Hi. I have a Canary Island Date tree that I love, because it's beautiful, and a home to many birds and some squirrels. It's right outside my living room window, and I look at the huge trunk from inside. I've planted some roses about at the drip line, and a few smaller plants inside the drip line, peruvian lilies, canna, calla. All are happy. I would love to plant a Potato Vine to climb the trunk, and hide the big bulging mass of (dead?) roots that are at the bottom of the trunk. I wouldn't want to do anything if it might hurt the date palm. A horticulturist told me I could just cut a hole right in those (dead? ariel?) roots and plant it right next to the trunk. But I decided to get a second opinion. The CIDP is about 60 years old, and seems perfectly healthy to me. It would sure look great with a potato vine growing up it's 20 feet of trunk. I live in Santa Cruz, CA. Maybe I should trim away the roots at the bottom of the trunk, above the ground, so that it's the same diameter as the rest of the trunk, and then just plant in the ground next to the trunk? That would look even better. The potato vine is in a 5 gallon pot and I would have to dig a hole twice as wide. Thank you. - Roze (loves trees; doesn't know much about them) PS: How long do date palms live?