Big broad tree for garden

Horse Chestnut?

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.

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.

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

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

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/

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.

and daffodils and cow slips