Suggestions for which trees and a layout
Hi all,
As the title suggests, I am looking for some advice as to which trees will be suitable for a small project. Please see an image of the area below.
The trees will be planted in the 13m x 18m area which will be seeded as a wildflower meadow. They are needed to add a bit of height/colour to the garden but also to act as a screen to/from the road.
We would like a weeping willow but other than that we have no preference. I am wary of planting too close to the blue line, as this will be the rear of a garage once it is built and i don't want the tree roots damaging the foundations.
I think the willow will probably be the largest tree, so i think it should be right at the back near the point marked 1, with some smaller trees closer to the foreground.
Realistically, how many other trees should be planted in this area? What sort and with what spacing? We're on clay if that is likely to cause any issues.
Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Posts
I strongly recommend that you forget the weeping willow. It's a massive tree that will dominate your garden, (and posssibly foundatiobns and drains),with little benefit to wildlife compared to those pansyface suggests, or some small natives such as hawthorn.
In the sticks near Peterborough
I agree with Nutcutlet - if you plant a weeping willow you'll not have room for any other trees - they're fast growing and massive - it could also lead to visibility problems on the nearby road and would need constant cutting back, resulting in an ugly unbalanced shape - not to mention problems with drains, foundations, etc. I would strongly discourage anyone who has la garden of under at least an acre in size from planting a weeping willow - a mature tree can cover an area of up to 50 + ft in diameter. http://www.ehow.co.uk/how_7021747_trim-weeping-willows.html
It will also take all the moisture out the soil around it, making it parched and other plants will struggle to grow anywhere near it.
That's not a particularly large area although while it's empty I'm sure it seems it. I see you have a laurel hedge planted along the boundary - that will soon screen you from the road.
You talk of a wildflower meadow - can you elaborate on the sort of wild flowers you want there - there are various types of wildflower mixtures which need different management regimes - cutting etc. If we know a bit more about the type you want we'll be able to make some helpful suggestions re the trees
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
The meadow was going to be seeded with a 80/20 mix of grasses and native british wildflowers. I could post a link to the seed supplier, but i'm not sure of the forum rules.
The laurel will provide an adequate screen in time, but i'd still like a bit of variety in the height as well as variation in the shape/colour of the trees.
Realistically, how many fruit trees would fit into this area and how close would you plant to the future gatage?
Great idea to plant the weeping willow further away, where you won't need to hack it about to fit in the available space. They are beautiful trees in the right situation, but a menace in gardens.
Fruit trees look really good when grown in a wild flower meadow - and there will be plenty of insect life around for pollination of your fruit.