Some Problems of Tree Planting in Towns - TrustNews August 1989
You Can't See the View for the Trees
How many of us have moved into a town house where the garden has been spoiled by trees and shrubs, both in the garden and in those of the neighbours? Views are blocked, shade is cast perhaps on the only sunny corner and the plants themselves are commonplace, boring and positively a nuisance.
In an era when the conservation of trees is all the rage, it is probably unfashionable to criticise the plantings carried out by our predecessors and it always causes much soul-searching, neighbour problems and planning worries before an old or even middle-aged tree can be removed - even when it is a clear menance. In silvicultural or horticultural terms it is very hard to lop, thin, decapitate and re-tailor the various trees and shrubs in a way that does not spoil the existing garden. One is justifiably cautious yet a bold approach may, in the end, be the best answer for everyone.
Most of our gardens are small, often thin linear strips, and are quite unsuited to many of the quick-growing screening trees and shrubs planted perhaps only a decade or two ago to give instant privacy. Often they have been allowed to grow beyond the point at which they can easily be clipped and pruned; they have got right out of hand. Principal culprits are the Leyland cypress, Thuja and Lawson cypress, sycamores (probably accidental seedlings anyway), yew, holm oak, cherry laurel, holly and beech. Few realise how big most of these will grow: a hundred feet is not unusual for beech around Winchester - probably twice the length of many a garden. Many do not realise how quickly even some of the slower growing of these will grow; even yew can put on eight inches in a year and yet, properly controlled, this can be one of the best screening trees. We may try to plant trees for posterity yet how often have we heard the statement that a particular tree "will not be a problem in my lifetime".
If screening is urgently needed then there are quite a number of relatively fast-growing and useful evergreens that could be considered; Photinias are all the rage at the moment. Photinia "Red Robin" is frequently planted and has brilliant red young leaves, but the Photinia serrata, with its almost tropical crinkled foliage is more exciting and the related Stranvinia "Redstart" is excellent. The more humdrum privets could be replaced by Ligustrum japonicum and Ligustrum lucidum, both of which are easily available in variegate forms which may lighten an otherwise rather gloomy screen. The flowers of these privets are scented and much loved by bees, though some people find the scent almost too heavy. No one would think of the deciduous elder as a good plant for the garden but the variegated form of the common elder (Sambucus nigra) is effective, quick-growing and can be decapitated easily if it gets out of hand. Sambucus plumosa aurea is more graceful with its finely cut golden leaves and is very useful in front of a darker screen.
Cherries and magnolias are very popular in the Winchester area and rightly so; though the larger and rather vulgar pink-flowered Japanese cherries are not to everyone's taste and can again get too big. The yedo cherry (which looks so superb on the lawns of Washington) is a lighter, very pale pink, medium-sized tree that looks magnificent in spring. Others, like Prunus "Pandora", may have a more upright mode of growth which could suit a small garden better. Of the magnolias the M. soulangiana group is undoubtedly slow-growing but if there is sufficient space then I would strongly recommend M. loebneri, which does very well indeed in our chalky soils. M. loebneri "Oliver Messel" has lovely pink flowers, but I prefer the pure white M. loebneri "Merrill"; beware, though, as it may easily go to twenty feet in as many years. Many trees do exist in erect growing, columnar or fastigiate form which can be particularly useful where space is limited, or where it is desirable to break the line of a wall or hide a particular feature.
Finally, how often do we stop and think what our garden looks like from the neighbours' point of view? I doubt if many of us give a moment's thought as to how our trees could help their gardens. How about some co-operative planting schemes with less emphasis on not seeing your neighbour and more on enjoying what each garden has to offer?
Trees should be used to enhance the environment and not restrict it. They are often best seen from a distance and are helped by having space around them. Few of us have the space for extensive plantings but it does seem a tragedy that the city has allowed so many of its spaces - that could have been put down to grass and trees - to have been filled up with buildings. "Don't be naive" you will say with land prices the way they are, but if the "green" of our towns and cities is mis-managed, or lost, then living in such places may become a less attractive idea.