My garden is very small, 5 yds by 9 yds but it is very full of plants.
It backs onto a path which serves our back gates.
Now the housing association who own the site have decided the paths
need upgrading (fine!) but also that for Health and Safety the lane
should have lights though we've managed for 30 years without lights!
They have put up a full height street lamp post immediately behind my
fence. We are fighting it but when/if they install the lamp it will
be 9 yds from my sitting room and bedroom windows.
I want to plant something to hide it. I had a lovely tall eucalyptus
growing there until 2 years ago but as it got tall I cut it back, as
they say you can do , but it did not regrow.
The fence runs S-N.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?
There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.
I don't like prunus amanaganogawa which a friend suggested.
On the new AT prog last night (more Ground Force!) someone planted
tall palms but that would not look right here.
Another euc? Or is there something else?
HELP please.

Pam in Bristol

You probably want something evergreen, or it will shine through in the winter, which is most of the time you will want the light block...

Fastigiate is a useful word to desribe just what you are looking for, tall and thin. Among evergreens, you can get fastigiate yew, fastigiate junipers, and a number of fastigiate cypresses that are less of a nuisance than leylandii. This might give you some further ideas. http://www.barrelltreecare.co.uk/pdf...Fastigiate.pdf

Also things like Picea pungens (blue spruce) can stay fairly narrow.

There are eucs that don't grow as fast as others so are less of a nuisance than the commonly grown ones, eg E. pauciflora, nipophila, gregsoniana. However eucs are often a bit airy and may not block a street light very effectively. One that has much denser foliage than most others, and is a rather wonderful thing, is E. crenulata, but very hard to find. Though it is a blob-shaped tree, not columnar.

On 27/06/2012 10:04, Pam Moore wrote:
My garden is very small, 5 yds by 9 yds but it is very full of plants.
It backs onto a path which serves our back gates.
Now the housing association who own the site have decided the paths
need upgrading (fine!) but also that for Health and Safety the lane
should have lights though we've managed for 30 years without lights!
They have put up a full height street lamp post immediately behind my
fence. We are fighting it but when/if they install the lamp it will
be 9 yds from my sitting room and bedroom windows.

One practical point since they are installing it that close in is that
you can probably insist that they fit the thing with a full cutoff
luminaire and/or a shade protector to prevent it disturbing your sleep.
They are not uncommon additions to avoid light trespass.

I want to plant something to hide it. I had a lovely tall eucalyptus
growing there until 2 years ago but as it got tall I cut it back, as
they say you can do , but it did not regrow.
The fence runs S-N.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?

One of the pencil thin cyprusses? Although starting small it may take a
while to get that high - a big one would be expensive. eg.

http://www.seagravenurseries.co.uk/p...s-and-conifers

There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.
I don't like prunus amanaganogawa which a friend suggested.
On the new AT prog last night (more Ground Force!) someone planted
tall palms but that would not look right here.
Another euc? Or is there something else?
HELP please.

Pam in Bristol


--
Regards,
Martin Brown

Pam Moore wrote:
I want to plant something to hide it. I had a lovely tall eucalyptus
growing there until 2 years ago but as it got tall I cut it back, as
they say you can do , but it did not regrow.
The fence runs S-N.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?

Could you put up a trellis and run some kind of climber up it?
Climbing rose and clematis or honeysuckle, perhaps?

On 27/06/2012 12:19, wrote:
Pam Moore wrote:
I want to plant something to hide it. I had a lovely tall eucalyptus
growing there until 2 years ago but as it got tall I cut it back, as
they say you can do , but it did not regrow.
The fence runs S-N.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?

Could you put up a trellis and run some kind of climber up it?
Climbing rose and clematis or honeysuckle, perhaps?


Just plant a climber to go up the lamp post

David Hill wrote:
I want to plant something to hide it. I had a lovely tall eucalyptus
growing there until 2 years ago but as it got tall I cut it back, as
they say you can do , but it did not regrow.
The fence runs S-N.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?

Could you put up a trellis and run some kind of climber up it?
Climbing rose and clematis or honeysuckle, perhaps?

