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Category: About Trees

Articles involving trees, shrubs, bushes, woods and hedges plus related subjects

Tree Prevailing Against the Wind

Tree Prevailing Against the Wind

Prevailing wind

I was facing due North when I saw this tree in a local field. It shows how the prevailing wind is blowing from the West and I found it fascinating that other trees had grown in a way that supported the elongated branches.

It is not a garden sized tree, unless you have many acres, but it is a reminder that these great carbon capture devices are to be prized and cultivated.

Cornus Chop – Dogwoods Bark Red

Cornus Chop – Dogwoods Bark Red

Cornus Alba Siberica

The first week of March and it was time for me to chop the Cornus Dogwoods down to size. The red stems that have shown up so well during winter will never be the same again if left on the shrub so they are ‘out for the chop’.

Pruning Cornus

  • Cut all the upright stems down to within 3 – 4 inches of the ground.
  • Water well and mulch the stump with good compost or manure to encourage new growth. Dogwoods like water!
  • New stems will grow, show leaf, flower and be ready for another winter display come Autumn.
  • Some pencil thick stems, 6 inch long, can be used as cuttings for growing new plants.
  • Check around the stool of the plant as you may have several new plants available from the layering of the old stems – any with roots can be severed from the main plant and relocated.

There are many other interesting Cornus trees and shrubs or new Cornus Alba Sibirica plants can be bought via Amazon
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Tips for Flowering Shrubs in Your Border

Tips for Flowering Shrubs in Your Border

Tips for Designing Shrub Borders

  • Create a tiered effect in your border by using shrubs of different heights.
  • Plant low growing types at the base and later flowering ground cover.
  • Select flowering shrubs who’s colour will lead the eye from one plant to the next.
  • Only bother to prune to take out dead wood or if the shrubs become unruly or too high.
  • Grow flowering shrubs to make a partially shaded plot for delicate flowers.
  • Plant larger trees or shrubs off-center to avoid a too formal appearance.

Plant selection for an Acid Soil Border

  • Camellia japonica can be planted at the back as it will grow 6-12 feet tall but only spread 3-5 feet. Red, white and pink are the most common colours to buy and the thick leathery leaves are evergreen.
  • Azalea Knap Hill hybrids or Mollis are very floriferous decidious plants that flower in spring before the leaves grow. Mine are now 4 feet tall after 5 years. Depending on the size of you border I would use 3, 5 or 7 of these great plants in various colours.
  • Callicarpa bodinieri produces stunning purple berries in Autumn 3-6 feet tall and wide.
  • At the front you may need some shade loving plants like Epimedium with copper tinted leaves. Trillium sessile has ivy like leaves and white, red or brown springtime flowers.
  • For shape it may be appropriate to add some Box (Boxus Sempervirens) near the front. 12-36″ tall.

Other Selections

  • The scheme above is strongly spring flowering and Mahonia x media ‘ Charity’ or Pieris japonica could also be incorporated into the planting.
  • For summer interest you may substitute or add Escallonia ‘Apple Blossom’, Hydrangea macrophylla or a hardy Fuchsia magellancia.
  • Ceanothus ‘Autumn Blue’ will fit in a sunny spot and a variegated Ilex aquifolium at up to 12 feet adds berry interest late in the year.
  • For general all year round cover the Elaegnus pungens Maculata has good colour in the leaves, Euonymus can grow to 10 feet and Skimmia has cream flowers in spring followed by red berries.

Small is Beautiful in Gardening with Conifers

Small is Beautiful in Gardening with Conifers

‘Do not forget to pause and smell the flowers’ is an injunction oft repeated but it could also apply to pausing to inspect the flowers. It is easy to see the brash flowers of Dahlias, Peonies of Delphiniums for instance but close inspection of the petal-pattern or the individual florets can open up a new view of gardening.

One flower that fascinates me is the Cyclamen with the nodding head that straightens to a twist of petals what slowly untwist to reflex the petals back towards the stem. A fascinating natural process to observe. Look out for other dwarf bulbs including Crocus chrysanthus, Eranthis hyemalis (yellow aconite), Oxalis and Grape Hyacinth.

For structure in a miniature garden you can do a lot worse than Dwarf Conifers but be wary of slow growers that will eventually dominate like Juniper horizontalis and Chamaecyparis lawsoniana ‘Ellwoods Gold’.

