TRULY TERRIFIC TREES
Modest maples, giant cherries, feathery willows — take your pick
MIDWINTER is the season for planting trees. Other jobs are at a low ebb, so there’s plenty of time for both planting and careful planning. That’s important because well-placed trees can become pivotal design features but, in the wrong position, they’re little more than a nuisance.
In tiny spaces small trees — even in containers — create a special focus. You can use one to enhance a pool, or to add interest to a patio.
On a larger scale, trees transform a garden. They lead the eye upwards, expanding the dimensions and providing an ever-changing scene as seasons pass. Carefully sited, they can also hide ugly backgrounds and enhance privacy.
So, if your garden seems lacking, a well-placed tree or two could put that right. Conversely, if you want to be rid of a troublesome tree, now is the best time to take action. You’ll find plenty of young trees offered by nurseries online and in garden centres. It’s wise to shop around because prices vary. If you buy online, make sure you know the size of trees offered — they’re usually dearer when larger.
FIND THE RIGHT FIT
IT’S even more important to know how large each tree will grow and what shape it will be. For example, the gorgeous whiteflowered cherry Prunus Shirotae has almost horizontal branches which will spread 25ft. While tall thin, pink-flowered P. Amanogawa, grows 25ft high and less than half as wide.
Both are too large for tiny gardens but Cheal’s Weeping — correctly known as Prunus Kiku-shidarezakura — makes a delightful small feature. And for a container, twiggy P. incisa Kojo-no-mai has spring blossom and autumn colour.
Japanese maples are shapely beauties among small and medium trees. They’re slowgrowing and hardy. Medium-size varieties such as Acer palmatum Osakazuki (20ft) and dark-leaved Bloodgood (16ft) both colour superbly in autumn.
For small spaces or pots, try Red Pygmy and Senkaki — both less than 6ft when mature. I also love f eathery-l eaved Garnet and Filigree. But there are so many more, especially from specialist nurseries such as hippopottering
maples.co.uk and burncoose.co.uk. You can also develop certain shrubs and even wisterias into small trees. Lilacs work like that, as do several viburnums and tallgrowing cotoneasters. Allow the young shrub to train a single trunk. Or develop it with three to five main stems. Remove sideshoots from each trunk until it reaches the length you want.
STAYING IN SHAPE
TREES needn’t be big to make a strong statement. On any scale, the most attractive have a distinct trunk, balanced crown and pleasing outline. Handsome foliage, flowers or showy fruits are bonuses, creating a changing scene through the year.
That may seem over-simplified, but it applies as much to a tiny bonsai as to the 500-year- old oaks in Windsor Great Park.
Small trees echo that stateliness in miniature. Japanese maples do it unaided — though a little pruning may help. And if you haven’t space enough for a big magnolia, plant M. stellata, which grows smaller, but still becomes pleasingly craggy with age.
Much of the foregoing is art rather than science. Just keep the basic rules of horticulture in mind when you plant your new trees. Dig a hole large enough for the roots, make sure the ground drains freely and always support young trees with a stake and tie.
Newly planted trees will need regular watering — but not now. Do that in spring and summer until they’re well established. For container-grown trees, use best quality potting compost with a little soil to enhance stability.
We all make mistakes, of course, but if you plant the wrong tree never compromise. Dig it out, dump it and start again.