A chance to shine with the silver stars
Silver or gold? Which is more precious, more alluring, more enduring?
It depends on what you want and where you want it, and when it comes to trees, gold is far more visible than silver because there are far fewer of the latter.
So, in this case, silver is probably more valuable. Hence the popularity of trees such as Eucalyptus and the lovely willowleaved pear, Pyrus salicifolia ‘Pendula’. Throw in a couple of Sorbus and you could have a stunning garden.
A few years ago, gum trees were all the rage in British gardens. Then they had a few problems and fell out of favour but now these evergreen trees or large shrubs associated with Australia, are making a comeback. E gunnii can grow to be a large evergreen tree but if it is kept pruned back it will remain in bounds and produce masses of juvenile foliage – bright glaucous-silver/blue.
E gunnii likes full sun, but it’s not bothered how it gets it – it can grow well in north-facing, east-facing, south-facing or west-facing sites, just as long as it has some shelter from strong winds.
Pyrus salicifolia ‘Pendula’ is a much smaller tree, perhaps reaching a height of 30ft. It’s relatively easy to care for has the added attraction of white flowers much loved by bees and other insects.
As for Sorbus... One of the best is probably the Himalayan whitebeam, although it may be a bit big for most gardens – at 40ft in height and almost the same in width, it demands a decent space. The leaves are big, grey-green above and almost white underneath. They shimmer like waves in the wind. Again, there’s the bonus of white flowers in late spring.
Finally, Salix alba, the white willow, which gets its name from the colour of its leaves. It is a fair-sized deciduous tree growing up to 100ft in height, so, once again, it’s not a good choice for your average garden. In fact, it looks its best when growing in the wild.