Question
QUESTION: Our house is 6 years old.  The landscapers planted 2 juniper spartans within 1 yard of our house foundations.  One is 1 yard from the corner of our house and driveway, the other is at the corner of our garage and dining room.  Are these likely to cause problems for our foundations and driveway?

They also planted 2 pink flowering magnolias within 2 yards from the corner of each end of our house.  One is within 2 yards of the driveway.  Are these going to cause problems to our foundations and driveway as well?  These magolias also have a fungus that we can't get rid of, it started looking like white/grey scales on trunk then turned black.  We have tried fungoil and eight spray neither help.

We live in northeast ny.

Thank you

Thank you

ANSWER: The juniper has a width of about 5 feet when mature meaning the branches will reach out about 3 feet, so 3 feet from the house will be ok IF the tree is kept pruned so the branches do not reach the house. The roots of juniper will not be a problem to the foundation.

The magnolia tree is a tree that will spread to a width of about 15-20 feet so 6 feet from the house is too close. Magnolia roots can be a problem to walkways and possible foundation. I would move the tree out at least 20 feet from the house and driveway. That way the roots nor the branches will be a problem in the future.

Please send the pictures especially of the bark. The sooty mold sounds like a scale problem. Scale insects suck the plant juices form the twigs and secrete a substance called honeydew which is high in sugar content and sticky. A sooty mold will grow on this honeydew. Control the scales and the sooty mold will stop growing and go away. Treat the soil around the tree with an insecticide called Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub Insect Control. This is a applied to the soil around the tree and the roots will pick it up and carry it to the twigs and foliage and when the scale feeds on the plant juices they are killed, For large tree it may take a week or so for the insecticide to reach the upper parts of the tree. Here is a web link to this product.

http://www.bayeradvanced.com/tree-shrub-care

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magnolia disease   QUESTION: I have attached images of our landscaped trees to see if you think they are too close.  there are also some shrubs that i have pruned under garage window not sure what they are and if there roots will be a problem too.  also photos of magnolia disease.

ANSWER: The shrub pictures did not come through but shrubs roots do not cause any foundation problems. Usually their roots are more fibrous and not large.
The magnolia does have scale problems. The Bayer product will take care of these.   

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plants in front of gar   QUESTION: these are the plants in front of the garage

Answer
It is one of the juniper shrubs. There are juniper species that are not trees but grow only as shrubs some will not grow over a foot high, some about three feet high. There are many species and I can not ID the species form the picture. These can be kept small by pruning them to what ever height you want. Being a shrub there roots are not a concern near foundations. I hope this is what you were looking for.