Just plant a climber to go up the lamp post

And hanging baskets from the light!

On 06/27/2012 11:04 AM, Pam Moore wrote:
..
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?
There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.

Hi Pam,

How about one of the fastigate beeches? Some of them stay very narrow,
and would have the added advantage of keeping some leaf coverage in winter.

I have Fagus sylvatica 'Dawyck Purple', at maybe 15 ft tall it can't be
more than a couple of feet diameter, and I've never pruned it. I'd like
to plant Dawyck Gold also, which has a RHS AGM. 'Red obelisk' is
another upright cultivar.

Sorry to hear about the street lamp. I have lived with one, you will
get used to it eventually...

-E

On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 15:17:24 +0200, Emery Davis
wrote:

On 06/27/2012 11:04 AM, Pam Moore wrote:
.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?
There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.

Hi Pam,

How about one of the fastigate beeches? Some of them stay very narrow,
and would have the added advantage of keeping some leaf coverage in winter.

I have Fagus sylvatica 'Dawyck Purple', at maybe 15 ft tall it can't be
more than a couple of feet diameter, and I've never pruned it. I'd like
to plant Dawyck Gold also, which has a RHS AGM. 'Red obelisk' is
another upright cultivar.

Sorry to hear about the street lamp. I have lived with one, you will
get used to it eventually...

-E

Thanks for all suggestions. We are hoping we will get it taken down,
We prefer a bollard light below 6 ft fence level.
However, if planting is necessary I'll have to consider cost and
speed of growth.
It's a metal lamp-post. I could wrap it in mesh and train something
up my side of the fence and over onto it. Nothing will grow up metal
will it?
One neighbour has suggested using an air-gun!!!
Adding insult to injury they are expecting us to pay for it!!!
Many thanks.

Pam in Bristol

"Martin" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 16:14:36 +0100, Pam Moore
wrote:

On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 15:17:24 +0200, Emery Davis
wrote:

On 06/27/2012 11:04 AM, Pam Moore wrote:
.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?
There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.

Hi Pam,

How about one of the fastigate beeches? Some of them stay very narrow,
and would have the added advantage of keeping some leaf coverage in
winter.

I have Fagus sylvatica 'Dawyck Purple', at maybe 15 ft tall it can't be
more than a couple of feet diameter, and I've never pruned it. I'd like
to plant Dawyck Gold also, which has a RHS AGM. 'Red obelisk' is
another upright cultivar.

Sorry to hear about the street lamp. I have lived with one, you will
get used to it eventually...

-E

Thanks for all suggestions. We are hoping we will get it taken down,
We prefer a bollard light below 6 ft fence level.
However, if planting is necessary I'll have to consider cost and
speed of growth.
It's a metal lamp-post. I could wrap it in mesh and train something
up my side of the fence and over onto it. Nothing will grow up metal
will it?

Stick some sacking or old carpet to the pole.

One neighbour has suggested using an air-gun!!!

LOL I was going to suggest a catapult.

Adding insult to injury they are expecting us to pay for it!!!

Can they force you to do that?

Many thanks.

Pam in Bristol
--

Martin


Who 'owns' the house and the path?

Mike

--

....................................

I'm an Angel, honest ! The horns are there just to keep the halo straight.

....................................

On 27/06/2012 16:14, Pam Moore wrote:
On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 15:17:24 +0200, Emery Davis
wrote:

On 06/27/2012 11:04 AM, Pam Moore wrote:
.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?
There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.

Hi Pam,

How about one of the fastigate beeches? Some of them stay very narrow,
and would have the added advantage of keeping some leaf coverage in winter.

I have Fagus sylvatica 'Dawyck Purple', at maybe 15 ft tall it can't be
more than a couple of feet diameter, and I've never pruned it. I'd like
to plant Dawyck Gold also, which has a RHS AGM. 'Red obelisk' is
another upright cultivar.

Sorry to hear about the street lamp. I have lived with one, you will
get used to it eventually...

