by Irini Kotroni

Created on: March 27, 2010   Last Updated: June 20, 2010

Remember that tree you purchased from your local garden center or nursery; the one that looked so perfect amongst the other 50 or so of the same species and now you have got it home, it doesn’t look quite right. The allocated space is too small or too large; there is too much sunlight or too much shade. The pleasure of the purchase vanishes and you start thinking ‘where do we put it’?  We have all done it.  Spent money on a tree, got it home and now it doesn’t look right.

To avoid making this sort of expensive mistake, get a pen or pencil, collect several pieces of paper, or even better, invest in a notebook so that you can jot down your garden ideas and hints as and when you see or hear them.

The first item on the agenda in deciding where to plant trees in your yard is to take a look at your yard; a really good look, not just a quick glance from the porch to the fence.  If you are able, draw a sketch of the shape of your garden.  You can draw it to scale or just a rough diagram. It is will become a record of information. If you have a digital camera, take photographs of your yard from different angles.

On this sketch, mark out the following: existing trees, sheds, outbuildings, sandpit, children’s play areas, drains, immovable objects and the compass point ‘north’.

Look at your drawing, then look at your yard again.  Ask yourself the question, ‘what do I want from a tree or trees?’ Many of us would love a variety of trees, but will your yard accommodate them?  Small trees have a life span of 20-30 years whereas the larger tree can be there for over a hundred years and when it gets too big, experts will need to be employed to remove it; this is very expensive.

We moved into a house in England that had 11 sixty feet high lime trees (Linden not fruit) in the yard.  They were great for shade but in the summer they used to drip a sticky substance all over the cars, garden furniture and the dog.  The dog was not happy.

Mark with an ‘x’ where you want your tree(s) to be placed.

Take your notebook or second piece of paper and write on separate lines, a list of different categories, for example: shade, color, favorite, hedging, screening, winter/spring/summer/autumn colors, spring blossom, fruit, wildlife habitat, tall, small, broad or little leaves, deciduous or evergreen and anything else you may think that comes to mind.

By each category that appeals to you,

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