New Japanese-style tree for garden

VanMan2007

Can anyone recommend a tree that would suit a Japanese garden, that doesn't have roots that would cause problems; and if it produced blossom (and fruit?) that would be a bonus.

Just chopped down my 15-yr-old cherry tree for those root reasons. Sniff!

whitewing

bonsai?

Just joking really.

LadyDee

An Acer would suit - and it can be grown in a pot. Not sure about roots but I've seen quite large ones in pots so the roots can't be that much trouble.

VanMan2007

LadyDee wrote: »

An Acer would suit - and it can be grown in a pot. Not sure about roots but I've seen quite large ones in pots so the roots can't be that much trouble.

I had a red Japanese Acer for about 10-years, but it died last year of some white, round fungal spores. I forget the name. Don't know whether it would be a good idea for another, but they are beautiful plants. Thanks for the suggestion.

VanMan2007

The_Cats_Been_Sick wrote: »

It may not be very Japanese but fig trees do best if their roots are constrained by being planted in 'box' of paving slabs.

Ooh, I hate figs. It reminds me of those boxes that get foisted upon you at Christmas, "Try them, they're lovely!". :eek:

Thank you for the suggestion though.

VanMan2007

whitewing wrote: »

bonsai?

Just joking really.

A scaled-up version would be ideal!

DaftyDuck

whitewing wrote: »

bonsai?

Just joking really.

Well, to run with your joke, which isn't that bad an idea, how about Ulmus elegantissima 'jaqueline Hillier', which is a miniature weeping elm. I can provide a picture when the fog lifts; I have one in a pot. Grows 2 feet high, pretty in winter from stem, pretty in summer from leaf.. guess which it is at the moment?

I have a Chinese garden in a yin & yang symbol, and that has a Ginkgo biloba on one side, and Magnolia (what it is? not sure?) on the other. The Magnolia is one of the smaller ones, so 3 feet high, spectacular flowers, scented. Ginkgo will, no doubt, tower ever upwards.

(If you google the elm, you'll get some lovely pictures of the foliage, which you won't get from mine for a while yet. Darn weather. Darn fog. Grumble :mad: )

Edit:
It's Magnolia stellata something... cute
Edittheedit: Magnolia stellata "royal star". It's a beaut in flower. But Chinese. Cue racist gardening joke...

Leif

What do you mean by roots that do not cause problems? Would it be near a sewer pipe, or a house?

What about Fatsi japonica, which is not a tree, but a large shrub. Magnolia has been mentioned, but don't all oriental shrubs look the same? (Was that the racist joke alluded to in the previous post? Don't worry, it was a post ironic snipe at racists, whatever that means. I never did understand R4 discussions of films.) Camellia japonica is a large shrub, very decorative, mine is about 2.5m tall.

VanMan2007

Leif wrote: »

What do you mean by roots that do not cause problems? Would it be near a sewer pipe, or a house?

What about Fatsi japonica, which is not a tree, but a large shrub. Magnolia has been mentioned, but don't all oriental shrubs look the same? (Was that the racist joke alluded to in the previous post? Don't worry, it was a post ironic snipe at racists, whatever that means. I never did understand R4 discussions of films.) Camellia japonica is a large shrub, very decorative, mine is about 2.5m tall.

"Was that the racist joke alluded to in the previous post?"
By me??

Fatsia japonica and Camellia japonica are nice, but not what I am after. I want a tree, not a bush. But something austere, minimal, zen-like. I know this would be achieved by a lot of educated, disciplined, pruning. But that's what I'm after. A centrepiece for the garden.

The roots thing: my cherry tree shot out lots of surface roots, causing potential problems. The walnut tree next door has a tap root, causing no problems (hopefully)! The tree will be in the middle of the garden, so rampant root syndrome aside, there will be no problems.

VanMan2007

DaftyDuck wrote: »

Well, to run with your joke, which isn't that bad an idea, how about Ulmus elegantissima 'jaqueline Hillier', which is a miniature weeping elm. I can provide a picture when the fog lifts; I have one in a pot. Grows 2 feet high, pretty in winter from stem, pretty in summer from leaf.. guess which it is at the moment?

I have a Chinese garden in a yin & yang symbol, and that has a Ginkgo biloba on one side, and Magnolia (what it is? not sure?) on the other. The Magnolia is one of the smaller ones, so 3 feet high, spectacular flowers, scented. Ginkgo will, no doubt, tower ever upwards.

(If you google the elm, you'll get some lovely pictures of the foliage, which you won't get from mine for a while yet. Darn weather. Darn fog. Grumble :mad: )

Edit:
It's Magnolia stellata something... cute
Edittheedit: Magnolia stellata "royal star". It's a beaut in flower. But Chinese. Cue racist gardening joke...

Interesting post, thank you DaftyDuck. The Ulmus looks great in some pics I've looked at. Ideal, but big enough?? 5 feet would be a minimum, really.

http://www.google.com/imgres?sa=X&biw=1920&bih=883&tbm=isch&tbnid=4xJmHsVVZH0lJM:&imgrefurl=http://www.parlonsbonsai.com/forums/index.php/topic/7258-vos-plus-beaux-ormes-de-chine/&docid=kL1_wBuVNcfALM&imgurl=http://www.parlonsbonsai.com/forums/uploads/post-13-1088780591_thumb.jpg&w=400&h=300&ei=9OdmUbuHPIjK0QXmi4DQDw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=410&vpy=153&dur=8750&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=149&ty=221&page=1&tbnh=133&tbnw=182&start=0&ndsp=59&ved=1t:429,r:26,s:0,i:170

This looks exactly what I would want, if it were the right size.

Are you able to use your own Ginko Biloba?

sobie

VanMan2007 wrote: »

I had a red Japanese Acer for about 10-years, but it died last year of some white, round fungal spores. I forget the name. Don't know whether it would be a good idea for another, but they are beautiful plants. Thanks for the suggestion.

White fungal spores on an acer would more than likely be Scale Insects. It doesn't normally kill the Acer but it will look unsightly and the leaves will drop off. An insectide such as Bayer Ultimate Bug Killer will kill scale insect, and is systemic so will keep working for upto 6 weeks after spraying.