My Roof is Being Replaced: What About All My Plants?!

When you have your roof replaced it can cause serious damage to shrubbery, lawns, and flower beds. Even though most roofing companies do their best to keep damage and debris to a minimum, it cannot always be avoided. Roofing Contractors get asked the questions
like, “what about my Japanese Maple” or “my winning roses”. If this sounds familiar and you have a valuable plant, your involvement in protecting them while the roof is being replaced is very important.

There are some things that you can do as a homeowner to protect your plants. First and foremost, if you can move it, then do it. Container plants can be transported to other areas of the lawn or under a porch out of harm’s way. If you can, you can even move them indoors. If you need to move bigger planters, a dolly or hand truck will make it much easier. Do not try to lift it yourself if it is too heavy. If you have hanging pots or window boxes those need to be moved if possible. Another thing you can do is cover them. When you remove a roof you have to understand that it is a huge undertaking and that, even though the roofers do a great job at making sure the debris is contained, there are times that it is inevitable that it finds it’s way into
shrubbery and lawns. They can’t predict if Mother Nature has a huge wind gust and blows pieces into your plants. Roofers put down tarps, but if you have trees that you want to protect as well, you might want to wrap old sheets around them as well.

One thing you want to take into consideration is the length of time it is going to take to build your roof. If your roof takes more than one day you need to be cautious. Plants need air and sun to survive, so you should uncover them after the roofers have gone for the day and re-cover them in the morning. This will help with them breathe and prevent the weight of the sheet or tarp from damaging the trees. For smaller, more delicate plants you should create a tent.
Covering them is not the best idea because they will get crushed by the weight of the tarps etc. The best way to do this is use posts, or sticks to prop a heavy duty tarp over them.

In any case, if you have concerns please take extra steps in helping your roofing contractor protect your investments. The last thing your roofing contractor wants
to happen is damage to your home in any way.