Forum home Plants
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Spider Alley as a dwarf Silver Birch

13»

Posts

  • Excellent example above loxley, and I like your logic.

    Can anyone put my mind at ease with the top shoot being cut off - can I expect it to grow again, and if so will it make the tree even kinkier in shape...? 
  • Yeah. Your trees will be fine. It will choose a new leader shoot and it will grow upwards. We had a similar issue with a birch bought online. It was cut to fit it in a box. You wouldn't know now. Looks like a perfect tree. 
    Hope your trees are settling in well. 
  • One lovely addition might be Rubus Thibetanus.
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • One lovely addition might be Rubus Thibetanus.

    Had to look that up Suze - I like it and it should handle my climate well given its place of origin.
  • Yeah. Your trees will be fine. It will choose a new leader shoot and it will grow upwards. We had a similar issue with a birch bought online. It was cut to fit it in a box. You wouldn't know now. Looks like a perfect tree. 
    Hope your trees are settling in well. 

    Thank you, very reassuring Meerkat.  Believe it or not I've now got 4 Spider Alleys - one in the front garden that has replaced a prunus that would have eventually grown too wide (and blocked our 20 mile view).  I started off with one example in the back garden, and then planted around it with another two, with the spacing about 4 feet apart.  I've certainly taken an expensive gamble, given the price difference with a 'normal silver birch', and I'm counting on the effect resembling what I've seen in the garden centre - though I've got a few years to wait to see what the eventual effect will look like.
  • Where did you buy them from. We are looking to get one ourselves, but our usual nursery doesn't stock them. 
  • From Pippintrees mailorder - good service from them.
  • Thanks. I did see they sold them, and wondered how good they were. Thanks again. 
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I'll second Pippin. A very well known, and respected nursery  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Sign In or Register to comment.