Tree screen for coastal location

The_Bullman

I'm building a house close to the sea in the North East. Now that the house is getting on I'm realising just how much it stands out in the landscape, and I'd like to minimise it visually.





I was thinking of planting a double line of trees close to the fence in the picture.

What trees would be suitable? I'd prefer a native tree if possible. The ground is very dry. only a few inches of topsoil then gravel.


That's how close I am to the coast.

Oldtree

Wow what a view. Don't rush into planting. I would live in the house a bit and get to know the prevailing wind and general conditions for maby a year before embarking on planting.

Things to bear in mind are views from the house, points of privacy in the house you want, wind breaks on prevailing wind side, light both in winter and summer, and shade, sunsets, etc.

There are a few trees/scrub shown in the photos. They would be the best place to start with species choice. You can see thar they are very windswept so your conditions will be very difficult. The best you can.probably do is to emulate what is there already. Post closeups of leaves and or buds for id's. It will be a difficult job to get plants going there so when planting make use of a mesh windbreak to give the plants a good start. Don't use much fertiliser as you need the plants to learn to live in the harsh environment.

Deciduous trees windbreaks are best for a windbreak as the percolate the wind slowing it down to 50% of Its speed and that's the best you can do.

I'm guessing, but it looks like there is hawthorn and ash there, maby hazel too

The_Bullman

I got down to take some pics of the leaves the weekend.





I'm guessing hawthorn..

However, due to the shape of the bank I don't think they'll grow enough to provide the shelter and concealment required.

macraignil

I've seen sycamore growing well on the aran islands off Galway so that would be the tree variety I would try. Hawthorn might be a bit more tolerant to the conditions where you are so I would be more inclined to plant a mixture of trees. Evergreen oak is also said to do well by the coast. You could also consider planting the trees you would prefer near the existing trees that would give them some shelter while the trees you want are getting established. My aunt has a nice apple tree established in her garden that's around the same distance from the sea but it's probably sheltered from the worst of the wind.

Hoof Hearted2

The_Bullman wrote: »

I'm building a house close to the sea in the North East. Now that the house is getting on I'm realising just how much it stands out in the landscape, and I'd like to minimise it visually.





I was thinking of planting a double line of trees close to the fence in the picture.

What trees would be suitable? I'd prefer a native tree if possible. The ground is very dry. only a few inches of topsoil then gravel.


That's how close I am to the coast.

Best trees for exposed coastal areas are crataegus commonly known as hawthorn, another good option for coastal exposed sites subjected to salt spray are Sorbus aucuparia, common name mountain ash or rowan.
There is a good choice of variety in each of those two species.
You could go with shrubs that tolerate exposed sites and salt spray, but given your location, I would recommend the tree option to stay in keeping with the surrounding landscape.
As one poster above suggested holding off planting for awhile, I'd disregard that advice, as the old saying goes when is the best time to plant a tree?, the answer is 20 years ago, but the next best time is right now, and doing it now has the obvious benefit of the trees been some way established by the time you move in.

Bixy

As you are looking for big trees to anchor your house into its setting I would second the suggestion of Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) - obviously non-native and a weed in many locations but it is one of the most hardy deciduous trees in a coastal locations. (growing happily on a cliff top here on the east coast beside me!). Second choice, as you are a bit back from the sea would be the evergreen oak (Quercus ilex)- look at them by the coast in St Annes Park, Raheny.
Good luck - exciting to be planning a garden in such a great location!

Oldtree

Sadly you have missed the boat really for this planting season. The sap is rising and buds are bursting, and any stock you get will be left overs, or potted up left overs..

Make your plan over the summer, get to know your garden and choose from the best bare rooted stock next October or so. An exposed garden like yours requires the best start for the best stock. Have a healing in bed ready to store the stock and plant next winter at your leisure.

Please don't be tempted by leylandii.

Have a good wander around the area and ask other gardeners for planting advice.

