SHOULD I REMOVE IVY FROM MY GARDEN TREES

In Britain there is always a debate about the desirability of allowing ivy to grow on trees. Many people consider that it is harmful to allow it or, at best, that it spoils their appearance.

Ivy is Britain's only native climbing evergreen and is very widespread. It can tolerate deep shade. If it were an exotic plant imported from far away it might be widely considered a great boon for gardeners. As it is, we frequently think of it as a weed. Is it actively harmful? It can of course be annoying, invading shady borders where tidy gardeners might not want it. It can radically change the appearance of a tree, removing the beauty of a clear trunk or its classic appearance. Long term experiments have shown however that the effect on the growth of a tree of allowing free rein to ivy is negligible. Only aged trees are likely to be affected by the reduction of light caused by the ivy leaves or the greater profile offered to the wind. Unlike parasitic mistletoe, ivy does not take anything from trees as it grows, it merely uses them as a means of support. In the process it provides a wonderful habitat for birds to nest, insects and invertebrates to live and bats to roost. Flowering late in the year ivy gives pollen and nectar at a time when there is little else around. These flowers produce berries in March and April which are an excellent food source for thrushes, pigeons, starlings and overwintering blackcaps.

Many people will however decide that the appearance of a cherished tree is being spoiled by ivy and will decide to remove it. This is is often easily done but keep in mind that cutting the stems of a large ivy plant on a tree will result in brown unsightly remains and these may take a year or two to fully remove. If the ivy is removed during the spring or summer it is important to realise that this may disturb nesting birds or roosting bats, both of which activities are against the law. If you still want to remove your mature ivy from a trunk it is best done in early autumn when these problems are less likely to arise.

In the end the decision to remove ivy from your trees is probably more of a personal matter. It is likely to be about neatness or the pleasure derived from seeing the uncluttered tree. In their natural situations trees and ivy, at least in Britain, have achieved a balance which provides a very valuable habitat.

HOW TO PLANT A HEDGE

Hedges come in many shapes and sizes so planting them can be just as varied. So let's start with the simplest. In the UK our landscape is crossed by tens of thousand of miles of hedges going back hundreds of years – or even longer. The majority of these were planted using very small plants, which we now call whips, and the variety of plants in the hedges has increased with time. Indeed it's possible to estimate the age of a hedge by measuring the number of different species in the hedge for every hundred metres.

The cheapest and easiest way to plant a modern hedge is to buy whips. Whips are small trees which normally have side branches, depending on the species. They are at least 2-3 years old and have been transplanted to ensure a compact and fibrous root system for successful planting. Nevertheless when you buy them they will probably look to you like sticks with a small bunch of roots on the end. They are purchased and planted in winter when the leaves are off the trees and don't look impressive at all. They are very cheap however and will soon leap into growth in the spring.

Whips can be bought to suit your local conditions. Sandy soil mixes, clay mixes and chalky soil

mixes are available and you can make up your own mixtures to suit your conditions and wishes.

You will not find evergreen plants as whips as they do not lose their leaves or become dormant in

the winter. If you want Holly or other evergreens you will have to buy them grown in small pots and they will be a little more expensive.

To plant whips you will first have to clear the ground. Small trees do not like to compete with

weeds and grasses for the nutrients and moisture in the ground. You can get round this clearing to some extent with a mulch made of a modern landscape material which will suppress the weeds and keep the roots of these small plants moister in their first, critical growing season. If you have cleared the weeds then a mulch of bark or other natural material may fulfil this function just as well. The whips are usually planted at 5 plants per metre in two staggered rows about 30cm apart. Usually there is no need to feed these tough native species but it is vital to ensure that they don't succumb to drought in their first couple of growing seasons. A mulch will help but some watering may be needed.

New plants often need protection from deer and rabbits so cheap tubes and coils of plastic are

readily available to act as guards until the plants are large enough to look after themselves.

Hedges can be planted in several other forms which give more maturity from the start. These vary from larger individual plants in pots, through plants in troughs which are starting to grow together, to fully mature hedges knitted together and planted by professionals to give a truly instant effect. Within this great range there are all sorts of possibilities. You can buy large plants up to the size of small trees which will grow into each other to form a tall hedge or screen. These are available as trimmed plants or even as squared off units which will fit next to each other to give a continuous hedge almost from day one. These are especially effective when they are evergreens (though please note that, within the UK, neighbours and local authorities can object to evergreen hedges over 2m high and require you to cut them back). When you are dealing with these plants at large sizes be aware that they may be very heavy and difficult to handle, move and plant. Professional help and even machinery may be needed.