Dwarf Conifers under 18″

  • Juniper communis Compressa is recognised as one of the best conifers for creating a miniature landscape with its slender spire of tightly packed grey-green foliage.
  • Abies balsamea Hudsonia grows to 12″
  • Chamaecyparis lawsoniana ‘Minima Aurea’ has wonderful golden foliage in a dense conical bush. Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Pygmaea Argenta also tops out at a similar 24″ but is blueish green with creamy white tipped shoots.
  • Juniper squamata Blue Star is a spreading 10″ high contrast to yellow leaved conifers.
  • Thuja occidentalis Danica is a neat bush with bronzed winter tints.

It pays to think small and to look closely. If you are limited for space it may pay to create a garden in miniature selecting all the small species you would like to see in Acres of space.

Roses Masquerade as Resolutions

Roses Masquerade as Resolutions

Masquarade

It is a bit late to be setting New Years Resolutions for 2010 but I intend taking more interest in Roses and more care of Rose trees this year. Normally the one thing I give up for lent is my new years resolutions but since I am a late starter this year I will stick to the Rose this time.
This month I will be ordering some new bare rooted roses of ‘Ruby Wedding’ and will leave you to guess why.


Masquarade Rose

Masquerade’ (above) is a floribunda rose with dark green foliage and semi-double flowers of mixed yellow turning red as they age.
As a climber the Masquerade will grow upto 6 feet tall and repeat flower through the season. It has fine colouring, negligible scent but is OK for a north facing position.
Baby Masquerade is a cross with tom thumb but retains all the Masquarade charecteristics on a 10″ high plant.

The velvety, deep red rose (below) was established in my garden when I moved in almost 30 years ago and I have never known its name. Perhaps I should do some digging through rose catalogues to find out.

Rose

Eucalyptus Trees in Britain

Eucalyptus Trees in Britain

Eucalyptus or Gum Trees are fast growing shrubs and trees best noted for their attractive scented leaves and stems. They tolerate a variety of soils preferring a deep loam. The leaves on this young tree are still coin shaped but will develop as the tree matures.

Gardeners Tips

  • You can grow Eucalyptus as a short lived shrub and do not need to let it grow to full height. Dig it out when it gets mis-shapen.
  • Plant in spring so roots can develop in the warmer soil but they are surprisingly hardy for trees from Australasia.
  • Plant near a Cotinus or a red Acer for contrasting colours.
  • There are 20 varieties of Eucalyptus seed available from Jungle Seeds
  • See Australian trees including Eucalyptus Snow Gums at Marks Hall garden and arboretum Coggeshall, where 200 Eucalyptus trees have been planted and ‘on warm days the oil aroma provides a heady scent’.
Weeping Beech Fagus Pendula

Weeping Beech Fagus Pendula

Beech or Fagus are a small genus containing some of the most noble trees that can make a fine specimen tree. This weeping Beech’s full name is Fagus Sylvatica Pendula or the Weeping Beech although I have christened in the Crying Beech.
It is a large and spectacular form with the main stem or trunk covered in droopy hanging branch lets. There are several related weeper but this tree was quite singular in it’s habit and grew to 50 feet yet still looked immature.

Fagus sylvatica ‘Purple Fountain’ as an excellent tree with cascading branches and dark, bronze/purple/green foliage. Very similar to other weeping beech but much more columnar in shape. Leaves turn more green throughout the summer.


Beech in Autumn at Valley Gardens Yorkshire.

Amazon supply Beech trees and Purple Beech. but a nursery would have a wider selection.

Tips for growing Magnolia x soulangeana

Tips for growing Magnolia x soulangeana

Spring flowering Magnolia x soulangeana can be planted now. Container grown plants from grafts or cuttings will flower sooner than bare rooted shrubs. Check the container is not pot bound and older, grafted plants will perform quicker. It is a case of paying a bit more to get what you want as it can take up to 5 years for Magnolias to start flowering.

Growing Tips

  • Blooms may fall during spells of warm weather so avoid planting in very sunny parts of the garden. Also avoid early morning sun and wind which can damage young growth. Other than that magnolias are hardy shrubs and trees.
  • You can under plant Magnolias as their structure is open but avoid damaging the shallow, delicate roots. I suggest you try Muscari (grape hyacinth) or other small bulbs.
  • You can layer your existing magnolia in August using current year shoots but rooting may take a couple of years.
  • Pruning should not be needed except crossing branches and reshaping. hard pruning can set back flowering for several years.

Varieties to Grow

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Heather Moors and Gardens

Heather Moors and Gardens

On Ilkley Moor the heather is blooming and smelling a treat. Certainly the horseflies seemed to think so until we got to the top of the moor where the heather really made a statement.
In your garden heaths and heathers can be very useful perennial plants. They have all year round interest and are generally low maintenance plants (and being hardy they take a bit of killing).

There is a Heather Society for the enthusiast which can be found on this link

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