Hoof Hearted2

Oldtree wrote: »

Sadly you have missed the boat really for this planting season. The sap is rising and buds are bursting, and any stock you get will be left overs, or potted up left overs..

Make your plan over the summer, get to know your garden and choose from the best bare rooted stock next October or so. An exposed garden like yours requires the best start for the best stock. Have a healing in bed ready to store the stock and plant next winter at your leisure.

Please don't be tempted by leylandii.

Have a good wander around the area and ask other gardeners for planting advice.

I'm sorry, but this advice is just plain wrong and is indicative of the domestic gardener mentality and couldn't be more at odds with the tree industry, firstly the OP (or anyone else for that matter) hasn't missed the boat for the bare root or rootballed season, there's about 2 or 3 weeks left or possibly 4 weeks, and the assumption that potted trees are just the left overs of the bare root season is nonsense and couldn't be further from the truth, do you think tree nurseries grow trees for just one season and start again once that bare root season is over?, it may come as a surprise to you that alot of planning and organisation goes into operating a tree nursery and any tree nursery worth it's salt is very well stocked, not just with most species and varieties but also with quantities of same, and many lift the trees from the field to order, so there is next to zero watse.

It's true time is of the essence and now is the best time to get the best deals and is a great time to get a bargain from your tree supplier.

my3cents

Long term try Quercus ilex, aka the evergreen oak, holly oak or holm oak. I've had massive specimens growing on very dry soils and its suitable for maritime exposure. Can also be grown as a hedge.

There are probably 100's of other possibilities and I think I'd plant more of a woodland with views down through it rather than a regimented double row of trees.

Sycamore would do but its such a bloody weed I would avoid it if at all possible.

Oldtree

Hoof Hearted2 wrote: »

I'm sorry, but this advice is just plain wrong and is indicative of the domestic gardener mentality and couldn't be more at odds with the tree industry, firstly the OP (or anyone else for that matter) hasn't missed the boat for the bare root or rootballed season, there's about 2 or 3 weeks left or possibly 4 weeks, and the assumption that potted trees are just the left overs of the bare root season is nonsense and couldn't be further from the truth, do you think tree nurseries grow trees for just one season and start again once that bare root season is over?, it may come as a surprise to you that alot of planning and organisation goes into operating a tree nursery and any tree nursery worth it's salt is very well stocked, not just with most species and varieties but also with quantities of same, and many lift the trees from the field to order, so there is next to zero watse.

It's true time is of the essence and now is the best time to get the best deals and is a great time to get a bargain from your tree supplier.

Spoken like a true professional trying to get the most financially out of their season.

I don't trust a rootballed tree as there has been damage to the roots, neither do I trust a potted tree as who knows what went on there.

Don't trust what you cannot see, with bare root you can see the roots and judge the health of the tree properly.

My customers got the best plants, planning, planting and advice.

Oldtree

Hazel, willow, alder, cherry, sycamore, poplar, horse chestnut, hawthorn, spindle, etc buds all opening over this way.

mr chips

Willow grows fairly quickly, and will self-seed elsewhere once established.  Ditto rowan - not quite as rapid growth as willow, but birds love the berries so they will come up elsewhere in the vicinity. The berries are a beautiful rich red, but poisonous to humans, in case you're tempted!  Silver birch is also a fast grower and a lovely tree.  Scotch pine is native and is of course evergreen, so worth considering two or three for inclusion so that the "starkness" of the house in the landscape can still be softened in wintertime.  It's also worth checking whether there's any availability of dieback-resistant varieties of ash yet - ash trees are under serious threat and the more resistant ones that can be planted now, the better. One I wouldn't recommend is larch, or anything else that will shed needles everywhere - can be a curse for clogging up gutters, drainage lines under car windscreens etc.

The_Bullman

I'm returning to this now that winter is coming.

I've thought about increasing the depth to 12 metres. That's 12 rows with 1 metre spacing between them. 2 metres between trees, staggered rows.

