Best Trees or Mix of Trees for Roadside/Driveway

baaba maal

DonalB1 wrote: »

I was on their website yesterday and they were open at 3pm despite saying they weren't opening until 8pm, now it's closed again until next Sunday.

Ah, I was wondering because they had been due to open yesterday alright but weren't when I looked today. Personally, I want to order asap- given the year that's in it, I don't know if supply lines etc. are affected.

Treehelpplease

i love that you're doing this. So much of the Irish countryside's housing is accompanied by vast lands of nothing but grass and/or low quality looking, self seeded hedgerows. You have incredible plans and I hope more follow you!

One recommendation for me would be something with some autumn interest. For that I have two recomendations. Firstly, the Liquid Amber. A very nice tree, it goes a deep red in the autumn. Second, one I have, a Red Oak. Similar looking to an oak but it goes through a yellow, orange and red phase in the summer. It grows very big (and apparaently quickly) so would be a good 'landmark' tree if you want it closer to the house and something nice to look at

DonalB1

Treehelpplease wrote: »

i love that you're doing this. So much of the Irish countryside's housing is accompanied by vast lands of nothing but grass and/or low quality looking, self seeded hedgerows. You have incredible plans and I hope more follow you!

One recommendation for me would be something with some autumn interest. For that I have two recomendations. Firstly, the Liquid Amber. A very nice tree, it goes a deep red in the autumn. Second, one I have, a Red Oak. Similar looking to an oak but it goes through a yellow, orange and red phase in the summer. It grows very big (and apparaently quickly) so would be a good 'landmark' tree if you want it closer to the house and something nice to look at

Wow...both of those suggestions are amazing.

I actually took all the suggestions on here and planned as well as I could. I planted some silver birch with some arbutus unedo along the road up to the house and across the road at my neighbours also. And then along the road I’ve planted a mix of mountain ash, birch, alder, and further from the house some oak. I’ve made room for more too as I’m constantly looking. Any idea where I could get your suggestions in Ireland?

Also anyone know how to protect young strawberry trees from rabbits and hares, the guards are too restrictive and they’re evergreen.

looksee

I am protecting young trees from the resident rabbits by just cutting a piece of chicken wire (I happen to have the large hole one so I am doubling it over to reduce the hole size, shaping it round in a fairly generously sized 'tube' and wiring together the opening. In some of them I threaded a cane down it to just hold it in place, but some don't need it. Its fairly rough and ready but does the job (and got a lot easier since I got some sprung snips to cut the wire!)

Treehelpplease

DonalB1 wrote: »

Wow...both of those suggestions are amazing.

I actually took all the suggestions on here and planned as well as I could. I planted some silver birch with some arbutus unedo along the road up to the house and across the road at my neighbours also. And then along the road I’ve planted a mix of mountain ash, birch, alder, and further from the house some oak. I’ve made room for more too as I’m constantly looking. Any idea where I could get your suggestions in Ireland?

Also anyone know how to protect young strawberry trees from rabbits and hares, the guards are too restrictive and they’re evergreen.

They should be very easy to find in Ireland. I got my Red Oak in Hillside Nurseries in Cork City. It was around €50 I think for a 10 feet potted tree. It's a very small nursery and yet they had loads of Red Oaks and Liquid Ambers. I believe you live in the west of Ireland and they don't seem to deliver but I'd imagine most nurseries have them. Also to clarify I meant that summer phase thing in the autumn, not summer.

Cork Trucker

Can anyone tell me how do i go about getting trees planted, is it a standard gardener or a landscaper? Totally new to all of this so i'm clueless. Some concrete will need to be broken away to do it.

TIA

macraignil

Cork Trucker wrote: »

Can anyone tell me how do i go about getting trees planted, is it a standard gardener or a landscaper? Totally new to all of this so i'm clueless. Some concrete will need to be broken away to do it.

