TREES

What Are Trees?

Trees often form the heart of a good garden design – they can be stand-out features that really make a huge difference in a garden.

Of course, when we talk about trees, we are talking about, in botanical terms, a perennial plant with a woody, elongated stem or trunk.

Trees can be grown:

Within an orchard or forest garden food-producing system (an easy and relatively low-maintenance way to grow your own at home).
As part of a mixed hedgerow with shrubs, or in a shelter belt scheme.
As single, free-standing individual specimen trees (a fruit tree with its companion planting guild, or a beautiful shade or ornamental tree, for example).
Trained against a wall or fence, or pleached.
In containers (there are patio trees on dwarfing rootstocks that can be grown in even the smallest spaces).

There are a huge number to choose from, so you’re sure to be able to find at least one suitable for your particular garden.

Trees Commonly Grown In The UK

Acer / Almond / Amelanchier / Apple / Arbutus Unedo / Arborvitae / Bay Tree / Birch / Callistemon / Caragana / Cherry Blossom / Corkscrew Willow / Crab Apple / Crape Myrtle / Dogwood / Eucalyptus / Euonymus / Ficus Elastica / Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree / Fig / Hawthorn / Hazel / Holly / Judas Tree / Juniper / Laburnum / Leylandii / Magnolia / Medlar / Olive / Pear Tree / Plums / Purple Leaf Plum / Quince / Willow / Yew / Yucca

Siting Trees

All trees should be carefully chosen and you should make sure that you do not place a tree in a position not suited for that particular type. Make sure that you avoid placing a tree that is too large and vigorous for the space, and consider the proximity of the tree to structures, and to other plants.

Ideally, you should position a tree where it can remain for years without being disturbed, and continue to sequester carbon and provide other benefits for the future.

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Benefits Of Trees In The Garden

We often tend to view trees simply as the backdrop for our daily lives; we may not have given much thought to the many ways in which they enrich and improve the environments around them.

But in their own quiet ways, trees are busy working away through a wide range of complex mechanisms. Just a few of the amazing ways they benefit us include:

Turn energy from the sun into the oxygen we breathe.
Provide shade and protection for the soil.
Drop leaves and increase surrounding soil fertility.
Provide leaves and twigs and branches that can be used elsewhere in the garden for fuel needs or to maintain fertility.
Shade us from the sun, creating pleasant, shaded recreational areas.
Filter winds and reduce exposure on a site.
Provide food, shelter and habitat for a huge range of wildlife.

Trees are truly remarkable things – and no matter how large or small your garden may be, it is likely that you will be able to include at least one in your space.

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