Home Design and Trees

Carl, do you have any ideas for building a house with an eastern oak tree in the
middle of the property…like a U shaped house?

The Oak Tree towers over a 1 story house right now and, because it’s only an 820 sq. ft home and I want to add on, I think a U shape house can be built around the tree.

Do you have any other suggestions? (I do not want to cut the tree down.)

Nazly


Hi Nazly

As much as I love trees, I would never (again) design a house around a tree!

Sooner or later the tree will die, or become a hazard.

Even with extreme care, the construction activity around the oak tree may (probably will) weaken the tree's root structure and cause or contribute to its early demise.

Consult with a landscape architect for advice on how to utilize the beauty of your tree without creating a future problem.

Then, hire a local home designer to implement your scheme.

A local home designer can and should visit your property to properly envision this scheme.

A U shaped home is just one of many ways to utilize the beauty of the oak tree while the tree is still alive.

My motto is, “It doesn’t cost much more to do it right”.

Remember, I learned everything the hard way so that you (all of you) would not have to.

Carl Heldmann, byoh.com