Should I be worried about my elm tree?

Factual Questions
1

I moved into a new house last year with a large elm tree in the front yard. Over time, erosion has left a good chunk of the trunk, including the top of the root structure exposed.

I know absolutely nothing about trees. What I do know is that if this tree ever fell over towards my house, it would go into my bedroom. Are the roots of elm trees reasonably strong? Would tossing a lot of dirt down make the ground stronger and make the tree less resistant to high winds?

The alternative is to call a tree cutting service and remove it. Of course that means I have to go through some idiotic local board that is supposed to protect large shade trees. Fun.

2

I spoke with my girlfriend (who’s a forester - not an arborist) and she stated that:

  1. her primary concern would be that individual elms are at a fairly significant risk of dutch elm disease, so any efforts to save the tree could very likely end up futile in the long (or short) run.

  2. that said, she wouldn’t consider a generally healthy elm tree be at risk of falling over unless about 50% or so of the roots were exposed.

Hope this helps.

3

It does give me some peace of mind. Thanks very much for the answer.