Big broad tree for garden

about2build

Hi guys,
bit of a novice gardener
Looking to plant a specimen tree in the back garden which is pretty big 50m by 25 m wide
Dont want to be waiting 25 yrs for it to become a bit of a feature!
Any suggestions guys
soil is heavy enough and holds water when it rains heavy

vicwatson

Horse Chestnut?

about2build

Ya it looks good on google images...how long does it take to grow etc?
tks btw

Oldtree

If you plant a fast grower then it will grow fast, the only problem is that it won't stop. What sort of effect are you looking for, shelter/privacy/etc. How large a tree do you want exactly? spread of crown? evergreen or deciduous? flowers? leaf colour? a picture of the garden may help with suggstions.

about2build

Hi Oldtree,
I like to use it as a stand alone specimen tree for aesthetic reasons and also to blockl out the shed, silage pit and wall in the right background of the picture attached...
I would like it to have a broad mushroom type shape and leaf flower etc colour i am open to suggestions
Height isnt an issue though I suppose it would want to be a fair size to be impressive
sorry about my lack of jargon and any suggestions welcome:)

Oldtree

here is a rough alternative for you. You have a large area and in that case you either bring the barrier to you or build a bigger one further away. much the same for privacy. In this instance (from what I can see) it may be better to approach the problem like this.

1. I would put in a hedge here, along the back boundery (with the small wall/fence) and then all the way up to the house on the left boundery. I really like beech but there are many to choose from and will depend on you site conditions.

2.The shed and tall wall on the back right can be covered within a few years(ish) using fast growing trees like willow/alder maby with a few poplar thrown in, or somthing else that you would like to look at. or even a mixed selection. Make sure to plant them a bit away from the wall, to allow both sides of the crown to grow. maby plant a wood down there, u have the space and it cuts down on the grass mowing, and would be a great place for kids to hide.

Poles 3. and 4. I would be inclined to put a poplar in front of those trying to obscure them from the house line of sight. Leave a bit of spave between the tree and the pole so the branches wont thouch the wires.

If it is a thing the immediate pricvacy is needed you could errect trellis immediatly outside a window(s) and grow climbers on it until the trees are doing their job.

this approach will leave more of your garden to be used as beds, vegi beds, boarders, etc.

There is also nothing stopping you then planting a specimin tree in the middle (avoiding the overhead wires) of your own choice rather than somthing I would suggest. Once you have put in the boundry and shelter and decided on the layout of the garden. It is your garden after all.



Whips (small trees 90cm tall to 120 cm) bareroot can be bought in winter in bunches of 25 and are not expensive, Buy them as soon as they come into the gardening center as then you get the pick of the crop and can put them in a healing in bed until you want to plant them out. Come back in winter and I and others can give you more pointers if you need them.

You have space for a small orchard, a wood, a wild area, a lawn, vegetable beds, play area. and most importantly a shed.

Generally speaking have a look in the area around you and see what is growing well and that will be an indicator for you as a starting point for your planting.

about2build

Wow oldtree, thanks so much for taking the time
since that picture was taken i have Laurel hedge planted down along1
as of yet i have nothing in the other places though i like the idea of willow/alder to block off the wall and it wopuld be quick growing
Now there is a lovely view down the valley over the back low wall so I dont want to obstruct that too much... with that in mind I was hoping to keep the specimen tree to the right a bit...
I like the idea of a small wood and i suppose just mix and match trees there.
Do you mean getting bare root whips for the alder/willow/poplar or the hedging?
thanks so much again

looksee

I'd put in a grove of silver birch at the back there!

Oldtree

about2build wrote: »

Do you mean getting bare root whips for the alder/willow/poplar or the hedging?

for both really. the smaller a plant you start with the better it will be in the long run and I have found the 90-120's to be good plants to work with, always have a look at the roots too, nice big juicy ones have more reserves to get the plant through the initial settling in phase.

Oldtree

looksee wrote: »

I'd put in a grove of silver birch at the back there!

Lovely suggestion too, get the winter bark color, but not as spreading a crown, maby plant more

about2build

Silver birch in position 2 in the pic ya? Are they quick growing? how high do they go guys?
Have a lovely bark colour is right

looksee

I have a Himalayan birch that was a decent size when I bought it, about maybe 9ft, and a very bog standard birch that I got in lidl, it was supposed to be a weeping birch but it was just an ordinary one with the branches tied down, about 4/5 ft. I untied them and let it go, it turned silver after a couple of years. Both put in around the same time, possibly 10 years ago. The Himalayan is now about 20 ft and the other about 16. The difference in actual appearance between the two is a bit subtle, the Himalayan is a bit more elegant, but not anything you would notice in a distant grove.