To prepare the ground for larger plants, or troughs with several plants in them, will be more

complicated than for whips. Whips can often be planted simply by making a slit in the soil with a

spade, placing the roots of the plant in the ground and firming them in with the heel. Larger plants and especially those in troughs or with enormous rootballs, need trenches or large holes. This can cause problems in heavy clay soils where a hole dug in the clay can become waterlogged and act effectively as a small pond. This would give very bad conditions for root growth so drainage at the bottom of the hole is essential before planting.

Rootballed plants come with their roots wrapped in hessian ready to be placed straight in the ground without unwrapping. These and plants in containers need firm ground around the roots to stop them swaying in the wind – a process which stops the roots from growing into close contact with the surrounding soil. In windy situations, and especially for large plants and evergreens, it may be necessary to restrict the movement of the plants by tying them to wires attached to tensioning bolts and braced fenceposts. This however is usually a job for professionals, not for someone attempting the job for the first time.

Feeding plants with slow release fertiliser is worthwhile but the number one essential is to avoid the roots of your new hedge drying out completely during the first year or two. An automatic watering system is the best way of ensuring this but, at any rate, vigilance and an effective back-up system for watering are vital.

HOW CAN I CREATE A RAISED TREE SCREEN?

There are many situations where a raised screen of trees is useful. For instance, if you have an attractive wall which is, say, 6ft high and you wish to screen out a distant view above it without obscuring the wall you might like to use trees which have been grown as standards or high panels. What however do these different terms mean and how can these plants be used.

Standard trees are grown with a bare trunk around 6ft high (occasionally they are slightly higher at 2m and half standards are also available with shorter trunks). These bare trunks are usually easy to keep bare and you can allow the tops of the trees to grow to suit your needs. However you will need to buy trees to suit the situation. For instance a row of Birch trees may eventually grow to 45ft in good growing conditions and be 20ft across the crown but this could take many years. You would have to decide when you plant them just how far apart they should be. They will also be deciduous so the leaves will fall in winter and they will not form the same screen. There are alternatives however which will make it easier to provide a quicker and more controllable screen.

Both deciduous and evergreen standard trees, such as Holm Oaks (Quercus ilex), Laurels or the shorter Photinias, can be bought as standards and tightly clipped to create a screen limited to the size you want. Left to themselves Holm Oaks would grow as large as any Oak tree but clipped they can be kept to the size which suits you. This however requires a clip at least once a year. There are nurseries which sell a range of deciduous and evergreen trees clipped as high panels, that is bare trunks with a rectangular panel of branches carefully trained to shape on top of them. These can be planted next to each other to give an instant high screen. More decorative, but less effective as screens, are pleached trees where the high panel is trained along horizontal wires. Similarly espaliered fruit trees can be bought ready trained to give horizontal tiers of fruiting branches but these are usually on much shorter trunks for ease of picking and are less effective as screens. They are however a very effective way of dividing a garden into sections being both productive and extremely attractive.

To achieve the sort of high screens you want you will have to work out the overall width of the screen and the height which it needs to achieve. Then there is the qustion of tree variety. Do you want evergreen or will deciduous do (deciduous is often cheaper) and do you require anything else from the tree such as attractive foliage or flowers. Finally will the trees thrive in your garden conditions or will soil and drainage problems compromise their development. You will probably need to refer to a textbook or speak to an expert to answer these questions. A site visit may also be needed.

I HAVE SEVERAL ACRES I WOULD LIKE TO PLANT WITH LARGE TREES. HOW SHOULD I START PLANTING TO ACHIEVE FAST RESULTS WITHOUT SPENDING A FORTUNE?

Many people want to create small woodlands or simply make their land more attractive but don't want to wait too long for results. In the past the reasons for planting woods were often different from today's reasons - for instance planting to produce valuable timber or cover for game. These days the reasons are more likely to be aesthetic as there is a general understanding that huge areas of woodland have been lost and the countryside looks poorer as a result. Landowners may also be inspired by the valuable habitats which woodlands can provide or the future use of managed woodlands as sources of biofuel.

The first place to start when considering planting a woodland is to try to ensure that the trees planted suit your environment. For residents of the UK it is straightforward to discover what is native to your area by entering the first three digits of your postcode into the appropriate part of the website www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/life/plants-fungi/postcode-plants which is a national database provided by the Natural History Museum. This excellent resource will tell you all the native plants, not just the trees, for your local area. You should then look at any particular problems which your land may provide for a growing tree. These would principally be problems of drainage, soil type and exposure. All three of these could vary within a very small area so that very damp or dry patches, extremely windy areas or local soil problems might produce situations which may not be obvious from the database. The soil for instance may have been compacted by building machinery or polluted by previous use. If any of these problems seem likely than a site visit from an expert may be necessary and soil samples may need to be taken and analysed. However if your site is fairly typical of your neighbourhood the database will give you a good idea of where to start in choosing trees (or for that matter hedges and smaller plants).

