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dawiff

Deodar Cedar? Sugar maple? Something else?

dawiff
11 years ago

I have an area that has opened up in my garden where I'd like to plant a couple of trees. Actually, it opened up because I took out two trees that had problems. One was a pear that lost its top half in the ice storm this past winter, and the other was a diseased cherry that would drop its leaves and half-formed fruit.

So I'm trying to decide what to replace them with, and looking for advice. My two first choices are a deodar cedar and a sugar maple. I moved here from New England, and miss the fall color that maples provide. And I just like deodar cedars. Can anyone think of any reasons why those two might be problems? Can anyone suggest other possibilities that might work better? Do I maybe have room for three trees? Or two trees and a understory tree? What would you plant? Should I go with shrubs or understory trees and perennials instead?

The bed they will be going into is on the southwestern end of our property, so it gets good sun (when the sun is out). The bed in total is 70 feet long, but part of that is taken up by an oak that we kept. So I have about 45 feet in a bed that is about 10 feet wide.

The purpose of the trees is privacy, the bed is between me and my neighbor. I'm including some pictures of the area.

Here's a picture of my front lawn and the bed between my neighbor and me. You can see the oak on the left, and my neighbor's house beyond.

Here's the bed from the end of my neighbor's driveway. You can also see the south wall of my house.

I'd appreciate any advice. Thanks!

Comments (16)

  • PRO
    George Three LLC
    11 years ago

    if you like deodar cedars, i say go for it. especially if you don't plan on living there for long. they get insanely huge.

    with a single deodar, i don't think you would have much room for another large tree, so you might consider planting a few vine maples or a paperbark maple, or really any small maple tree with good fall color.

  • Embothrium
    11 years ago

    You already have a pin oak and now you want to add two other trees that will also grow more than 60' tall and wide in time. Unless you don't mind planting trees that will become out-of-scale liabilities you really need to consider something smaller, I thought of vine maple also. And I would take out the pin oak, which is already over the driveway - these do not limb up at all well, the branches above drooping down to fill the space where you cut the lowest ones off.

    You can get Himalayan cedar in dwarf cultivars, if it is the needles of this that you like one or more of these can scratch that itch. Be sure to expose, inspect and correct the roots at planting - as best you can - as these are going to be grafted and the production industry here appears to have a consistent habit of putting out grafted conifers stuck on terribly deformed rootstocks.

  • Wayne Reibold
    11 years ago

    I planted two Sugar Maples at my place in Puyallup, WA about 5 years ago and are about 25' tall now -- unfortunately the fall color they get is nothing like the way they get fall color in New England :( I have had much better luck with fall color here with Red Maples (e.g., October Glory, Autumn Blaze).

  • botann
    11 years ago

    The northwest is full of yards that have been swallowed up by Deadara Cedars. You need something smaller, much smaller. Small enough that it won't impact you and your neighbor's yard so much, even if it is just lawn.
    What do you want these trees to do? Are you looking for privacy?
    Your soil looks to be thin and sandy judging by the trees in the background. That should be taken in to consideration when choosing.
    Mike

  • Embothrium
    11 years ago

    I might add that I just paid about a thousand dollars to have a roughly 2ft diameter pin oak cut down here, that was lifting and cracking my asphalt driveway for the second time. Prior to that there was the cost of having the driveway repaired, and of having an arborist climb the tree and prune it.

    In recent years the tree was developing too many dead branches, I think I gave it some kind of heartwood infestation digging near the base many years ago (it was planted in the 1960s) and gouging the bark. When it was pruned I noticed a heartwood stain, which of course is now easily seen in the cut trunk sections.

    Jacobson, Trees of Seattle - Second Edition (2006) records one in Mt Baker Park more than 106' tall.

  • AnnaA
    11 years ago

    In my ignorant gardenening youth (about 11 years ago), I planted a row of Deodora along the east side of my yard. We wanted 2 things: privacy, as that side sits on a street, and water control. Rain run off led to a swamp every winter.

    Well, we got what we wanted almost instantly. Beautiful tall trees and no more swamp. But about 5 years ago we finally realized we were raising a group of monsters. I grow a substantial veg garden, and I predict maybe 1 more year of decent sun? We think we will need to have them removed. But, they get more beautiful and aromatic by the day. And we now feel enveloped by a forest in the city, which i love, but a growing liability just the same. We created a mess, as some of the posts above suggest.

    Just thought I'd share my experience to add to OPs deliberations. When I'm ready to take them down, I'm going to do it right this time and get advice! (such as posting here. :-)

  • plainolebill
    11 years ago

    Maybe an aspen would suit your purposes, within 4 or 5 years sending up shoots to form a small grove (small if you mow the shoots you don't want.)

  • bluewillow09
    11 years ago

    I love your sweep of lawn bordered by the perennial bed and the pin oak is just beautiful! As others pointed out, it won't remain in scale with your home and yard ultimately, though- it seems like every tree grows to about twice its normal size here. And another large tree or two will have your home buried in gloom in time. I am no expert so others may nix this idea, but why not plant a nice dark green hedge along the boundary, arborvitaes maybe? And then in front of that, one or two japanese maples with good color that will show up against the green hedge? Many of them get beautiful fall color (I was originally from new England, myself, and I miss the beautiful autumn, too!) and then the bare branch pattern would be pretty in front of a hedge in winter as well. That would give you privacy and still let some sun shine in (when it is out, lol). You could fill out beneath them with shrubs and perennials.

  • Embothrium
    11 years ago

    While our Pacific Coast native trees are often the largest-growing of their genera and some kinds of exotic trees planted here have done well and grown quite large the misperception that many non-native plantings have grown hugely larger than usual would probably be driven primarily by them being falsely portrayed by commercial literature - shade tree cultivars all supposedly growing 20' tall or so, named forms of arborvitaes 6' and so on.

  • PRO
    George Three LLC
    11 years ago

    1. $1000 to down one 2ft diameter tree is pretty pricey. at least here in portland rates are much lower. just got 6 or so 2ft diameter cherry trees downed for $900 total.

    2. if you do want a tree-y lot, perhaps smaller/more narrow/high canopy conifers? narrow incense cedar, mountain hemlock, korean fir, stone pine, scots pine. there are an awful lot of choices.

  • Embothrium
    11 years ago

    Tuning fork-shaped tree was taken down in sections, so as to avoid smashing a rare grafted maple a few yards away, and other plantings. Figures you gave and use of term "downed" would tend to indicate you are talking about cutting trees off at the ground, in one move, with the whole top going over at once, in the manner of a logging operation.

  • PRO
    George Three LLC
    11 years ago

    nope, my trees were cut up in small sections and dropped carefully. two were very close to the power line to my house. granted my guy is very cheap and there is a little "you get what you pay for" with him. shows up late. disappears for a day. etc.

    but $1000 for a single tree would be very expensive around here. gold plated chainsaw blades up there i guess.

  • larry_gene
    11 years ago

    Mature ailanthus tree removals on this Portland block were about $1500 apiece two years ago.

  • PRO
    George Three LLC
    11 years ago

    oh boy. you guys sure like expensive contractors! try below next time.

    Here is a link that might be useful: integrity tree care

  • bluewillow09
    11 years ago

    Lol, bboy, I was exxagerating, but let's just say that if a tree is known to reach a certain height, it will almost certainly do so, here in the NW!

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