they're installed when the tree is planted to deliver water directly to the tree's roots. Typically, you see/install root drains when planting trees along a sidewalk; without root drains, water can't reach the tree's roots and they'll lift the concrete or asphalt as they grow.
posted by fandango_matt at 12:24 AM on August 15, 2007 [3 favorites has favorites]