Delighted to hear from Laura at Pinetum about their plant a tree promotion. She concedes that sending oak trees to customers may "overpower their gardens" but still maintains there is no problem in planting a Norway Spruce - yet even their suppliers, the little Christmas Tree Company, say that Norway Spruce will grow up to 140ft tall!
C'mon Laura, I agree it is a great idea to encourage more trees to be planted and I fully support that. But surely a non-native species that grows up to 140ft tall is not the answer? This is more likely to put people off trees than engender admiration?
How about a nice flowering Cherry? or Chinese Rowan? These are still not native but are more decorative and only grow to about 30ft tall - much more manageable than 140ft. Alternatively, consider the native Hazel. This is classified as a shrub because it is short in height but it is not unattractive, produces catkins in the spring, is good for butterflies and wildlife and can produce hazelnuts. As a boy we used the hazel for making thumbsticks, for hedging repairs and enjoyed collecting the nuts in the autumn.
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