TIA

Both a landscaper and gardener should be able to plant trees. It's not a very complicated process and there are guides to it available on the internet to inform anyone how best to go about it. Larger trees may need machinery to move into place so that would be more the business of a landscape company. Removing concrete is more construction and building related but anybody with some construction site experience and the motivation should be able to use a con saw (if needed), kango hammer, bucket and shovel to take away the concrete or if its a big area of concrete the machinery designed to do these processes. I think both landscapers and gardeners should be able to do what you say needs to be done. Get a quote from a few before seeing who would do the best job at a price your happy with.

looksee

How big are the trees? How many? If they are already well grown enough to need machinery to plant them, look at asking the nursery where you buy them for advice on who does tree planting. If they are young trees - the size that most garden centres sell, its a straightforward enough job, just needs a little bit of awareness of the best approach.

(Almost) anyone with basic equipment can take up concrete, again depending on quantity, but you will probably need someone with a truck to remove the concrete and a mini-digger to deal with what is under the concrete. You will almost certainly need a load of topsoil to replace the concrete. If you are lucky you will just find subsoil under the concrete, or you could find various kinds of hardcore or rubbish which will have to be removed.

Without very definite credentials/recommendations I would not let any randomer loose with several hundred euros worth of trees, and unfortunately there are a lot of people out there who call themselves gardeners or landscapers with not a shred of skill to entitle them to that title. I have had people who couldn't identify really basic shrubs - holly, flowering currant, John's-wort, suggesting they could do gardening for me. I'd get the groundwork done then plant the trees myself, but its fair to say that not everyone has the time/ physical capabilities etc to do practical gardening.

Don't avoid the job just because you think you do not have knowledge. Its not difficult to learn what needs to be done. You will need a digging spade and probably a mattock (to hack into the subsoil). If the soil is poor some compost and possibly a small amount of commercial bagged manure (not fresh, which will do damage) but this last is not essential. You may also need stakes and ties, but that depends on the size of the trees.

Choosing the trees to start is probably the most technical job, do get trees that suit the soil, your geographical area and the conditions, otherwise you are just wasting money. I am dealing with a site that has an unreasonable amount of mature alders and willows on land that is rich and very free draining. Alders and willows grow fine, but they would prefer wetter soil and are inclined to send out roots looking for water and robbing everything around them. There are also numerous self-sown but now mature sycamores which don't add a great deal to a garden, beyond being generic trees. I would prefer something more interesting.

Tell us what size and quantity of trees you have, and what they are and we can give you more detailed information. Even if you get someone to do it, knowing what you should be looking for will help you choose someone.

Cork Trucker

macraignil wrote: »

Both a landscaper and gardener should be able to plant trees. It's not a very complicated process and there are guides to it available on the internet to inform anyone how best to go about it. Larger trees may need machinery to move into place so that would be more the business of a landscape company. Removing concrete is more construction and building related but anybody with some construction site experience and the motivation should be able to use a con saw (if needed), kango hammer, bucket and shovel to take away the concrete or if its a big area of concrete the machinery designed to do these processes. I think both landscapers and gardeners should be able to do what you say needs to be done. Get a quote from a few before seeing who would do the best job at a price your happy with.

looksee wrote: »

How big are the trees? How many? If they are already well grown enough to need machinery to plant them, look at asking the nursery where you buy them for advice on who does tree planting. If they are young trees - the size that most garden centres sell, its a straightforward enough job, just needs a little bit of awareness of the best approach.

(Almost) anyone with basic equipment can take up concrete, again depending on quantity, but you will probably need someone with a truck to remove the concrete and a mini-digger to deal with what is under the concrete. You will almost certainly need a load of topsoil to replace the concrete. If you are lucky you will just find subsoil under the concrete, or you could find various kinds of hardcore or rubbish which will have to be removed.

