Many owners of suburban areas dream of having a garden immersed in greenery and fragrant flowers. But for the successful implementation of the idea and the creation of a picturesque artistic image, it is necessary to use every centimeter of the earth. As the practice of experienced gardeners shows, lush and elegant flower beds can be equipped not only in open areas, but also use tree trunks for these purposes.
It is rare to find a summer cottage or suburban area where fruit trees would not grow. But these plants with spreading crowns and well-branched root systems take up a lot of space on the site. How to rationally use the near-stem area under the trees to make the garden more elegant and attractive, without harming the plants?
Young seedlings need careful care. Their trunks should be left open as they are needed for fertilization and watering. The opinion that the roots of trees grow straight down into the ground is wrong. Some of them are located in the upper layers of the soil, deepening only 40-50 cm. This point should be taken into account when choosing a place for a flower bed so that the roots of neighboring plants do not harm each other in the struggle for life-giving moisture and nutrients.
For example: birch, walnut and horse chestnut have strong superficial root systems. Any plants in the near-trunk circles of these trees feel uncomfortable. But the apple tree, hawthorn and mountain ash have a pivotal root system. They happily let ferns, ornamental grasses and flowers under their crown, allowing them to turn bare tree trunks into picturesque flower beds.
When creating flower beds around trees, you should adhere to the same principles as when arranging flower beds in open areas. The only difference is to carefully choose plants that will be comfortable in conditions of a lack of moisture and light, and also carefully (with minimal damage to the root system of the tree) process the soil before planting flowers.
Thinking over the arrangement of the flower garden, it is important to imagine how the plants planted under the tree will look like in a couple of years. When choosing flowers, one should take into account the peculiarities of the soil composition on which they prefer to grow, their resistance to temperature extremes, and lack of moisture.
At the site of the arrangement of the future flower garden, using a small spatula, we clean the soil from small roots, debris and stones that penetrate the soil. Do not touch the roots of the trees. But you should determine their density in advance by digging with a shovel in several places of the future flower garden, sinking into the bayonet. If each time the shovel rests against an extensive network of roots, it is better to look for another place for the flower bed. A variant of digging in the roots is possible, in which the “interfering” branches are pushed apart to the sides, creating small “pockets” for planting flowers. If when arranging a flower garden one cannot do without partial cutting of the roots of a tree, then when performing work, one should be guided by the principle that no more than 10 percent of the entire root system can be “chopped off”. After trimming the root, you will have to shorten the crown of the tree, reducing it by the same volume.
The bottom of the dug holes, intended for arranging the planting pits of flower beds, is lined with non-woven material or a fine mesh. This will prevent the penetration and interlacing of plant roots and slow down their growth somewhat.
Drainage is an important moment when arranging a flower garden. To prevent water from stagnating in the flower garden, we line the bottom of the “pockets” with a ten-centimeter “pillow” made of gravel, pebbles or sand.
We fill the prepared holes in half with a fertile soil mixture, a third of which is the earth dug out when creating the planting holes. We plant the plants in the holes so that the root collar of each is 2-3 cm higher than the ground level. We tamp and water the soil.
You can learn about what determines soil fertility from the material:
Most carisy-flowering perennials prefer sunny, fertile areas. But placing a flower garden under a tree is unrealistic to achieve such conditions. Even if the tree has a transparent thinned crown, only part of the sunlight will fall on the flowers planted under it.
Therefore, when choosing plants, preference should be given to shade-tolerant and shade-loving flowers. Dwarf varieties of conifers, bulbous and annuals are ideal for decorating a flower garden under a tree.
The material on choosing the best shade-loving perennials for the garden will also be useful:
In conditions of partial shading, such perennials as hosta, lily of the valley, anemone, foxglove, ivy, primrose, lysimachia will feel comfortable.
Making out the tree trunk circle, you can solve two problems at once: to achieve a decorative effect and to protect fruit trees from the encroachments of harmful insects. Nasturtium is able to protect cherry and apple trees from apple sucker and blood aphid. Marigolds and chamomiles perfectly scare away aphids and nematodes, and lilies of the valley protect stone fruits from fruit rot.
In early spring, bare tree branches will not interfere with the penetration of light into the flower bed, allowing primroses to please the eye even before the leaves bloom on the crown.
There are many options for creating spectacular plant compositions on the trunk circle. These can be multilevel round-shaped flower beds, the outer edge of which is decorated with low-growing plants, and the inner space is filled with taller flowers.
When decorating tree trunks placed along a building or a fence, which are visible only from one side, semicircular and asymmetric flower beds are more suitable.
When arranging multi-tiered compositions, it should be borne in mind that the near-trunk circle of fruit trees can be filled up to a height of no more than 10-12 cm. Filling the root collar of a tree with soil can lead to rotting of the trunk.
Option # 1 – spring kaleidoscope
To equip such a flower garden in the fall, you should clear the near-stem area around the tree from small stones and roots of weeds. You can enrich the soil by adding compost and organic fertilizers.
Bulbous ones look spectacular in small groups: they are like placers of multi-colored glass of a kaleidoscope sparkling in the sun’s rays. Daffodils, crocuses and tulips are planted in groups, placing them at a distance of 15-20 cm from each other. In the foreground of the flower garden, small tubers of the corydalis are planted – a herbaceous plant that got its name from the bizarre shape of the flower. The empty spaces between the bulbous meadows are filled with periwinkle bushes creeping along the ground.
To protect the bulbs from frost and provide them with conditions for growth and full flowering in early spring, it is better to cover them with spruce branches or foliage before cooling.
Option # 2 – contrast of primroses
It is not at all necessary to give the flower garden an even round shape. Decorative tiles will serve as a worthy frame for contrasting flowering meadows, with the help of which the flower garden can be given any shape.
Daffodil and redwood bulbs are also planted in the fall in small groups around the trunk of a tree. After the flowering of daffodils, in their place are pretty herbaceous “bushes”, collected from elongated smooth leaves, which retain their decorative effect until mid-summer.
About the rules for planting bulbous flowers in the fall, you can learn more from the material:
Option # 3 – solar paints
Early spring eratis, adorned with tiny golden-yellow flowers, is most decorative only in the sun. Fortunately, in early spring, the crowns of trees do not give a thick shade, making it possible for these unusually beautiful herbaceous plants to express themselves in all their glory.
When arranging a flower garden, they first think over the pattern of the composition. Crocus corms are planted along the outlines, and winter spring rhizomes are planted as a background. After the spring bloom of crocuses, the wilted flowers are not removed, thereby allowing the plants to multiply with the help of seeds.
With the help of flowers, even empty spaces under a tree can be turned into picturesque and pleasant corners of the garden for relaxation. Spectacular flower arrangements framing the trunk circles will decorate the garden with delicate colors and fill it with charm.