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Something to replace connifers
I moved into a new house last week and had to take down 4 big connifers that were too close to us. Have big stumps left now and gaps with lots of visibility into neighbours.
I'd like to replace them with something that won't destroy the fences but will provide some screening and preferably attract birds. What will grow where connifers were, and what's the best way to get rid of the enormous stumps?
Please help!
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Not easy Amanda
Is there room to get someone in with a stump grinder? If not it's a digging out job I'm afraid, although if you have a fence there, you could use the stumps as supports for climbers. Before you plant anything, get some goodness back into the soil as it will have been depleted by the conifers. If you want to put evergreen shrubs in, can you also give us an idea of aspect etc as that will help with suggestions.
Rhododendrons or azaleas could be suitable assuming the ground has been nourished first and isn't overly dry.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I took out around 10 conifers a couple of years ago, I left the stumps in the ground for 12 months. I was going to plant in between the stumps to hide them, but the mother in law made me dig them out
The good news is however, after they had been dead for so long, they just lifted and snapped really easily, took me less then an hour to remove all of them
You could plants laurels as its a standard replacement for conifers
It will take a lot of digging, but, luckily, conifers have shallow roots. I dug out a big one and made a flower bed where it was but I dug in loads of manure and compost. Soil under conifers gets very poor and dry.
For birds it would be good if the new shrubs could have berries, like cotoneaster, which is also evergreen, hawthorn or viburnum opulus. Rhododrendrons and azaleas need acid soil. Do you know what yours is?
Thanks so much for all your replies. The trees were around 10m high and about 60cm across. There might be room for a stump grinder - will need to get advice I guess. I'm off to the garden centre tomorrow to get a soil tester to see what kind of soil the garden has in general. Although the garden is very sunny, the area where the trees were only gets sun later in the afternoon - but I haven't been here long enough to see if that changes in summer (higher sun might provide a longer period out of shade).
I will get my husband to see if he can dig them out - I see my role as more in a planning capacity! And invest in lots of new compost too....
Thanks for all your advice fellow conifer widows!!