Mike Palmer explains the importance of trees and offers planting options for gardens of all sizes
Asa child I spent many happy hours sat, book in hand, under the cool, shady canopy of an ancient apple tree in my parents’ garden. My slightly more mischievous brother, Murray, completely disinterested in Blyton’s exciting adventures of Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy the dog, scrambled his way up and into its twisting branches to relieve the tree of some of its scrumptious, rose and green coloured bounty. Technically, it wasn’t scrumping as the tree was ours, alongside a towering oak and a prolific pear.
From my formative years, I quickly realised the importance of trees, both within and outside of our family gardens, providing us with delicious apples, mouthwatering pears, and the most refreshing, cool shade on a hot summer’s day. I also quickly learned of the more significant and wider reaching importance that trees play to mankind.
Trees are, and will always be, an integral part of our ongoing battle to combat the very real impacts of climate change, helping to moderate soaring summer temperatures and taking up moisture from the soil to alleviate the damaging effects of flooding. Trees are also key in our fight against pollution and the challenging concerns of the biodiversity crisis, with 53% of the UK’s woodland wildlife population in decline. And for us, trees have a significant and positive effect upon our mental and physical wellbeing with proven benefits for those living with anxiety and depression.
Trees for all
Luckily, we can all help to support the long-term health and wellbeing of ourselves and our beautiful planet, by planting just one tree, or perhaps even more than one, in our own gardens. And fear not, there is a tree for every garden, no matter its size, or location.
Small garden trees
This Japanese cherry is ideally suited to smaller gardens with its delicate, upright habit. It wows in mid-spring with a profusion of semi-double, white and shellpink, lightly fragranced flowers. As the blooms fade and flutter, confetti-like to the ground, young, coppery, bronze foliage unfurls, which turns mid-green before putting on a spectacular autumn, fiery red and orange display. This columnar beauty prefers a free-draining soil and much like me, dislikes getting her feet wet in winter. Mature height 3-7m.
I adore the way the sunlight shimmers on the slender silvery foliage of this weeping pear in summer. Clouds of delicate white flowers with contrasting black stamens appear in April-May which go on to form small, inedible, green, pear-shaped fruits. This sparkling spectacle will not only attract the attention of inquisitive neighbours and passers-by, as it is extremely popular with wildlife such as bees and other pollinating visitors. Growing to just 4 x 4 metres in 20
