shantung maple in a small spot?

16 years ago

imagine this; a driveway, a row of 3 year old leland cypress's 7 ft tall which are 11 ft from the driveway, & the property line 4 ft beyond the leland's; so there's 15 ft from the driveway to the property line. there's another driveway right at the property line.

will a shantung fit in this space?

maybe i could plant the shantung 3 ft from the driveway; & as it grows trim all branches at a height below 7 ft, so cars could pass underneath. of course the shangtung will be 8 ft from the lelands, & they'll kinda grow together & have to be trimmed.

i dont know if i've ever seen a mature shantung, i dont know if this will work or not.

will this look ok?

or am i crazy?

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Comments (6)

lou_spicewood_tx
16 years ago
Shantung maples grow to be around 25-35 feet tall and wide over time.

Go to www.metromaples.com. They probably have the largest shantung maple trees in DFW area. It is located in South Ft Worth close to 287 and 820. Best price for regular shantung maple, i think. You can get 6-8 feet in 7 gallon for 45 dollars there. It's best to wait till mid September at the earliest to plant it though. It is only open on Saturday. from 8 to 1 pm but it's worth the drive there. They have Shantung maple 'Fire Dragon' which gives you consistent red fall color unlike regular shantung maples which is typically yellow. They are more expensive though.

I would plant further away from the driveway though. 5 feet minimum.
maryhawkins99
Original Author
16 years ago
thanks! i have a fire dragon from meto maples.

so if i plant a fire dragon 5 ft from the driveway, it will be 6 feet from the lelands. will that look ok? will i be able to trim all branches below 6-7 feet & it will still look ok?

thanks,
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lou_spicewood_tx
16 years ago
That's awfully close to leylands. Hmm... It would be nice if somebody is growing a columnar shantung. metro Maples just recently posted a picture of it. Apparently, Keith from there is starting to think it is taking on that form unexpectedly. His is 25 feet tall and only 8 feet wide. Anyway, you could try planting shantung maple 3 feet from the driveway but it takes a while to get tall enough to keep 2/3 rule (2/3 of tree must be with branches/leaves) so you would have to get a tall one. I'm sure you know how expensive it can get at 6 feet for Fire Dragon. A regular shantung is 45 dollars for 6-8 feet in 7 gallon if you want to save money. Make sure to mulch around the tree even all the way to the driveway. it gets so hot along the driveway...
maryhawkins99
Original Author
16 years ago
a 25ft tall, 8 ft wide tree would be perfect for me. i'd thought the tallest fire dragons for sale at metro maples were 6-7 ft, but i'll contact them & see.

other smaller trees i'd thought of were lacebark elms, lacey oaks, & bradford pears. but my first choice would be a shantung. its just hard to visualize, there arent any mature shantung maples around for me to look at.

guess i can go look at the "neglected shantung on price rd", but its a 1 1/2 drive

thanks,
myersphcf
16 years ago
& bradford pears..... I don't think there is ever a reason to buy this tree...I am convinced it has a genetic flaw... you will be slowing slicing and dicing the tree until it is totally cut out at the stump... as each branch breaks from each every wind storm... It will probably grow to a certain size and then you will be haveing to have the chain saw at ready every time you see the skies darken.This is one ornamental tree I wouldn't touch... oh and they look stupid too as far as their shape IMHO ...David
maryhawkins99
Original Author
16 years ago
yes, i dont hear much good about bradfords; but they fit into my space though.
in a perfect world i'd move the neighbor's house 10 ft. but i'm stuck where there's no perfect choice. every book i read says stay 5-10 ft away from the driveway, 10-20 ft from the lelands, etc; self contradictory rules in my case

so given that i have 11 ft from the driveway to the lelands, & i want to screen out my neighbors 40 ft tall house, what do i plant?