I wouldn't worry about foundations @NoviceAnny if your two plots are that size. I'm assuming you aren't planting trees right next to the house If you like a formal look, you could certainly opt for a single specimen in the centre of each, but it depends on whether you like that? There's plenty of room for more than a couple of trees too., and you could have a more informal look by grouping some together Some trees will require more acidic soil than others, and some will need more alkaline, but it doesn't matter too much just now. Are there any other trees planted nearby in other gardens? Or do you recognise any shrubs in other gardens? Magnolias, Amelanchiers, Birch, Ornamental pears, and Sorbus [both types] will all grow in that aspect. ACers would be fine as long as it isn't too windy and exposed. They would work best with other trees/shrubs to shelter them. I don't like the metal edging either, A paved, or block edge is much kinder.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I would like a more informal arrangement rather than a tree in the middle of each lawn but didn't know how to arrange them. Do I just pop a few trees in and hope it looks good or is there a 'pattern' I can follow? I'm imagining I could have about 3 or 4 trees on each lawn.
Neighbours have a massive cherry blossom tree which has been severely reduced as they tired of the mess made by the blossom. I have a magnolia, more of a bush than a tree. Will research the others you mentioned.
I would just like to add that unless they are self-pollinating, it is not a good idea to plant a single apple tree, you will need two in the same pollinating group (ie, they flower at the same time). There may be other apple trees in neighbours' gardens that would do the job. We have four apple trees now and our neighbour has a crab apple. The flowering of all of them overlap so we all get good crops of apples.
Even self pollinating trees won’t yield as much fruit as they would with another pollinator. Most fruit trees won’t grow well in very acid soil, I’d love to have fruit trees but apart from the winds which blow the blossom off too quickly, I would have to lime the ground, not worth the expense of trying.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
Prep the area well first @NoviceAnny - a proper bed, with loads of organic matter added. It's always worth spending time and money on the prep as it pays dividends later. There's no pattern as such, but ideally, you want some height variation, some foliage variation, and some long lasting colour, which can come from evergreen foliage, flowers, fruits, berries and autumn foliage. The only problem is that you have to be patient Most people don't have the budget to buy mature trees and shrubs, and they're also harder to establish and maintain, so it's rarely worth it.
As an example of what might work - you could have an Ilex [holly - I forgot to mention that earlier!] with a Sorbus, and an Acer. Picking appropriate varieties is key, as they won't all perform the same due to their different habits and growth rates. Many hollies have a nice uniform, triangular shape, so that gives a good contrast to the more informal shapes of the rowans and acers. If you didn't want an Acer, you could replace that with an evergreen shrub like an Azalea [the Japanese ones are ideal] or Rhododendron [assuming you don't have really alkaline soil] and that would give you another evergreen, and more flowers, but is less interesting later on. Hope that's of some use
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Posts
If you like a formal look, you could certainly opt for a single specimen in the centre of each, but it depends on whether you like that? There's plenty of room for more than a couple of trees too., and you could have a more informal look by grouping some together
Some trees will require more acidic soil than others, and some will need more alkaline, but it doesn't matter too much just now. Are there any other trees planted nearby in other gardens? Or do you recognise any shrubs in other gardens?
Magnolias, Amelanchiers, Birch, Ornamental pears, and Sorbus [both types] will all grow in that aspect. ACers would be fine as long as it isn't too windy and exposed. They would work best with other trees/shrubs to shelter them.
I don't like the metal edging either, A paved, or block edge is much kinder.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I would like a more informal arrangement rather than a tree in the middle of each lawn but didn't know how to arrange them. Do I just pop a few trees in and hope it looks good or is there a 'pattern' I can follow? I'm imagining I could have about 3 or 4 trees on each lawn.
Neighbours have a massive cherry blossom tree which has been severely reduced as they tired of the mess made by the blossom. I have a magnolia, more of a bush than a tree. Will research the others you mentioned.
Most fruit trees won’t grow well in very acid soil,
I’d love to have fruit trees but apart from the winds which blow the blossom off too quickly, I would have to lime the ground, not worth the expense of trying.
There's no pattern as such, but ideally, you want some height variation, some foliage variation, and some long lasting colour, which can come from evergreen foliage, flowers, fruits, berries and autumn foliage.
The only problem is that you have to be patient
Most people don't have the budget to buy mature trees and shrubs, and they're also harder to establish and maintain, so it's rarely worth it.
As an example of what might work - you could have an Ilex [holly - I forgot to mention that earlier!] with a Sorbus, and an Acer. Picking appropriate varieties is key, as they won't all perform the same due to their different habits and growth rates. Many hollies have a nice uniform, triangular shape, so that gives a good contrast to the more informal shapes of the rowans and acers.
If you didn't want an Acer, you could replace that with an evergreen shrub like an Azalea [the Japanese ones are ideal] or Rhododendron [assuming you don't have really alkaline soil] and that would give you another evergreen, and more flowers, but is less interesting later on.
Hope that's of some use
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...