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trees for the backyard
On Wed, 29 Aug 2007 06:50:00 -0000, Court wrote:
You're in USDA zone 9, which means the coolest temperature you see in 10 years, on average, is not below 20o, probably Sunset zone 15. Do you have a copy of the Sunset Western Gardens book? Yes i have a copy, but its intimidating Well, yes, it probably should be g -- picking a good tree for the location should be a matter of great thought, so you don't have to do it over again at great expense. We've lived on our property about 4 years now, and I'm just now starting to decide what trees go and what stay (and for how long) and what new trees I want where and how I'm going to source them. I'm still shaking my head over the irrigated weeping willows the previous owners had planted. Those did go right away. Totally inappropriate species for the climate and totally inappropriate planting locations on the property lines. And the arborvitae that were planted three feet out from the house are interesting... the living room window was half-blocked, the siding rotted in spots because the tree held moisture against the wood in one area... I've given them a hard pruning on the house side, but they're just in a holding pattern till some shrubs grow in. One of my favorite tips for planting trees: find out how big the tree should get. Lay out that crown dimension on the ground, using a stick and string to draw the circumference and flour to mark the edges of the crown. Then think again about your choice before actually buying the tree. Revisiting your idea of an evergreen tree... is this because you want a green crown all year, or do you just not want to rake leaves? Some of the leguminous trees -- mimosa for one example -- have such fine leaflets that when they fall, they virtually disappear. There's a pool nearby, so I have to keep things as clean as possible. You do know that most evergreen trees shed a little all year around, right? As opposed to "do it and get it over with once a year"? And where is the pool, and who owns it? How many feet from the proposed location? No phone lines in the way, This particular area isnt that wide for canopy maybe 10-12 feet total (assuming neighbors will chop off branches if it gets wider), I want a wider tree for the front yard, but I better save that for a different post. Easements are pretty lax, as mentioned, neighbors get chop-happy if anything intrudes that they don't approve of, but this time, at least they wont own the trunk. Unfortunately, a tree with a spreading canopy that's getting half of the crown whacked off can get pretty unstable in bad weather, just because of the structural imbalance. No, easements like underground utilities, cable, sewer lines, all the stuff that goes into supporting a city are what I wanted to know about. Should be on your deed. What I'm hearing right now is that you're going to need a fastigiate (columnar) tree for the back yard, or a trellis or pergola with interesting plants in such tight spaces. Me, I'd go for a pergola/loggia in that amount of space. |
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