Question
I have a beautiful Norfolk Pine tree growing 6 feet from my house in Florida.  It is approx. 20 feet tall and the tips of the lower branches now touch my house.  I have 2 questions about this:  1.) As the tree continues to grow and the lower branches get longer, should I be cutting the tips to keep them from buckling up against the wall?  2.)  Someone told me that the root system of this tree grows near the surface of the ground and that there is a good chance that it could crack the foundation and driveway of my house.  Is this true?  Should I have the tree removed?
Thank you for your help!

Answer
The branches should be pruned back to the main trunk or large branch. If you just cut the tips off this leaves an entrance way for fungi to get into the branch. Norfolk pine is not one of the trees that normally gives problems with foundations. Their root system tends to grow down rather than outward. Of course it also depends on how close the tree is to the house. These trees can reach pretty good heights (50- 100 feet) and the main problem in Florida is when they do get large with their large crowns they tend to act like a sail during high winds and topple over--this is where the foundation maybe damaged. If the tree is within 20 feet of the house I would think about replacing it. That is just me it is your tree and you have to decide about it based on your past experiences with the tree.