What would you do?

[A Closet Canuck]

Last night I tried to dig a hole in the perfect spot for the perfect climbing rose. About8 inches down, I ran into massive roots from the neighbor's cedar, a columnar cedar along the fence line, behind my board fence.

It would take substantial effort to dig out the roots but it could be done so I could plant the perfect rose in the perfect (design-wise) spot. But, it might mean the neighbor's cedar will end up dying.

It's a dilemma. What would you do?

[Elena Zimmerman]

I would not cut the roots off without talking to the neigbour. After all your rose will probably end up being their borrowed landscape. If the spread is so massive, I doubt the tree would die. For the rose, you want to sheet-off the tree's roots to prevent the competition. Not that I have ever done that!