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Help - weed with roots in wall

adammarschall18adammarschall18 Posts: 3
in Problem solving
Hi all, first time poster, apologies if this is in the wrong place. 

A family member recently called me round to take a look at some cracks along on a retaining wall of a raised gravel courtyard. I am by no means a gardener or structural engineer, but I am apparently "youthful" enough to be knowledgeable :smile:

I noticed some weeds growing alongside the wall (see attached photos, the photos are large, so I attached them as files). I removed the stems and leaves off one plant to see where the root was going and on close inspection the roots appear to be going into the wall itself, resulting in the visual damage. 

For context, in the vicinity of these weeds are 7 "mini" conifers that have been there for a number of years, a large rose bush, another small bush (no idea what it is) and because my family member has been unable to attend to the garden; a large amount of ivy. 

My question is, do you think the weeds caused the damage themselves? or do you think the damage was already there and the weeds have rooted into the cracks? 

Bonus points if anyone call tell me what the weed is! 

Thanks in advance


Posts

  • LoxleyLoxley Posts: 5,698
    Centranthus ruber, I think it's possible that its roots can get into small cracks and widen them, causing damage to facing brickwork. I think it's unlikely they could do real structural damage to a major retaining wall, presuming it's reasonably well built. If it's a small flimsy sort of wall they could though.
    "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour". 
  • adammarschall18adammarschall18 Posts: 3
    Hi Loxley, thank you for the clarification. I'll get a professional to assess the damage on the wall first - but knowing what we are dealing with is a good start. Have a great weekend, thanks again.
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    I agree and don't think they would cause structural damage to anything other than an already damaged dry stone wall.  However, some conifers have roots which can do that sort of thing..
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • adammarschall18adammarschall18 Posts: 3
    Hi BobTheGardener - excellent, thanks for the reassurance. The impression I had was that the conifers were more than likely the root cause (excuse the pun). Have a great weekend. 
  • LoxleyLoxley Posts: 5,698
    They're a pretty plant, but trying to tug the damn things out of my mum's rockery has put me off them somewhat...
    "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour". 
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