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landscape designDesign DilemmaGardens
chris_christodoulou25

overlooked garden

chris christodoulou
3 years ago

hi, I am planning to build a garden outbuilding at the rear of the garden, but am overlooked and would have to remove trees. Is there an alternative way i can have some screening on the rear fence?

Featured Answer
  • Sarah Hunter
    3 years ago

    helloo. it may feel counter intuitive but it might be worth planting trees closer to your house to increase your privacy as they won't need to be as tall as they would need to be at your boundary to prevent the feeling of being overlooked.

    as someone else said, using birch is a good strategy as they are tall and thin, grow quite quickly and can be planted quite close together, to beautiful effect

    • Comments (38)

    • Rowland
      3 years ago

      hi Chris,

      you could put some trellis up above the fence to screen and plant a climber to give you some privacy.

      Best

      R

    • Ruth House
      3 years ago

      some tall bamboo....but ensure its 'clump forming non invasive' sort.

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    • Mary Ketchley
      3 years ago

      I don’t know how to post it but there was a recent story on here where someone built a garden room with a mini courtyard for a tree in the back corner.

    • Mary Ketchley
      3 years ago

      This one https://www.houzz.co.uk/magazine/room-tour-a-garden-pavilion-provides-flexible-added-space-stsetivw-vs~144934679

    • Carly Cutler
      3 years ago

      Have a look at Garden Customs for your outbuilding, they will build around the trees so you don’t have to lose them and also cheaper than most off the shelf garden buildings, they also don’t concrete so won’t damage the tree roots https://gardencustoms.co.uk/?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google_search&_vsrefdom=gs

    • keiblem
      3 years ago

      Kind of defeats the object felling trees to build a structure to provide screening.

      I agree with Carly Cutler you don’t have to go to those lengths. You can build the garden room above ground on piles.

      https://stopdigging.co.uk

      https://www.barrelltreecare.co.uk/case-studies/BuildingsNearTrees.pdf

      Mary Ketchley example is nice if you have £100,000 to spare!

    • Paul Smale
      3 years ago

      Hi Chris , I would leave the trees in situ, you will be restricted in height probably by your local planning anyway for the garden room ,by raising the canopy slightly on the trees , probably only a couple of feet ,you will keep the screening of the trees . Build off the ground on pegs around the trees and think you will have a result . As others have said finish with trellis. It appears you have concrete posts for the fencing so if anything goes rotten it’s only the fence and you only need little access for that ( or your neighbours 😀)

    • Ellie
      3 years ago

      Could you build the shed in between the trees. It would be a real shame to take them down when they are offering some privacy

    • Mary Ketchley
      3 years ago

      Keiblem, 😂😂😂 I didn’t look at the price.

    • keiblem
      3 years ago

      Eye watering isn’t it!

    • Laura
      3 years ago

      I was looking up screening options myself earlier and came across pleached trees. There’s lots of different types from what I saw. Pricey but probably quite good.

    • keiblem
      3 years ago

      Pleached trees are lovely in a formal setting. However do bear in mind that they require as much maintenance as a hedge except they are a lot higher to reach. Think hedges on stilts.

    • chris christodoulou
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      thanks all! I will have a look at pleached tree options. We were thinking of doing the outbuilding along the RHS boundary - with a canopy overhang for a bbq area. Trying to find some examples of this online but to no avail. has anyone seen this done before?

    • flippineck
      3 years ago

      Bear in mind that the tree on the right looks like leylandii. Will grow huge very quickly.

    • Looby Loo
      3 years ago

      We completed a similar project last year and used a local company who designed a bespoke shape to suit an awkward corner. Bear in mind that, unless you apply for planning/building regs, you will have to leave at least 1m between the structure and any boundaries.
      Personally, I would plant a couple more trees but make them species that will not encroach.
      Swedish birch provide a clear trunk with a light “frothy” canopy that doesn’t block light but breaks up the view.
      Good luck

    • Ruth Stringer
      3 years ago

      I would remove the leylandii and build your outbuilding there. Then add an AMELANCHIER ORNAMENTAL TREE maybe each side of your entrance or to the side to add your screening. They let light through and provide some
      Screening without being invasive. Or a Pyrus salicifolia pendula (weeping pear) it can be shaped very easily and provide great blocking.