-E

Thanks for all suggestions. We are hoping we will get it taken down,
We prefer a bollard light below 6 ft fence level.
However, if planting is necessary I'll have to consider cost and
speed of growth.
It's a metal lamp-post. I could wrap it in mesh and train something
up my side of the fence and over onto it. Nothing will grow up metal
will it?

Ivy will. I have some disguising street sign pole in front of my garden.

One neighbour has suggested using an air-gun!!!
Adding insult to injury they are expecting us to pay for it!!!

And if you refuse? What proportion of your neighbours want it?

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

In article , Pam Moore
writes
On the new AT prog last night (more Ground Force!) someone planted
tall palms but that would not look right here.

That programme was awful .......... i sat down to enjoy a second series
of the type he did last year, where he met ken gardeners and tidied up a
small portion of their garden on his own.

Now we have David whatsisname, the dreadful co - presenter, and a
makeover programme in all but name. (As if that Channel 5 programme he
did wasn't bad enough with blown up laminated photos of tropical scenes
stapled to fence panels))


--
Janet Tweedy

Pam Moore wrote:
My garden is very small, 5 yds by 9 yds but it is very full of plants.
It backs onto a path which serves our back gates.
Now the housing association who own the site have decided the paths
need upgrading (fine!) but also that for Health and Safety the lane
should have lights though we've managed for 30 years without lights!
They have put up a full height street lamp post immediately behind my
fence. We are fighting it but when/if they install the lamp it will
be 9 yds from my sitting room and bedroom windows.
I want to plant something to hide it. I had a lovely tall eucalyptus
growing there until 2 years ago but as it got tall I cut it back, as
they say you can do , but it did not regrow.
The fence runs S-N.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?
There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.
I don't like prunus amanaganogawa which a friend suggested.
On the new AT prog last night (more Ground Force!) someone planted
tall palms but that would not look right here.
Another euc? Or is there something else?
HELP please.

Pam in Bristol

You could plant Bindweed at the base. That will soon climb up and
smother the lamp post. It will eventually spread in your garden, but you
can always dig up the bits where you don't want it. If you don't fancy
the idea of that there's Clematis Montana which is a seriously decent
plant, but that might need some initial supporting to point it in the
right direction, and may take 2 -3 seasons to get up to a sufficient
height. And of course there's always ivy, particulary the variegated
ones. The council will probably tell you to cut down whatever plant you
use to grow up there.

On 27/06/2012 10:04, Pam Moore wrote:
My garden is very small, 5 yds by 9 yds but it is very full of plants.
It backs onto a path which serves our back gates.
Now the housing association who own the site have decided the paths
need upgrading (fine!) but also that for Health and Safety the lane
should have lights though we've managed for 30 years without lights!
They have put up a full height street lamp post immediately behind my
fence. We are fighting it but when/if they install the lamp it will
be 9 yds from my sitting room and bedroom windows.
I want to plant something to hide it. I had a lovely tall eucalyptus
growing there until 2 years ago but as it got tall I cut it back, as
they say you can do , but it did not regrow.
The fence runs S-N.
Any suggestions on something tall and slim?
There's not much space either width-wise or at soil level.
I don't like prunus amanaganogawa which a friend suggested.
On the new AT prog last night (more Ground Force!) someone planted
tall palms but that would not look right here.
Another euc? Or is there something else?
HELP please.

Pam in Bristol



How about Crataegus monogyna Stricta? You could raise the crown your
side to avoid the thorns, but thorns would be a good deterrent higher up
to stop two-leggeds rat from using the lampost to climb over your fence.
It would be good for wildlife. It isn't evergreen, of course, but
would have a fairly dense twiggy structure in winter, which would
diffuse the light.

--
Spider
from high ground in SE London
gardening on clay

On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 17:40:16 +0200, Martin wrote:

Adding insult to injury they are expecting us to pay for it!!!

Can they force you to do that?

I have said that I will not pay for it. I'm really going to make a
stand on this. don't know how many of the neighbours will support me.
Watch this space. who will look after my garden if they say "go to
jail"!

Pam in Bristol

On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 16:50:56 +0100, "'Mike'"
wrote:

Who 'owns' the house and the path?

Mike

I own the house, the housing association own the path.

Pam in Bristol