There are several varieties of trees known for the speed with which they grow. Poplars, Willows and Eucalyptus are amongst the commonest. Indeed Poplars are the fastest growing source of hardwood in the UK. These varieties may not give you the end result which you need especially if you have a vision of stately trees with large spreading crowns lasting through the centuries. If you imagine your land covered in large Oaks, Beeches, Ashes and the like you will need to take a longer term view. Planting a fast growing species to give an early effect, with these larger species growing more slowly next to them, one day to take over from them and shade them out, may be your best approach. Willow, Alder, Poplar, Sorbus (such as Rowans) and Birch will give you the fast growing "nursery crop" amongst which the giant trees of the future can develop. Willows and some Poplars can sometimes be grown successfully simply by sticking suitable branches straight into damp ground, though they will need protection from rabbits and deer.

Buying and planting these larger trees is not entirely straightforward as there are several options. Mature trees, up to 9m (30ft) tall, can be bought, transported and planted by experts but this is a pricey business. You will be spending thousands per tree and access for large machines will be necessary. Trees smaller than this can also be bought and planted in a similar way but sometimes they can also be dug up and moved using tree spades where suitable specimens are available locally. Moving trees can work out far cheaper than buying new, purpose grown specimens.

At the other end of the spectrum trees can easily and cheaply be bought as bare-rooted plants. As the name suggests these are smaller trees, usually up to around 3m (10ft) high, which have been dug up during late autumn and winter when their leaves have fallen off and they are dormant, and are sold with no soil attached to their roots. They can be a very cheap way to buy trees and they usually establish well but, despite the fact that they come into leaf in the following spring and appear healthyl, they may sit still in your soil for several years without making much growth. They are building up their reserves and growing roots during this time. It may be very frustrating to wait for them to start back into serious growth after several years.

More expensive, though often very reasonably priced, are rootballed trees. These are grown in open ground and are prepared for movement in advance of digging them up. When they are lifted their roots are surrounded by some of the soil which they have grown in and are then wrapped in hessian. They are transported like this and the tree, complete with rootball and hessian bag, is planted into the new ground. Over time the bag rots and the trees strart back into growth with less of the disturbance which bare-rooted trees have suffered. They generally establish and grow more effectively than bare-rooted specimens.

The final option is to plant more expensive trees grown in containers. The art of growing trees in pots and bags has advanced greatly in recent years as our understanding of the needs of trees, and especially their roots, has moved on. Container-grown trees up to a considerable size can now be bought though it becomes difficult, and a little dangerous, to plant by hand trees in containers larger than around 70-90litres. Back injuries can easily result. Plants larger than these sizes need to be moved and planted by machine. Having spent more on these container-grown plants, whose chances of survival and speed of growth are likely to be greater, it is well worth getting professionals to plant them and look after them. If however you wish to plant them yourself you can usually buy container grown trees around 3-4m high for around £75-£100. They can be delivered to you and can sit happily in their pots for a time, as long as you look after their needs for water and support, whilst you wait for a suitable time to plant them.

With all of these trees aftercare and planting will matter even more than choosing the right varieties. A dry period in the years before a tree has settled in can kill off any tree and poor planting can produce all sorts of problems.

CONTRACTORS HAVE RECENTLY DAMAGED A MATURE TREE IN MY GARDEN. IS IT POSSIBLE TO REPLACE IT?

22. CONTRACTORS HAVE RECENTLY DAMAGED A MATURE TREE IN MY GARDEN. IS IT POSSIBLE TO REPLACE IT?



It is unfortunately a fairly common experience for builders and contractors to work too close to mature trees and not to understand how much damage can be done. A mature tree may have developed a very wide spread of roots and the tree will be feeding using the small roots at the edge of this spread. Damage to a large part of these can result in severe damage and die-back. Damage to bark, or as a result of piling soil against the trunk ( something which is dangerous for almost any variety of tree) can result in death or an ailing tree. It is not uncommon however for the contractors to have a legal duty to replace damaged mature trees and this at least can provide a reasonable budget to take on the work. Of course if the contractor's appear to have deliberately endangered a tree in order to facilitate their works the local authority may become involved and there may be a more serious legal outcome.

What is then possible as a replacement for a mature tree? Trees up to 10m, 30ft, high can be moved and planted but this of course is not a small undertaking. Often these trees will have been grown far away from your garden and will have to be moved a large distance by special transport. Access to the garden for large machinery will be necessary to bring the tree in, to excavate the planting pit and to remove the soil. The ground will have to be free of underground services and will need to be suitable for the chosen species. Water tables and drainage will need to be suitable. Between the largest trees which can be planted and the small ones available from a garden centre is a range of trees of intermediate size and price. In addition it is sometimes easier and cheaper to move a semi mature tree from a location closer at hand as an alternative to buying a new tree. Tree spades mounted on the back of trucks are able to dig, remove and replant surprisingly large specimens.