    • Looby Loo
      3 years ago

      Agree with @Ruth Stringer.
      A corner building doesn’t encroach on the garden so much and would allow you to soften it with planting. Very pleased with ours and will be adding some planting in the near future

    • Carolina
      3 years ago

      You could take down the leylandii only, leave the other tree, and build something like this. You could perhaps put a smaller tree between that outbuilding and the house to prevent people from looking into your garden/house? Difficult to say without seeing the whole situation.




    • chris christodoulou
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      @Carolina where can i find the imagines you have shared and are these timber framed?

    • Carolina
      3 years ago
      last modified: 3 years ago

      Hi Chris, I found them on Pinterest. Mind you, I'm Dutch and did a search for 'schuur met overkapping' and one for 'schuur met buitenkeuken'. If you type that into the search bar on Pinterest, or even google them, you'll probably find loads of examples. Outbuildings like that are very popular here in the Netherlands. Yes, they are timber framed.

    • Carolina
      3 years ago

      You could also search for 'tuinhuis met overkapping'

    • chris christodoulou
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      @sarahhunter thats also a good idea so maybe halfway up the garden?

    • Ruth Stringer
      3 years ago

      Where you plant them will be dictated by where the sun is / when and the trees cast shade, you don't want them to block light into the house or over beds / seating etc.

      Obviously be aware of what gets planted closer to the house (roots etc).

      I spent ages trying to find a suitable tree to block out the view from a neighbours window and ended up with bamboo in tall, heavy round pots on the patio surrounding the dining area. To get it right, I spent days positioning a tall piece of wood or trellis where I thought the tree would go. Spent a day or two with it in place to assess if the view or the light got blocked and then moved it around until I was happy.

    • chris christodoulou
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      we want to appoint a lanscape gardener to help us with this. would 2-300 be enough for a detailed design?

    • chris christodoulou
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      if not hpw much should we allow for a design?

    • Shesh Deards
      3 years ago

      Planting a tree in the foreground will solve your problem the quickest

    • Ruth Stringer
      3 years ago

      The cost of a designer will depend on where you live and who you get unfortunately and how confident you are with planting will depend on the necessity. Where are you?
      When we moved in I approached the local horticulture college and they sent a guy in his last year who really was great. He set up his company and 25 years later he’s still going strong. I got my ideas through discussions with him and he advised to use the trellis to obtain the necessary height and position idea and it really worked. He also pointed out that a distraction to the eye really serves just as well so sometimes you haven’t got to ‘block’.
      It really depends on the length of your garden as the angle of the line of sight will decrease nearer your house so this will dictate whether you create a distraction through a tall single tree near to the outbuilding (I wouldn’t suggest a weeping type as the hanging branches will run against the felt on the roof), away from your outbuilding (bear in mind blocking the light too here) or plant a bed at the right point with tall shrubs, small trees and flowers.
      I have attached a picture of one side of our house where our neighbours have a view straight into our garden. There was a prunus there which we took down as it blocked the sun in the evening. It was a heavy thick tree which hadn’t been maintained well enough over the years. Last year I planted this weeping pear (compliments an old willow we have in the garden). It won’t get high enough to block the light but it will (once grown up it provides dense foliage) obscure the view enough for me to feel comfortable.
      Our garden is long and we have fields out the back so we have a low lush fence to enjoy the views. But there is also a lane which is used literally all day by walkers. I put in some rustic heavy duty tall trellis across the garden to divide the garden up to a veg garden at the lower by the lane and the top section to be our family lawn/plant garden. I have plants growing over the trellis and this obscures the view to the house.
      I suppose I’m saying there is more than one way to get what you need without overkill but it all depends on the length of your garden and the distance of the neighbours window from the fence.

