"Inge Jones" wrote in message
. ..
About a year ago I decided a silver birch would be ideal for a
particular spot in the garden, but because our garden is only 35ft x
21ft (with another house directly siding onto the bottom of it), the
tree will have to either stay below about 20ft or be cut down when it
gets there.

Looking on the web, it seems no site can agree what size different
cultivars grow to. The "Snow Queen" looks as if it would do according
to some sites whereas others put it 3 times bigger!

Also I can't find a supplier who a) has them in stock and b) can
deliver. I know we can't get one locally, so it would need to be
delivered.

Is there a service I can phone up and ask them for a specific type of
tree and they'll source it, deliver it, and plant it for us? I would
have liked to get one that was already about 10ft or so tall.

You are really asking the impossible. This is something I was frequently
asked for by landscape architects. Usually multistemmed around 6 metres high
and going to stay at that for ever. Sorry trees do grow - if they don't they
die.

If you want 3 metres high I suggest you look for a heavy standard at about 2
metres of a species which is going to grow to perhaps 5 metres in time. Say
something like an Amelanchier.
As for varying estimates of size - well some suppliers specify expected
height at 5 years, others at 10 years but in any case it's subject to widely
varying site conditions and individual plants.

hth

Rod