Tree recommendations for privacy

[Gazelle1]

Hello, 

 

I posted last week about our oak tree which lost a large bough recently, thank you for the advice. We've had several tree surgeons out to look at it, and sadly 4 out of 5 advised us to cut it down.

 

We'll be gutted to lose the tree, and it'll also mean that we'll lose the natural screening between us and several of our back neighbours' massive loft extensions. We'd like to get another tree or trees up in the space and were looking for some advice of what to get. It'd ideally be evergreen, but I've been advised not to go for Leylandii. Would Thuja be better? We would keep on top of the maintenance to stop it getting out of control. Or is there a good alternative? Ideally we'd be looking for something that's fairly tall already or grows relatively quickly so it's not too much of a shock when the oak goes...

 

Thank you

[Stere]

Holly, Yew, Bay.

 

A hedge would screen more than a tree but neeeds more maintenace

 

Smaller trees often establish faster/better & often catch up with bigger planted trees after a few yrs, so I wouldn't plant a costly very big tree unless you want to spend for instant impact.

[Gazelle1]

Thank you. We had thought about a hedge, although there are already quite a few shrubs and small trees along the fence so it won't really be possible to plant a full hedge along it - we really just need something to fill a space of around 2 meters in width and 7 meters in height to give us a bit of privacy from our neighbours' back windows.  

[Mick Dempsey]

Have a look around your neighbours to see what you like, grows well in your soil type, and fits in with your style.

 

 

ps. Laurel

[Steve Bullman]

Like Gazelle said, putting in a bigger tree won't necessarily fill the space quicker as they can take longer to establish.

 

Leylandii are obviously the quickest but not ideal at all.  Thuja make for nicer specimens although not as fast growing.

 

How about an Atlas Cedar?  You could buy decent sized standards in this variety although that will depend on access and more importantly your budget.

Heres an example.  Not recommending this supplier as I know nothing about them, just the first one that popped up in google.

 

https://www.paramountplants.co.uk/plant/cedatlg/cedrus-atlantica-glauca.html

 

Or how about a couple of these side by side...less maintenance and less annoying to your neighbours for sure.

 

https://www.paramountplants.co.uk/plant/cd/calocedrus-decurrens.html

 

 

[Gazelle1]

Great, thank you will have a look at those options ?

[Treeation]

Why dont you just top the tree to the height of crown break....good chance it will come back well being oak and you can cut regrowth on a 5-10year cycle...then no need to replace

[Steve Bullman]

Can we be nosey and ask how the quotes were?

[Gazelle1]

We'd love to keep it, but there's a huge crack all the way through, and we've been advised to take it down sadly. Quotes ranged from £500-£800.

[joshuatree]

https://www.barcham.co.uk

 

Have a look on this site. You can put in your requirements and they'll offer suitable trees. I'd personally go with a birch or something similar. 

[OakStag]

Sounds like you want a fast growing evergreen with dense foliage I'd go for a laurel or a Thuja. Lots of different varietys available to keep it interesting. Just wouldn't advise bamboo like everyone seems to plant where I am.