Put some Round Up in a cup of some sort and put the root in the cup. I use a margerine tub with a lid, cut out the side to fit the root.:o)

If it's like the big honkin oak roots under my pavers, it's not something you can stick in a cup.
Can you Round up the leaves? or is there something for stumps you could use?

Coffeemom, if you can find a small piece of the root that goes to the big root, that's all you need. It might take a while, but it will suck it up. But if the root is still attached to the tree it will kill the tree too. In this case, they said they cut the root from the tree, but it was still growing. Round Up also makes a brush killer that is even stronger. :o)

How about a propane torch instead? Try to burn out enough of the root so it doesn't come back?

I would be afraid to RoundUp the leaves in case it's still attached to the tree. You might not be able to see a connection in a tangle of roots. Maybe I would do it if I was really, really positive it was no longer connected. You know what you went through to cut it so you are in the best position to know if it's a clear break.

But I would also be concerned that if there's even a small part of the root left it would keep trying to grow. Whatever method you use, I think you may have to do it several times before the root stops trying to be a tree again.

Thanks, good ideas. A neighbor suggested rock salt on the brick sidewalk as I am sure I seperated the root from the tree. I would rather loose the tree than tear up the walkway and dig the root out. Anybody heard of using rock salt?

Enough salt will prevent anything from growing. In ancient wars one of the tactics was to salt the fields of the enemy. This would lead to famines and easier victory for the invaders*. I would go with RoundUp because it has much less residual effect than the salt. Salt may be considered more "natural" than a commercial weed killer, but in this case I think the weed killer is safer and more controllable.

What do you organics folks think? Is there a better way to do this?

Kate

*No extra charge for today's history lesson :~))

Just because something is organic doesn't necessarily mean it's safe. I think putting a lot of salt into your soil might not be a great idea. I'm with Solstice. You could control the Round Up better, and it's not one of the really awful products that you don't want to touch with a ten foot pole. Round Up going directly into the tree root sounds environmentally friendlier than salt going into the aquifer.

Just my thoughts, for what they're worth. (Not overly much around here! *grin*)

Marcia

How big is the tree and where is the walkway? You really have to think about these things. If it's in your back yard and you really want to keep the tree then give up the walkway to the tree. It the tree is in your front yard and the walkway is a common walkway you have a problem. Either way you'll probably not win trying to inhibit roots under the walkway unless you want to remove the bricks and physically remove the roots every few years. The problem with that plan is that it will always weaken that side of the tree and given the fact we live in an area that occasionally (snicker) get hurricanes you'll always be at risk for a blow-over 180 degrees opposite the root cuttings. Sorry folks, I was a tree trimmer before becoming a pharmacist...we all had past lives ;-). Don't contaminate your soil and surroundings trying to kill a few roots....Bottom line, you have to make a decision which is more improtant.

If you know someone handy with electricity and for sure knows how to be safe with it too, except of course for the roots sake, Have them hook up the roots to 110 or 220v for a while. They will be gone in no time. If you like to fish, get a container ready for the worms that come screaming outta the soil too.

I've heard that drilling holes in a root and then filling the holes with herbicide can work. I've also heard of drilling a stump and repeatedly filling with gasoline over some days or weeks. Then burning the stump. (This supposedly can cause smoke to rise from the ground, here and there, at considerable distances from the crown.) I've killed smilax roots by sticking the stem ends into bottles of herbicide; might work similarly were you able to find a root end and jam it into a container of Roundup. (Make sure children and other creatures can't get near the container.) I once killed a mulberry stump by cutting back the stems, letting it sucker, and spraying the sucker foliage with Roundup--but I've always assumed that was just luck. A personal favorite is an 18V battery-powered reciprocating saw with a pruning blade (an underappreciated gardening tool, I've always thought). One would think some combination of the above would work on an elm. If not, I might be interested in acquiring a cutting.

Again, thanks for all the ideas. I sprayed new growth that has sprouted from the severed root with roundup. The drake elm is about five years old and stands behind the screened patio. Acess to the walkway is limited to us and guests. Since replanting a tree would be easier I think than taking up the bricks, I will try to kill the root and chance the tree not making it. the tree would fall in a storm away from the house. As for a cutting, I would not know how to do it. It self seeds a few new trees in my bark mulch every year. Anyone wanting me to save a few to transplant next fall can let me know. They transplant well as I have done this a couple of times.