General questions about English hollies

Chris Mason

 

I'm planning on planting three hollies (natives) in my garden, the area I'm going to be planting in is approximately six feet by ten feet, I don't really like the idea of a hedge nor a large group of bushy plants, I'm hoping to grow them into trees (remove the lower canopy when their mature enough.)

I do also wish to mention that there is a elder (at the moment it's a sapling) growing there.+ the area gets a good amount of sun.  I have two questions,    1) will three hollies and an elder be too crowded in this space?  2) will managing this area like this encourage birds to nest or at lease take shelter In when the whether isn't the best? 

Chris Mason

Will a single holly's canopy fill up that entire space then? And will they be happy if I encourage them to become tree like as a pose to a bush or hege? 

 

- sorry about all the questions. 

Fairygirl

Hi Chris - One holly will easily fill that space over time (is it six feet in depth or six feet in width?)  but you might want to have something else in the surrounding area until it gets big enough. They get pretty large over time.  Birds will certainly enjoy it and some will happily nest there. 

Is there a reason for wanting it to have a clear trunk? Is it so that you can underplant with something else?

Chris Mason

I've seen a few pictures of holly tress and I prefer the look of them as a pose to bushy ones + I like the idea of it so I have a shady area to sit and read... It's 10ft in length and 6ft in width. (though if the canopy goes over than this it's fine)      

 

Ive bought four ilex aquifolum which I've now realized this may have been a big mistake,I'm going to plant one in that area we're talking about now, I'm going to keep the elder (I never planted it, I strongly suspect it arrived by bird poop) if it dies then oh well, and the second will be handled the same way in other area, the third will be planted in the front garden and the fourth I have no idea, 

Buttercupdays

Elders grow very fast and eventually quite large. They can be controlled by cutting back to the ground every couple of years. You may lose some flowers but they will still provide good cover for the birds,  as the canes re-grow thick and fast. Same effect, but better from the garden point of view to do that with a decorative elder though!

Hollies grow fairly fast, but as full grown trees I am not sure how good the cover is from a bird's eye view. There was was one I used to climb as a child - you could perch in the middle and look out but not be seen. Most of the foliage grows on the ends of the branches and the middle is fairly open, which is why I was able to climb it! The birds would probably get more protection from a holly hedge, as clipping makes the branch ends bush out and predators would be less able to reach them. You could grow it as a standard and clip the top into shape which would have a similar effect, but it might be hard to reach!

Fairygirl

Chris - we inherited a mature holly at our last house. It was planted next to a cherry and the privet hedge bordering the neighbouring field. I pruned it back in the way you want to do.   It had crowded and damaged the hedge and the other tree. It let light in and improved it enormously. It was around 10 feet in width and a fair old height.  A few old bird's nests fell out as I did it so I think the birds will still enjoy it no problem! Ours was at the end of the front lawn and was on the edge of the grass and the gravel pathway.  

Chris Mason

 

If birds nest in it at some point I'll be absolutely delighted, but what the tree might lack in nesting sites it will definitely make up in a food source which I'll be okay with, I get a lot of song birds in the area surrounding our back garden (a medium sized hedgerow which is goes all around the park our garden backs onto) so even if it doesn't add more nests it will at least add more food and help adults raise young... Just the other day I had five blue tits and two long tailed tits feeding all at once, that's not accounting for the great tits which were not present as they had just filled up on suet! I could keep it as a very large bush but remove a few lower branches from one side as a pose to removing all of them? It might look a little odd, but I think I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.    Thank you all so much for your help ;3