    • keiblem
      3 years ago

      Trees are a wonderful addition to any garden. They provide interest, shade, screen views, help clean the air, provide a habitat and food for wildlife, combat global warming, the list goes on.

      However please bear in mind the ultimate height and spread of your selected tree, its proximity to your and your neighbours house and the soil type. Right tree, right location.

      For very good reason house insurers often ask for information about the trees in your garden before determining a fee. Some trees should never be planted anywhere near a house particularly weeping willow and Lombardy poplar. Any tree may damage and block nearby drains and undermine house foundations particularly if the house is on clay soil. So I recommend you do your research before making your selection of tree type for your chosen location. The last thing you want, a few years down the line, is to have to fell that beautiful tree you have come to know and love.

    • Ruth Stringer
      3 years ago

      Absolutely agree with keiblem above. So you research on tree suitability 👍. When we moved in, previous owners had planted a willow oak 2m from the house for privacy!

    • chris christodoulou
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      we are based in north west London

    • keiblem
      3 years ago

      Ruth Stringer: Good grief. You would certainly have been assured of privacy!

      You have raised another consideration. When it comes to selling your house the insurance company of a prospective purchaser may require that the tree is felled by the vendor before they offer insurance.

    • keiblem
      3 years ago

      Isn’t large swathes on London on clay soil?

    • Ruth Stringer
      3 years ago

      We are in clay soil here in Worcestershire and yes insurance/ mortgage surveys picked up the trees in the garden but no instructions given. We ended up felling 4 all within 15- 20 foot of the house. There are a lot of trees you can plant near a house, just got to look for them and avoid the others.

    • Ruth Stringer
      3 years ago

      Chris christodoulou: perhaps have your outbuilding built as that’s the major consideration here then consult with landscapers or by that time you’ll have a picture in your head if what to do. If you plant behind it it will make access hell for pruning so that shouldn’t be an option to consider before building.
      Our landscapers are Gloucestershire based but he may help as he covers all the main flower shows. I’ll ask if you like or he could recommend someone for you?

    • chris christodoulou
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      yes please that would be great

    • PRO
      The Rooted Concept Garden Designs
      3 years ago

      Hi Chris,

      You've had a lot of good advice given to you already! Just a couple of considerations to bear in mind:

      • You dont necessarily need to have a screen by the rear fence (as you are planning to have an outbuilding there, which will already be private and covered anyway). You can screen the areas that you want more privacy in (usually your seating areas) with screening around it. And in this case, screening can take many forms: a pergola with climbers on top, small trees or other plants such as bamboo.

      • Bamboo is great as it gives you a lot of height without occupying a huge area. BUT THEY ARE INVASIVE! So make sure that you get a clumping variety (as was already said here) AND also make sure that you plant them with a suitable barrier at least 1m deep in the ground around their rhyzome system, as even the clumping ones, if planted on the ground without barriers can spread to your immediate neighbour (another alternative would be to plant them in big troughs and not on the ground). And yes, pleached trees do require a degree maintenance to keep their shape (as was already mentioned here).

      • In London it is very probable that you are in heavy clay soil area. In this case, it is very important to be careful with planting trees very close to the house because their roots are more prone to cause subsidence than in other soils.

      If you need any further help, I offer a range of online garden design services from sketches and planting plans only to full on garden plans with 3D visuals. Please dont hesitate to have a look at my website to see my portfolio and get in touch.

      All the best,
      Deborah
      The Rooted Concept Garden Designs

    • Ruth Stringer
      3 years ago

      Hi, my guy can offer distant help through pictures and measurements etc. His email is jonathon@foliation.co.uk. I will leave you to contact him if you want to. Their website is not great, but he knows his stuff.

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