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Small trees

calee20calee20 Posts: 4
in Garden design
Hi there. I have a blank canvas of a garden which is both daunting and exciting in equal measures! I'm after a bit of advice regarding small trees. My garden in south/east facing. I have a 6ft closed boarded fence and was wanting to plant 3or 4 trees along it. Eventually I want to uplight them. It gets Sun from mid morning for the rest of the day.  Height wise I was thinking 1.5-2 meters. I was thinking bay trees or similar, maybe peached trees. I live on the Yorkshire coast so bit concerned about whether bay trees would survive a harsh winter. Any suggestions/advice would be greatly appreciated. Many Thanks.

Posts

  • Ladybird4Ladybird4 Posts: 37,906
    Hello Calee. 2 metres is a bit small for most trees so have you also considered maybe using shrubs which you could keep within the bounds of the size you mention?
    Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
  • Hostafan1Hostafan1 Posts: 34,889
    I think you could just about keep hornbeam to about 2m.
    What about training holly into a suitable shape? 
    Devon.
  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    Not sure if bay trees would survive in Yorkshire and they can grow big and fast.What about some small apple trees on dwarf rooting stock? Pretty blossom and something to eat! Holly as suggested is a good idea and you can get some standard ones. Otherwise look at shrubs which could be pruned to look tree-like.
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    I think I'm right in saying that Amelanchier can be grown as either a shrub or a small tree, might be worth a look.
  • calee20calee20 Posts: 4
    Many Thanks for the suggestions. I saw the issues Monty Don had with his Bay Trees on Gardeners’ World and it’s made me rethink my plans. Chinese redbuds Avondale looks very pretty. 
  • WaysideWayside Posts: 845
    edited April 2018
    calee20 said:
    Chinese redbuds Avondale looks very pretty. 
    Want.

    Griselinia littoralis as a shrubby evergreen alternative to bay? Or an evergreen euonymus?
  • BorderlineBorderline Posts: 4,700
    They are lovely trees, but a bit confused with what you suggested earlier to now going for a deciduous tree.

    Don't be put off by what happened with Monty Don's Bay Trees. The weather has been extreme so far, and many hardier evergreen shrubs have also suffered. They soon recover, they're just temporarily ruined for a month or so.

    Pleaching idea can be nice when you put in the effort. You don't state how big/small your garden is. Perhaps the Cercis tree is enough on its own. I find that in small spaces, the leaves can be too big in scale to its surroundings.
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