This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
any suggestions for tall trees
amerie2
Posts: 6
Hi,
I have just had 16 leylandiis removed from my garden (they had died and were blocking light)
I am now after a couple of tall trees to replace the leylandiis for privacy. Can anyone suggest anything. They would ideally need to grow the height of the house!
I would really appreciate any advice. Thanks
0
Posts
what kind of soil - acid etc - and how much sun do you want to keep - some trees are denser than others.
Sounds familiar, amerie2, I did the same. I planted a golden ash, still waiting for its 'quick growth', patience is needed but you can buy ready grown huge trees as well. It depends how much space you want to fill and how much attention you want to give it, a pleache'd tree would leave space for planting underneath.
waterbutts- we will be putting down rubble to level the ground and new soil so not sure of the soil type at the moment. we are completely renovating the garden area.
MrsGarden - Thankyou for your advice i am completely clueless at this stage it is my first house. I will look into the trees you have suggested. Do you know of any places online that sell established trees? B&Q and the local garden center appear to be expensive with not a great deal of choice!
To be honest I wouldn't go for a very big tree from a garden centre. Yes they are big to start with but they have been in a pot for a long time before you buy them and have sort of shut down due to the lack of space for their roots. They can take a long time to realise that they are no longer in a pot and buying a smaller younger tree can work out faster in the end.
How far will the trees be from your house foundations? Some are a nightmare if they get into either the foundations or the drainage system.
If you have loads of room you could go for something both big and useful such as a walnut, sweet cherry or sweet chestnut.
Hi waterbutts thankyou for your advice it is really helpful. Where would you suggest to buy trees from then. Internet sites is it.???
Hi if I was you I would buy bare root Fagus sylvatica or even better Carpinus betulus which will keep its leaves all year, but you can’t buy until the winter. The best place to get them is www.hedgesdirect.co.uk unless you can find a local nursery.
Bare root are smaller than potted but will establish faster and grow quicker as long as they are pruned correctly.
I would go to a garden centre and pick the one you want - a good garden centre will order one for you if they don't have the type that you want. Buying online is like buying a pig in a poke. You can't see if the tree is a good shape for the space you have and online sites are prone to delivering wrong varieties/ broken items etc (or maybe I've just been unlucky!)
I would buy one that is the sort of size that you can just about pick up in its pot - about 7 to 8 feet tall.
Do you want deciduous or evergreen? Deciduous will lose it's leaves in winter so no privacy. Beech trees (Fagus sylvatica) keep their leaves, although brown, long into winter although they are deciduous.
Beech will keep its leaves when at hedge height. Beech trees lose all their leaves in winter.
Yew and holly are nice, but holly is slow growing.
Consider whether you need as much privacy in the winter when you will be using less of the garden - then you have a greater choice.
My tip would be silver birch: although deciduous it is fairly fast growing + you get the lovely bark + many different species readily available.