The first and last rows would be a mix of hawthorn (50), blackthorn (30) and holly(10) at 1 metre spacing

Next 2 rows : Rowan (20), Hazel (10), Field Maple(10)

Middle : A mix of Scots Pine(25), Alder(20) , Silver Birch(25), Ash (20), Aspen(20), Sessile (10) and Common Oak (10) .

Second Last row: Spanish Chestnut (5) Wild Cherry (5) Crab Apple (10)

I was thinking of maybe adding 10 hybrid poplars to the mix for fast growth until the rest got established.

Any thoughts? Have I got too much of a mix? Would I be better off with less variety?

looksee

A meter seems very close, even with staggered rows. I think you would be creating an impenetrable thicket. 25 scots pines seems a lot too. They are great for that kind of landscape, but a lot of them close together is not nearly as dramatic as just a few spaced out. I don't see common oaks growing in that environment, well not to any height anyway. Doubtful about Spanish Chestnut too.

The_Bullman

The spacing I got from the GLAS specification. I don't mind planting less but I was thinking that I'd wait and see what takes off before I'd go thinning.


As for the trees I got the idea for spanish chestnut and oak here

I thought by putting them to the back that they'd get less of the wind and may grow some

looksee

Reading that list though, yes it gives oak as a coastal tree (I am really not convinced) but it also says heavy clay soil, not the shallow soil you have. The Spanish Chestnut is coastal I presume because it will be milder, you seem to have the windswept type of coastal area. However I will not argue with the tree council I was just going with my gut feeling, not always the best guide I suppose.

mr chips

I'd agree that a gap of just a metre, or even two, is too close for a lot of these trees.  Fine with the main hedgerow of hawthorn etc, but for a lot of the others you need to think in terms of how far the branches will spread in five years' time, let alone ten or fifteen.  I made the mistake of planting a couple of silver birches either side of a rowan at a boundary fence, each about five feet apart.  After 7/8 years, the birches have far outgrown the rowan - they've reached well over 20 feet in height, while the rowan is about 8 or 9 feet shorter. The branches of the birches are already in contact with one another through the rowan so that in full foliage, you barely notice the rowan is there.  I'd suggest you allow a minimum of 3 metres between trees, preferably 4 or 5.  You need to think of the space they'll need in their lifetime - which for the most part, will be longer than yours!  Trees like alder, ash and oak can get very broad indeed.  That said, I think what you're doing is great.  I love adding to the tree population and I've well over 200 planted here by now.  Just make sure you have the amount of space you need for all this.  For comparison, I'm on a three-acre site and have planted around 240-250 trees, mostly around 3m apart for the more slender varieties.  To allow for a few open spaces and not end up unable to see into the middle distance from the house, I reckon I'd struggle to fit another 50 in there (i.e. 300 total).

For greater variety, maybe the number of alder and scots pine down by more than half, and include instead a few beech, copper beech, and at least one decorative purple plum in a spot you'll see from inside regularly (the one I have is still in full leaf, while almost everything else has lost the majority of its foliage by now).  If you don't mind including another non-native, Japanese maple turn an incredible shade of red at this time of year - it's really stunning, and is another that's great to look out at when the weather is keeping you inside.

Oldtree

In fairness the tree council list was for coastal areas which would have less frost, not necessarily right beside the sea where salt and wind are at their worst.

From one aspect op, you have a good idea, plant loads of species and densely and hopefully the survivors will give you what you want.

From experience, a family members house is about the same distance from the sea as yours, planting trees there is fought with difficulties.

Hybrid Poplar was successful but stunted, which isn't a bad thing to control its growth. A good idea to use it as a screen to get the others going. Use a green mesh windbreak too, all around your planting.

Goat willow and birch do well, and would form the main bulk of trees, if I were planting in your spot and thin as necessary.

Sorbus also did well and is more ornamental to my eye, so I would put that (thinly) on the house side of the planting. Similarly Scots pine.

I would heavily plant with hawthorn and hazel and dog rose to form an understorey. Again these did well but stunted.