Finally, and vitally, it is important to have a professional to keep an eye on a newly planted tree and to advise on aftercare. It would be very frustrating to plant something so impressive and expensive only to have it die soon after.

CAN I PLANT A MATURE TREE IN MY GARDEN AND, IF SO, WHAT IS THE LARGEST POSSIBLE?

In theory it is possible to plant large trees up to the size of fully grown, mature trees but in practice there are many restraints on what can be done. Nurseries in Britain and Europe grow enormous trees, up to 9m (30ft) high and with trunks 60cm (2ft) in circumference. In addition it is sometimes possible to move fairly mature trees using tree spades but often the trees will need preparing well in advance of the move. Moving any of these into a garden and planting them is a skilled and exceptional activity.

Access to most gardens is a problem. Heavy equipment is needed to move and plant mature trees and to remove the spoil which large rootballs produce. In addition the ground must be free of underground services and the water table must be suitable for the particular variety of tree. As the tree would have a large canopy vulnerable to movement by strong winds it would need specialist guying either by cables or by ground anchors.

The price of planting a mature tree is, of course, likely to be large both because of the long period of care needed to raise it and because of the expense of moving and planting it. In addition skilled aftercare is needed to ensure that the signs of distress in a tree are noticed before a situation becomes critical and the tree dies. Despite that it is a fairly cheap and straightforward job to plant trees up to around 4-6metres (13-20ft) high which are grown in large containers. These are grown in very large numbers by nurseries and can often be moved and planted by a couple of strong and skilled people. Of course they will also need proper aftercare to maximise their chances of survival.

IS IT A RISK TO USE LEYLAND CYPRESS FOR HEDGING ?

There is always a lot of fuss about Leyland Cypress hedges. They have a reputation for being uncontrollable, for creating disputes between neighbours, for being ugly and, recently, for being disease prone. There are elements of truth in all these accusations but, set against these, it is quite possible to create beautiful Leyland hedges which are excellent screens.
The Leyland Cypress ( Cupressocyparis Leylandii is its Latin name) is a cross between two other species of conifer and is a classic example of hybrid vigour. It is a very fast growing plant, indeed the fastest evergreen with the exception of some Eucalyptus species. Even in poor conditions, such as thin chalky conditions and exposure to coastal winds, it is capable of decent growth. It can even tolerate a certain amount of shade. These benefits however can result in several problems. The roots of such vigorous plants can remove much of the moisture and many of the nutrients from the surrounding soil (on your own side of a hedge as well as your neighbour's) and so it can be difficult to grow anything near to a Leyland hedge. The primary problem however results from the vigour of its growth. A healthy Leyland Cypress can make several feet of growth a year. To contain it as a hedge needs ideally three sessions of trimming a year, in late spring, summer and early autumn. This is partly because it grows so fast but also because it will not grow again from the older, brown wood. Only the fresh green growth can be clipped effectively and this is at the end of all the branches. It is however possible to maintain a decent, though not perfect, hedge by twice yearly clipping. Anything less and gaps will start to appear at the bottom of the plants which will then look less attractive and stop working so well as a hedge.
Leylands have also frequently been used as screening. They are easily capable of forming a dense line of trees 15metres (50ft) high in reasonable conditions of soil and exposure. As with hedges, this can cause difficulties with neighbours and local authorities who may resent their overbearing effects and the loss of light and view which results. There have been many disputes between neighbours in the UK, several resuting in expensive law suits. The result has been legislation so that it is now possible for Councils to require any evergreen boundary hedge or screen to be reduced to 2m high.
Disease of Leyland Cypress have become increasingly common recently. Large brown areas in closely clipped hedges are an increasingly familiar site. In Britain the Royal Horticultural Society has carried out research into the problem (http://www.rhs.org.uk/Learning/Research/Projects/cypressdieback.htm) and in addition several bodies in the US have reported widespread occurance of Canker diseases. It is worth remembering that there are several alternatives to Leylands which, though less vigorous, make very good substitutes. Western Red Cedar (Thuja plicata), Lawson Cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana) and Yew (Taxus baccata) may substitute well depending on the situation. In addition there are many non-coniferous evergreen hedges such as Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus) which thrive in similar conditions to Leylands.
To answer the original question, if I were to need a dense, evergreen hedge for my own garden I would choose one of the alternatives which are a little less vigorous or subject to disease. Having said that it is often possible to buy Leylands very cheaply.