Landscape help

[hbomdiggity]

We have a huge bird of paradise in the front of our house and I think it has to go :-(.

The foundation guy said it is pushing up against the foundation and suggested we remove it. It cracked the concrete bed edge and doing the same to the house.

Our regular landscape crew thinned it some, but a tree trimmer came today and said there is nothing he can do - apparently they just get bigger and bigger at the base. He also suggested remove, which I trust a bit more.

The problem is i like the height it gives and i have no clue what would be better. Not to mention removal and replacing will be $$$.

Any suggestions? There are two small palms to its right and then a bougainvillea (which has filled out and needs direction/not sure it's right for the space).

[treedimensional]

I don't see anything resembling a Bird of Paradise there.
But that's aside from the point. Whether it's a Bird of Paradise or a Palm (which is what I see) it is a MONOCOT and their roots are tiny. Monocots include GRASS and BAMBOO. Monocots also do not produce actual wood. They're made of tightly bound bundles of fiber.
I can't imagine something like this cracking a foundation. IMO the foundation would have to be structurally compromised to begin with. Now, having said all that, palms and other monocots are very easy to dig up and transplant (like I said, tiny root systems) and because they have no real wood, they are extremely easy to saw through. Like butter. You don't have to hire it out.
If you want to transplant it, call a few Certified Arborists and ask them if they do that and what it would cost. I think that area would look great with a row of colorful Crotons.

[hbomdiggity]

It's a bop, I promise.

The guy that came today is an arborist.

[treedimensional]

Jun 24, 2013 19:57:25 GMT -5 hbomdiggity said:

It's a bop, I promise.

The guy that came today is an arborist.

Hey, you know your plant better than me! I've never seen one bigger than 5' tall. But still... it's in the grass family. And was the guy a Certified Arborist? There is a big difference. If he's a Certified Arborist, ask him if it can be moved. He should be able to give you some guidelines.

[TBM]

Jun 24, 2013 20:09:14 GMT -5 treedimensional said:

Jun 24, 2013 19:57:25 GMT -5 hbomdiggity said:

It's a bop, I promise.

The guy that came today is an arborist.

Hey, you know your plant better than me! I've never seen one bigger than 5' tall. But still... it's in the grass family. And was the guy a Certified Arborist? There is a big difference. If he's a Certified Arborist, ask him if it can be moved. He should be able to give you some guidelines.

We had one at our CA house that was at least 12 ft. tall.   Not uncommon there.