Oldtree

why not go for a jackmonti birch:

http://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/99682/Betula-utilis-var-jacquemontii-Grayswood-Ghost/Details?returnurl=%2fplants%2fsearch-results%3fcontext%3db%25253D0%252526hf%25253D10%252526l%25253Den%252526q%25253Dbirch%252526s%25253Ddesc%25252528plant_merged%25252529%252526sl%25253Dplants%252526r%25253Df%2525252Fplant_plant_type%2525252Ftrees%26s%3ddesc(plant_merged)%26query%3dbirch%26form-mode%3dtrue%26page%3d1%26aliaspath%3d%252fplants%252fsearch-results

whiter than white bark all the way down to the base. there are loads to choose form and as you are starting off take your time and do your research and find trees/plants that you like. The RHS website is a great place to start looking they give heights and spread estimates of mature trees. as well as any of geoff hamiltons books down the library. Patience...

Visit the garden center once an month and see what is in flower that you like or bark color that way you will build up year round interest in your garden.

Oldtree

looksee wrote: »

I have a Himalayan birch that was a decent size when I bought it, about maybe 9ft, and a very bog standard birch that I got in lidl, it was supposed to be a weeping birch but it was just an ordinary one with the branches tied down, about 4/5 ft. I untied them and let it go, it turned silver after a couple of years. Both put in around the same time, possibly 10 years ago. The Himalayan is now about 20 ft and the other about 16. The difference in actual appearance between the two is a bit subtle, the Himalayan is a bit more elegant, but not anything you would notice in a distant grove.

jinx touch wood

about2build

Ya all good advice...dont want to rush into it and end up pulling or cutting out trees but the silver birch has defo taken my fancy.....any idea on suppliers lads.....im in galway thnaks again

Oldtree

There are numerous suppliers but it would be worth you while looking around at the stock quality available in early november when the stock arrives. I have always found mcgaughs out the headford road reliable and helpful. but there are many other nurseries that are good too and they might just have somthing that takes your fancy the McG's dosnt.

If you can't find what you are looking for locally then there are online options of getting trees posted to you by Future Forests in cork for example (i have used them and not been dissapointed, I got a Prunus avium "Plena" from them (look it up:D):

http://www.futureforests.net/

about2build

That my friend is a cool tree and the contrast in the autumn is unreal!!!
ya i have used mcgaughs for the laurels and found them fine
Thanks again
much head scratching to do before november

Oldtree

take you time, it takes years to make a garden imo. you have an opportunity to make somthing that you will love and apreciate full of thinks that will delight you, and it needednt be a chore. As I mentioned read geoff hamilton's books and try not to doo too much at once. Maby start off with the boundry and hedging for shelter and do a basic layout plan to start working on and see how it evolves, decide on where you would like beds etc and dont forget to look our the windows for long views that you may like to preserve, (can leave windows in hedges and move trees a few feet to the right/left) along with spots in the garden that you may like to make completely private, brings new meaning to hiding in the bushes.

Oldtree

i have a lovley contrast out the front with a green beech hedge along the front and a purple beech along the side with 3 jackmonti planted in a triangle adjacent to the hedging. will post a photo later.

about2build

Look forward to seeing that

lazybones32

about2build wrote: »

Hi guys,
bit of a novice gardener
Looking to plant a specimen tree in the back garden which is pretty big 50m by 25 m wide
Dont want to be waiting 25 yrs for it to become a bit of a feature!
Any suggestions guys
soil is heavy enough and holds water when it rains heavy

Man, you are fortunate to have such a fine-sized area!

I'll go with what I'd like:
Dawn Redwood http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Metasequoia_glyptostroboides_001.JPG tolerates wet and waterlogged ground and has very nice mythology associated with it.

Swamp Cypress http://www.treetopics.com/taxodium_distichum/bald_cypress_1040725.png

Japanese Elm - another swamp tree with many different cultivars and makes excellent firewood. Some types grow faster and taller than others http://www.winterhill.com.au/treeimages/zelkautgarden.jpg

My favourite: Acer saccharum - the sugar maple. Will be about 16-20 ft in 10yrs if planted as a whip (so I'm told) and has brilliant Autumn foliage. You could also sell the syrup/sap from the tree and retire early. http://imagehost.vendio.com/a/35088526/aview/1004.jpg Excellent hardwood timber also and sells for a nice penny.

about2build

Very exotic taste there lazy bones!!
not quite sure I have the room or wet enough soils for those, especially the sequias relation!!
any other thoughts hit me with them though

pwurple

Nice size site there... I'd go for a grove of trees as well myself. I'm a fan of irish natives, they grow so well here!

Wild cherry - prunus avium
Mountain Ash or Rowan - Sorbus aucuparia - an Caorthann
Whitebeam - sorbus hibernica
The native birches (silver birch and downey birch)
Maybe blackthorn (sloe) or hawthorns.

Underplant the lot with the irish bluebell... Lovely!

Oldtree

and daffodils and cow slips

looksee

pwurple wrote: »

Nice size site there... I'd go for a grove of trees as well myself. I'm a fan of irish natives, they grow so well here!

Wild cherry - prunus avium
Mountain Ash or Rowan - Sorbus aucuparia - an Caorthann
Whitebeam - sorbus hibernica
The native birches (silver birch and downey birch)
Maybe blackthorn (sloe) or hawthorns.

Underplant the lot with the irish bluebell... Lovely!

Note that's the Irish bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) same as the English Bluebell, but not the Spanish Bluebell (H. Hispanica) they are far too robust and vigorous and are out-breeding the natives!