The Douglas fir is a native of North America growing from California up to British Columbia. It was introduced in Europe in 1828 and is widely cultivated today in the woods and parks of western and central, Europe because of its rapid growth and high quality wood.
It is now found in broad-leaved woods from England to Greece, eastwards to the western Himalayas and South to North Africa. It is estimated that there are about 30,000 of these trees in Germany. In France it is most abundant in the Vosges and the foothills of the Alps and in Great Britain it can be found from southern England to Scotland and in Ireland.
The common yew can attain a height up to 20 metres, but often it remains only a shrub. It grows very slowly, but may live to the age of a thousand years. It is distinguished by its reddish bark, dark leaves and bright red fruits. The leaves are generally two-ranked, and the inconspicuous flowers, borne on the underside of the twigs, bloom in March. The yew is a dioecious species, and the scarlet, fleshy fruits, which mature in late September and arc a favourite food of birds, are borne only on female trees. Today the yew is widely cultivated in parks as an ornamental, including its yellow-variegated and pyramidal form.
The related form Pseudotsuga glauca Mayr. grows in the Rocky Mountains at heights above 2000 metres. It has a thinner and less deeply furrowed bark, blue-green needles and cones with reflexed bracts. It has a slower rate of growth and is more suitable as an ornamental.
The Norway spruce is a typical tree of the mountain forests of central Europe and the northern European taiga. It has a narrow, conical crown with branches arranged in regular whorls, and grows to heights of more than 40 metres, in virgin stands up to 60 metres at the age of 400 to 700 Years. The bark is brown and furrowed. The leaves, rhomboid in section, are borne on peg-like projections, a typical characteristic of all spruces, which give the twig a rough surface when the leaves have fallen. The female flowers resemble small, erect reddish "candles" at first, but later change into pendant brown, elongate cones. The winged seeds are shed on warm and windy spring days.
The Scots pine thrives in almost any climate and in poorer and drier soils. That is why it may be found on sandy or shallow soils that other more demanding trees find unsuitable. The wood is light and of good quality, the heartwood pale brown - used for columns, windows, doors, sleepers, etc. In some places its resin is used by the chemical industry.
It is now found in broad-leaved woods from England to Greece, eastwards to the western Himalayas and South to North Africa. It is estimated that there are about 30,000 of these trees in Germany. In France it is most abundant in the Vosges and the foothills of the Alps and in Great Britain it can be found from southern England to Scotland and in Ireland.
The common yew can attain a height up to 20 metres, but often it remains only a shrub. It grows very slowly, but may live to the age of a thousand years. It is distinguished by its reddish bark, dark leaves and bright red fruits. The leaves are generally two-ranked, and the inconspicuous flowers, borne on the underside of the twigs, bloom in March. The yew is a dioecious species, and the scarlet, fleshy fruits, which mature in late September and arc a favourite food of birds, are borne only on female trees. Today the yew is widely cultivated in parks as an ornamental, including its yellow-variegated and pyramidal form.
The related form Pseudotsuga glauca Mayr. grows in the Rocky Mountains at heights above 2000 metres. It has a thinner and less deeply furrowed bark, blue-green needles and cones with reflexed bracts. It has a slower rate of growth and is more suitable as an ornamental.
The Norway spruce is a typical tree of the mountain forests of central Europe and the northern European taiga. It has a narrow, conical crown with branches arranged in regular whorls, and grows to heights of more than 40 metres, in virgin stands up to 60 metres at the age of 400 to 700 Years. The bark is brown and furrowed. The leaves, rhomboid in section, are borne on peg-like projections, a typical characteristic of all spruces, which give the twig a rough surface when the leaves have fallen. The female flowers resemble small, erect reddish "candles" at first, but later change into pendant brown, elongate cones. The winged seeds are shed on warm and windy spring days.
The Scots pine thrives in almost any climate and in poorer and drier soils. That is why it may be found on sandy or shallow soils that other more demanding trees find unsuitable. The wood is light and of good quality, the heartwood pale brown - used for columns, windows, doors, sleepers, etc. In some places its resin is used by the chemical industry.
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In planning your garden, if you want to make a feature of an existing stream or pond in your garden, make sure the water runs all the year so that you are not left with a dry mud waste in the summer.
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