I can't imagine having a garden without a tree. If I had a small back yard, I would plant a crab apple tree in one corner and a rowan in the other. Both would be trimmed of branches almost to the height of the fence and would then billow out gently over the corners, their branch tips touching one another. Bees would throng in the blossom in spring and birds would feast on the berries in autumn. Their leaves would give me a little privacy from being overlooked, and underneath, in the cool, dappled shade they cast, I would plant my favourite early flowering perennials.
As it is, I am in the very fortunate position of having a garden large enough to plant a wide variety of trees. Some older ones, planted before my time are now large trees, but almost all of the trees I have planted myself are ideal for smaller gardens.
The nursery here has always focussed on hardy perennials, which fill our garden borders with colour in summer. But as you can see from the picture above, trees and bulbs are an essential component in creating the shapes and colours we love. This year we are extending our sales range in the nursery to include some of our favourite trees, and later in the year, we'll have many of our best-loved bulbs available too.
All of our trees have been sourced from Frank Matthews exceptional nursery in Worcestershire, expertly grown in peat-free compost, of course.
An absolutely gorgeous flowering cherry which arches gently, creating a flattish top. We have placed a bench under the a group of three of these trees in our garden - it's glorious to look up at against a blue spring sky. I recommended this tree for the newly planted ‘Air’ garden at RHS Bridgewater too. They flowered for the first time a few weeks ago and over the years will link up overhead to create a canopy of blossom.
Crab apples
Most crab apples make perfect trees for smaller gardens. Renowned for their autumn fruits, I've chosen here to focus on the spring blossom, which is not only pretty, but beloved by bees too. From top left, clockwise, these are: ‘Red Sentinel’, ‘Golden Hornet’, ‘Everest’ with the brightest white flowers, and ‘Profusion Improved’, the lovely warm pink, bottom left. The plants available on the nursery are in 12L pots, standing at around 1.8m high. All are lovely shaped trees, ready to plant out.
Fruit trees
Our orchard is a delight for visitors, with cascades of blossom in spring and laden with fruit in the autumn. We've matched our new fruit tree stock with our personal favourites, as you can see from the pictures below. The Victoria plum (only one left!), damson and Egremont Russet trees in stock are elegant standards, while the ‘Spartan’ apples are espalier trained, perfect for growing against a fence or wall.
Birches and Gingko
We have three very lovely Gingko trees, and a lovely selection of birches, including the bright white ‘Jacquemontii’ which looks so stunning in our lane border underplanted with white and yellow tulips at this time of year. For smaller gardens we have Betula ‘Moonlight’ which is a shorter, slower growing form. or something a little different, Betula ‘Ruby Chocolate’ which has glowing, dark chocolate coloured bark.
Speaking of chocolate - if you haven't visited us yet this year - you're in for a treat. Drop in and get to know ‘Belle’, our new food servery - we now have a hot milk steamer so we can make perfect hot chocolate and frothy milky coffee.
Hope to see you soon. Sue. x