Need Advice on Landscaping an acre

20 years ago

We recently bought a house on an acre and my goal is to landscape the entire acre. I want to plant trees that will create a canopy effect in certain parts of the yard. How can I achieve that look in a short period of time? I am so impatient.

In the front yard, I have a large old oak tree that's fabulous---too close to the house for comfort but I'll take my chances. However it is solid and there doesn't seem to be any decay. I was going to have it topped off but an arborist said I should leave it alone because if I cut it, I can introduce diseases into the tree that's otherwise healthy. So that part of the yard is taken care of.

On the south side I have a row of cherry and apple trees alternating one cherry with one apple. The cherry trees and the apple trees are all different varities. I planted them last fall and can move them this fall if I have to. I don't know if I have them close enough for pollination or if I made a mistake alternating cherry with apple? They are planted 17 ft apart.

In the back of the house, I have an old weeping cherry tree. The trunk is large. Next to it is a weeping willow and next to that a birch. I think they are somewhat crowded but I really don't want to cut any of them down. The one problem is the willow is draped over the weeping cherry and it doesnt look that great. Any solutions? Would an old weeping cherry stand up to being transplanted at this point? That would be the only one that I could feasibly move. The others are very tall.

The rest of the property is bare (weeds and grass) which is approximately 3/4 of an acre. I have a 1600 square ft barn occupying some of that space and a small outbuilding. We are on a corner lot. The traffic is noisy. I am puttting up a picket fence around the entire property. I was planning on putting in a red vintage brick walkway from the back of the house to the barn and maybe a pergola covering the entire length of the walkway or would this look goofy? I was thinking of planting grapes over the arbor. Being Italian I want to make my own wine. I also want to plant some fig and olive trees but dont quite know how I should place them. In groups? Alone and spaced far apart?

Any other ideas? I am feeling overwhelmed. Fall is here and its time for planing so I need to figure out something soon. One year has already gone by and although I have accomplished a lot, I haven't made a dent in the project.

Grant, I enjoy looking at your projects. Love the bird planter.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience

Thanks for the advice. I'll take some pics and post them at a later date if I can figure out how to do that.

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Comments (4)

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
20 years ago
Unless you have already planned out your space and know how that acre will be broken up and how the various areas ("rooms" if you will) will be used and connected, then you are putting the cart before the horse - plan before planting! There are various DIY landscaping books on the market that are really quite good and will help get you started or you could invest in a few hours with a landscape designer/consultant. Once you've got a good basic plan in mind, you can plant to your heart's content.

For cross pollination to occur, the trees only need to be in relative proximity - anywhere on the acre would work. The bees will take care of the rest. And I wouldn't consider moving the cherry. If a large trunk, too well-established to adjust to such a move and it would be a much larger project than you imagine. Weeping cherries tend to be rather problematic anyway, so if it's not doing well undernneath the weeping willow, removal is probably in order.

Broad canopies take time to develop - it's not a process you can rush. One of the most important things you can learn as a gardener is patience :-)
Embothrium
20 years ago
"Large old" native Garry oaks can be hundreds of years old. Topping these in particular should be a crime.

Here is a link that might be useful: 5 Reasons To Stop Topping
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hemnancy
20 years ago
What I've read here would indicate it's not likely you would get ripe olives in our growing season. Figs are a different story. You might like to hang out on the Fig forum for some info on them. They need as much heat and sun as you can give them. My best so far are Laterula and Desert King, I haven't had Brown Turkey and Stella long enough to tell, as they are still rather small trees. They have little figs on them now but I had ripe Laterula and Desert King figs several weeks ago.

I don't know if the cherries you have are on special dwarfing rootstocks, but most seemingly dwarf or semi-dwarf cherry trees get very large indeed. They may dwarf the apple trees or encroach on them. Semi-dwarf apples actually grow the size of standard trees in other parts of the country.

If you want to grow vegetables you will need a good sunny spot so save a little ground without trees. Since you already have quite a few trees, you might want to look into shade plants. Pulmonaria are some of my favorites, very undemanding, bloom in spring, great foliage plants the rest of the time, and they self-seed so you get more plants.

Looking at some gardening books sounds like a great starting point. You might also walk around some established neighborhoods and get a feel for mature size of plants and trees you are considering, as well as seeing some good designs to imitate.

Most commonly available grapes are seedless ones perhaps not well suited for wine. Grape varieties for wine that will grow well here is something you would have to research.
zzepherdogg
20 years ago
Oh Please, do not let any one ever talk you into topping the tree. Mine was topped just befor I got my place, by the former owners. A few years later, it had grown in a very huge, odd sort of unnatural way. A nurseryman that I trust said that this type shoots out growth if its topped, and then the thing can get a split down the center. Which mine did, with in about five years. I had to have a big mettle rod/bolt thing put through it, to keep it from splitting all the way in half. I live in fear that it will still fall over into pieces. Not because of the danger, but the fact that this tree's canopy covers my whole front third of my lot,from fence line to fence line,(60ft) and all the plantings in that part of the garden would die if the tree canopy was gone. as well, My quality of life would be really miserable with out its shade. I frequently have to wear a sweater in the house even if its 80 out, because it keeps my house so cool. So you can get an idea what you could be in store for, if you ever did that, and possibly much worse. Besides the usefull things the tree does, I love it like an old friend, and would feel real sadness if it wasnt here with me. I am sure you would be horrified if some one harmed your tree.