I'm looking to plant (balled and burlapped or have them moved in, probably no bare-root) 10-15 tree's to line the south side of our driveway. I live in growing zone 4b near Jordan, MN. I'd like something that's deciduous and fast growing. Deciduous because I can't have low hanging branches slowing the snow down and fast growing because I'd like to be able to enjoy them and have them add value sooner rather than later. The area is prone to being pretty damp in the spring but not a swamp. The driveway is shared and sees a good bit of traffic but it goes right down the property line so these would be firmly on our side between the driveway and the horse pasture. I've been leaning toward autumn blaze maples but I'd like to hear everyone's suggestions. Of course one of the main concerns is cost but I'm not sure how to gauge that exactly; what makes sense to me is comparing tree size vs. cost.
I believe silver maples might be a good choice, i plan on transplanting a ton of trees this spring because we live in the middle of a field and don't have a lot of trees around last year i planted 9Apple trees,i can't wait to have apples! I'm hoping for a bunch of pine trees and silver maples, pretty much anything to start growing soon
Thanks, I'll look into silver maples! Are you in Menomonie, WI or MI? I've been too and through the WI one many times.
Menomonie wi. I'm not exactly a tree expert of any sorts but it seems that the silver's around here grow super fast and straight up. I get tons of it for firewood and you'd be hard pressed to find anything that splits easier!
Went and looked up silver maple and Autumn Blaze Maple. both look gorgeous in the fall colours. One description said that the Autumn Blaze would stand up to storms better as it is a stronger tree. Would this be a factor in your decision?
Do you want a taller fast growing tree that doesn't branch out much? If so, there's that poplar that grows tall and fast. We had them up in Wausau wi on our property line. They made a nice fence quickly.
That's a factor to consider for sure since it's almost totally wide-open there now but down in a valley. I wonder if it would look funny to do every other? I'm not certain but I *think* I want something that develops a decent crown after growing vertical for a ways. Do you remember what type of Poplar they were and how they stood up to wind and such? Since we all like pictures this is what I'm looking for, except for just on one side unless I convince the neighbor...
We planted poplars twice over 2 decades. They blew down after 5-10 years each time. Then again that was Colorado.
Sam, I found this while trying to get the Poplar's name. Hopefully this link will help you. Just quickly perusing it, you should get some ideas at least. http://blog.arborday.org/the-fastest-fast-growing-trees/
Thanks for that link Horkn! Yeah, no willows for me. They'd end up burrowing into the tile lines running down the pasture I'm sure.
Guessing you had Lombardy poplars...tall and skinny? Not similar in shape at all but equally as soft.
Stick with the Autumn blaze maple. They are a far better choice than a Silver maple. Not as messy and have almost the same growth rate. Keep in mind that the size of tree you plant will relate to the price and also, the larger the tree you get will stunt them a whole bunch due to stress and transport and transplanting. A 1 inch caliper tree will probably grow faster after transplanting than a 3 inch caliper tree. Since you are some what close you can look at http://www.baileynurseries.com/ They are 1 of the whole salers we buy from so you wont be able to buy direct but some good info. There is also http://crossnurseries.com/. We buy a lot of nursery stock from them also. Fer GODS sake, don't plant any willows unless you want to spend the ageing years of your life tearing them out.
How damp is damp? What about sycamore? We have a very small creek here. There were three willows but they all came down over the years. I would love to have a couple sycamores in their place
