I don't really have a strong idea of what to do with it, except that it would be nice to have some trees there. With this in mind, I organised, with help, a meeting with a person from the région engaged in management of the site classé that surrounds the property, and a landscape gardener available to the local community. The purpose was to get some outline ideas on what might be a sympathetic and attractive way of managing the space to best fit in with local scenery and aesthetic values. Null points. Those august personages seemed to engage in a power struggle, and did nothing but argue about what might be permitted. I think the best idea that came up was an orchard. "How many apples do you think my customers are going to eat?" So I'm doing what I feel like.
Last year I mowed the field once in the Autumn, taking care to avoid the yearling walnut trees that had sprouted, in the hope that they will get their roots deep enough to survive the inevitable weeks of Summer drought. They still seem to be there, although they're not much taller than I remember them. I have not mowed the field this year; I understand that tall grass helps to shield young trees in their early years as they establish, so it's staying.
However, I have decided to give Nature a helping hand. I have cleared a strip of grass parallel to the road, a few metres into the field, to transplant some Hazelnut saplings that had self-seeded in the garden. I figure that once they grow they will help hide the inner area of the field from prying eyes of passers-by, and give me a bit more freedom as to what to do there. There are nine small trees of various sizes, 5 paces apart, along the mowed track. Fingers crossed.
5 comments:
Well, no surprises from the 'experts' then!
We tried walnuts at the last house but one, but the soil was too thin and acid out in the field...a pecan struggled on, only to be cut down by the next owner as 'untidy'....
The hazelnuts should do well..
The soil is a bit shallow, and alkaline. The walnuts self-seed as do the hazelnuts, so I am hoping they will cope with the conditions. The hazelnuts in particular, seem to be immune to drought.
This appears to be most scientific operation. No vandals nearby?
What might work well is a specialist wildflower seed mix strewn around the trees you hope will survive. That also gives you a reason to delay mowing until they have set seed, together with a small marketing plus of decent ecology.
Perhaps a local beekeeper might add some hives once your wildflowers have taken off, if you like the idea.
Not that it is much use but I have two huge walnut trees and the squirrels seem to do a grand job of planting nuts to create saplings!
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