A couple of roads down from where I live, there is a massive Rubber tree, Ficus elastica, growing on the pavement. The city isn't very proactive about maintaining sidewalks in this part of town and because this is a Ficus, it's doing a great job of destroying the sidewalk with its invasive root system. Ficus plants make incredible root systems above the soil and while they look very attractive, you can't have them anywhere near the house.
Most people keep Rubber trees as indoor ornamentals, not realising how large they get and it's likely that this "pot plant" outgrew the house and then its owner planted it outside next to the road many years ago. There are no others in the area so I know this was not something planted by the city.
I wonder how many years it will take before the roots start lifting the wall or lifting the road surface before someone realises that they need to cut it down. It will be a sad end to a magnificent tree.
