About Trees

Half Standard roses are grown on a 60-80cm stems. The selected flowering variety is grafted onto this stem. A spreading variety of polyantha or ‘fairy rose’ attains further  height of  2′. Clusters of bead-like buds open to globular, scented flowers which are most effective en masse.

Dwarf Species include;

Lilacs are members of the Syringia family and are named for the colour. There are deep lilacs verging on violet and light pinkish lilacs even some pretty floriferous white flowering Lilacs.

Avoiding early onset of death caused by disease or climate change will affect the trees we plant in the future. Gardeners must consider tree selection carefully bearing in mind more than aesthetics and utility. Economics of forestry have increased there relevance to Britain as (the dreaded by some) Brexit nears. We import and export more wood than in previous years but with those extra tree miles comes risks. Toxins pests and disease are to readily spread from one country to another. CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is designed to protect over-exploitation and endangerment  through international trade.

Fascinating leaves are grown on this unique tree that has been around for over 200 million years. Last one of a kind the Ginkgo has no close relatives. Now famous for its extracts and herbal remedies it is also a revered tree in the Buddhist religion.

Prickly shrubs of the Berberis family are ornamental and useful for deterring unwanted visitors. The leaves themselves can be very spiky like Berberis Darwinii with glossy dark green leaves and orange flowers.

The Japanese have a long and detailed affair with fruit tree blossom. Apricots, Prunus armenaica and Plums, Prunus salicina are well known to western gardeners but what of Mumes.

Flowering Cherry trees contribute most to the floral pageantry of spring blossom and they are easy to grow. Cherries are graceful and well shaped trees and many varieties have excellent Autumn colour. (Scarlet leaves of Prunus sargentii and pubesens, yellow of hybrids Pandora or Tai-Haku or coppery Ukon.)

The ancient Chinese have cultivated Tree Peonies for over 1500 years. Prized specimens are and were grown for medicinal purposes as they contain glucocides and alkolides. The  imperial palace gardens had many specimens that became quite valuable.

Liriodendron tulipifera or Tulip tree is a tall striking tree related to the magnolia with similar Tulip shaped flowers. It has been planted in Britain since 1688 as an ornamental parks and gardens tree.

Credits Quiver Tree by hibbijibbies CC BY-ND 2.0 “Midas tree by Paul WatsonCC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Credits Avocadoes Camknows CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 “avocadoes by Elsa4Sound CC BY-NC 2.0

Hippophae Rhamnoides also called Sea Buckthorn, is related to Elaeganeous and is shown here and below with it’s heavy crop of attractive Apricot coloured berries. The shrub can grow to over 15 feet but makes a nice ornamental feature. It flowers in spring followed by narrow silvery leaves through summer. Each plant is either male or female and you need both for pollination and only the female produces these great berries.

Japanese maple or Acer palmatum are popular trees and small shrubs. They are grown for an attractive habit and dramatic foliage.

Also known as the Japanese rose, Kerria Japonica it is a cottage-garden regular that grows dependably almost anywhere. The flowers are a distinctive single or double yellow flowers in April and May. The arching stems are thin and the leaves serrated.

I used to think Beech trees grew on the beach but now I know a little better but not much. This is one of the UK’s most useful trees and deserves to be grown where ever space permits.

There are numerous jobs to start in February and most gardeners will be very busy. Perhaps too busy to read this article. Still Gardeners Tips tries to help new and experienced gardeners with a series of tips and job lists that should save time in the long run.

Yew are used in many contexts and can feature in natural or formal situations. In the 18th century species of Taxus were brought to the UK from America and Asia to add to our native Taxus baccata. There are now many cultivars of upright, pendulous and ground cover forms of Yew.

Pittosporum is a large genus of evergreen shrubs or small trees. The foliage is in demand for floristry and the shrubs make an excellent evergreen plant if the conditions are mild. Most varieties have small scented white flowers and produce better flowers in warm conditions.

Read Japanese Maple root and branch review

It is worth inspecting closely the plants that have waited all year to bloom or display special features.

A very distinctive and primitive tree. Legend has it that the tree sprang up from the spot where a dragon and elephant spilled blood and battled to death.

Silver Birch look the part on a cold and frosty morning. The white or silvery trunk looks good singly or when grouped together.

Eucryphia can be amongst the highlights of  summer flowering trees and shrubs. Performing in late summer the profusion of scented white flowers on a conical tree can be exceptional. The flowers also have a further profusion of interesting stamens, distinctly coloured pink or yellow.

You may wonder how roses flower on 1st April when your favourite flower is just at its summer best

Magnolias flower before or just as leaves are arriving. They pick their time and sometimes fall foul of the frost. Time and again I try protect the best of these flowering plants that are very hardy other than for the delicate flowers.

There are several types of Hydrangea to consider. The Mop Heads or Hortensia above, the lace caps or other species. They are a rewarding group of plants to grow well but need the right conditions to excel.

Greens are vibrant in your garden during spring and with careful plant selection good foliage can be grown throughout the seasons.

This Winter Jasmine or Jasminum Nudiflorum is just flowering on a neighbours, southwest facing, brick wall. Flowering a bit earlier this year it should flower through to March.

I love the formal Hybrid Tea Roses like ‘Just Joey‘. Just Joey is a hybrid, bred from Fragrant Cloud and Dr A J Verhage.

I have two very good Spirea varieties where I have long since lost the names. This example is a strong flowering mauve and white flowering plain leaved type. The other is a pale yellow leaved variety that has great colour in spring as the leaves start.

I received a book for Easter entitled ‘Ornamental Shrubs for Temperate Gardens May Flowering’ by Edward Hyams. Since its publication in 1965 the botanic names of the odd variety may have changed (this is a continued source of annoyance to me as soon as I learn one Latin name it is changed into another). However the awe that spring blossom can produce may let me forget this minor issue.

A common site in many town gardens are trees that have outgrown their space. Large native trees like Oaks, Copper Beach, Planes, Weeping Willow and horse chestnuts are wonderful, but to be really enjoyed they need suitable space, like in a park. If they are planted in the garden they will

2018 has been a remarkable year for tree books and the publishing trade has done a good job listing new and older titles. There is now a forest of books to acquire and collect and I hope they have been printed on paper from sustainable sources.

Crab apples can be used as food, for ornamental effect, to help pollination, or for the wood. The wild crab apple found individually in woods has green fruit turning golden in Autumn. Cultivated crab apples vary in habit and grow upto 10 feet. Fruiting this year looks like a bumper harvest after the wet weather earlier in the year.