Does anyone else grow tree's?

[Lincs Yellowbelly]

Hi all,

I just wondered how many members of the site grow tree's in pots? I started doing it a couple of years ago and it's really enjoyable to do. At the moment i've got:

4 Common Oak, 3 at 18inch and 1 around 10inch, 3 given to me, 1 grown from seed
2 Alders around 1ft, found growing in some moss at a lake
2 Beech around 6in, grew on from seed
5 Sessile Oak, all just come up this year, grew from seed
1 Willow, from a plain bit of trunk

Does anyone else do a simliar thing?

[The Woodman]

All the time, Lincs Yellowbelly.

This years include a Korean Fir from a small potted tree in a garden centre that bore small mature cones that disintegrated easily into a small handkerchief! I planted 20 -25 seeds and only one has germinated. It's on my window sill enjoying the sun with its four needles. Beware though, crunching up the cones results in resined hands!

Like you, I have all sorts grown from seed, some I bonsai, and play about with cuttings and layerings.

[barquar]

Good on you both I bet it is so rewarding when they start to grow and very interesting.
Barquar

[Lincs Yellowbelly]

I'm going to try and get some cuttings of Wild Service Trees to grow soon!

[2dogs2000]

I encouraged my children to plant acorns and horse chestnuts when they were young, now I am doing the same with my grandchildren. At the moment I have 3 horse chestnuts and 2 oak trees in pots.

[IanS]

My wife has got into doing this recently. We have several oaks, hornbeans, horse chestnuts and yew trees on the go at the moment. Along with various bushes. Luckily one of our friends has offered to take them off our hands in plant them in his own wood!

[stripee]

Trees are fascinating to grow from seed. Conifers and decidious trees all start off so differently. It's a great thing for kids to see.
A while back I used to grow trees from seed regrettably mostly foreign ones, now I would concentrate on natives....also I got hooked on seed catalogues such as Chilterns which have strange and weird native plants from across the world, as well as British wildflowers and trees. The ones that survived, a couple of sequoias (giant redwoods), gingko, catalpa, eucalyptus, some acers, pinus aristata (bristlecone pine) other conifers and some I can't remember what they are called, are doing well. Although many of the strange seeds didn't germinate or grew briefly and then died

[The Woodman]

I have a small ornamental maple I grew from seed collected from Westonbirt Arboretum 19 years ago. Despite a sign near the Acers which were in magnificent colour saying they were hard to propogate from seed, this one came up and at the moment is deep red. It came from a tree with the variety name "superbum" which tickled me greatly at the time and especially as I've a photo of my youngest daughter beneath it with a wicked grin. It still makes me smile every time I look at the little tree.

[hobble]

My partner has many different trees growing in pots. One of which is a rescued red hawthorn from a tree job which is now 14 years old, a wisteria which is in full flower, a honeysuckle, various maples, and I have a small coppice of hazel which I took from my grandads garden after he died, which is nearly 8 years old.
I also have a beautiful beech from a farm in Devon where I used to work.
Most of the trees are bonsai'd and develop with smaller leaves and flowers.
He underplants them with moss and small ferns, they are like their own little worlds.
I will upload some pictures for you soon.
We are surrounded by massive sycamores and the trees in their pots provide interest all year round.