Without very definite credentials/recommendations I would not let any randomer loose with several hundred euros worth of trees, and unfortunately there are a lot of people out there who call themselves gardeners or landscapers with not a shred of skill to entitle them to that title. I have had people who couldn't identify really basic shrubs - holly, flowering currant, John's-wort, suggesting they could do gardening for me. I'd get the groundwork done then plant the trees myself, but its fair to say that not everyone has the time/ physical capabilities etc to do practical gardening.

Don't avoid the job just because you think you do not have knowledge. Its not difficult to learn what needs to be done. You will need a digging spade and probably a mattock (to hack into the subsoil). If the soil is poor some compost and possibly a small amount of commercial bagged manure (not fresh, which will do damage) but this last is not essential. You may also need stakes and ties, but that depends on the size of the trees.

Choosing the trees to start is probably the most technical job, do get trees that suit the soil, your geographical area and the conditions, otherwise you are just wasting money. I am dealing with a site that has an unreasonable amount of mature alders and willows on land that is rich and very free draining. Alders and willows grow fine, but they would prefer wetter soil and are inclined to send out roots looking for water and robbing everything around them. There are also numerous self-sown but now mature sycamores which don't add a great deal to a garden, beyond being generic trees. I would prefer something more interesting.

Tell us what size and quantity of trees you have, and what they are and we can give you more detailed information. Even if you get someone to do it, knowing what you should be looking for will help you choose someone.

Thank you both for your posts, i greatly appreciate it, and i for one am utterly clueless in what i'm talking about. Having also discussed the matter over on the tweet machine i now appear to know what i'm looking for, it is beech hedging that can grow to 7ft in height but is to be planted small. it might be something a gardener or landscaper can do, it is for the perimeter walls of my property, there is currently gravel in the garden with some plastic type of material that is black in colour underneath it. I will try and get photos and post them in the coming hours or possibly tomorrow. The property is currently undergoing internal renovation.

CelticRambler

Cork Trucker wrote: »

i now appear to know what i'm looking for, it is beech hedging that can grow to 7ft in height but is to be planted small.

Be careful with other people's vocabulary! Beech hedging can be kept to 7ft in height ... but miss a few pruning sessions and those small plants will be quite happy to grow into 70-foot trees. That's what happened my neighbours' hedge when I lived in England (it was already that height when we bought our house there)

Hedges need constant work to keep them as good-looking, effective hedges. Make sure you know what regular maintenance will be required in five/ten years' time before you commit to any particular species.

Cork Trucker

CelticRambler wrote: »

Be careful with other people's vocabulary! Beech hedging can be kept to 7ft in height ... but miss a few pruning sessions and those small plants will be quite happy to grow into 70-foot trees. That's what happened my neighbours' hedge when I lived in England (it was already that height when we bought our house there)

Hedges need constant work to keep them as good-looking, effective hedges. Make sure you know what regular maintenance will be required in five/ten years' time before you commit to any particular species.

Thank you for that, yes it would be my intention to maintain it 3/4 times annually. I’ll be going around to garden centres in the next week for advice also

looksee

The black material is probably (should be) weed suppressant membrane. Where is the concrete? Are there actual walls round the garden or is this a figure of speech. If there are walls how high are they? You will need to plant a good bit in from the walls to give the hedge room to grow and to clear the foundations. How far depends on how high the walls are, but two feet anyway. possibly more. Hedges do not do all that well up against high (5ft +) walls.

Your best bet would be to ask for advice on who to employ for planting wherever you decide to buy, it would even be worth paying a little bit more for plants if you get a planting service (which will still have to be paid for) that is reliable.

Cork Trucker

Took these photos in the last hour. Walls are no more than 3ft high

looksee

3ft should be ok. I think I would be inclined to rake back the pebbles, pull back the weed membrane if it is decent condition , plant the trees then replace the membrane (cut slits from the stem to the wall) and replace the pebbles. If you get someone to do it though they may not be willing to mess about with it and just pull it all up. You do need to get the trees a couple of feet from the wall so it would require pulling it back a good bit.