10 British trees to grow in your garden
Growing plants helps to absorb carbon from the atmosphere, which is important if we want to reduce global warming. Try planting one (or more!) of these native trees in your garden.
Alder (Alnus glutinosa)
A quick-growing, nitrogen-fixing, insect-harbouring, bird-loving son of a gun. These trees grow fast and love damp soil. Small brown cones dangle from the branches throughout the year. Catkins appear between February and April.
Crab apple (Malus sylvestris)
Looking for spring blossom, autumn colour and pretty fruit that stay on the tree long into the winter? Suitable even for small gardens, crab apples like fertile, moist but well-drained soils. The fruit are edible, although only palatable when cooked.
English oak (Quercus robur)
Famous for having strong timber, being a home for insects, and for living to a ripe old age, oaks grow all over Britain. They’re the best at attracting insects (who’ll help to pollinate other plants in your garden) and can live for over 500 years.
Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)
The hawthorn is also known as the May tree, and you’ve probably seen loads of its beautiful white flowers blooming in the month of May. Used in spring ceremonies, this tree also has more practical uses and its haws are thought to benefit the heart and to lower blood pressure.
Hazel (Corylus avellana)
If you grow a hazel, you can look forward to harvesting the tasty nuts and perhaps sharing them with garden friends such as squirrels and dormice. The catkins that grow on hazels also look pretty cool – they’re known as ‘lamb’s tails’.
Holly (Ilex aquifolium)
You’ll love harvesting holly from your garden at Christmas, and the birds will love you for providing shelter and a plentiful source of food in the berries. There’s nothing like seeing the red berries and the shiny, spiky leaves of holly to brighten a dark, cold winter’s day.
Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia)
This used to be planted outside houses to ward off witches, but you might like to plant one simply because it’s a lovely tree with bright red berries! It can survive on high, exposed ground and many birds will appreciate its fruit, including blackbirds and thrushes.
Silver Birch (Betula pendula)
If you want to make a quick impression on your garden, try this fast-growing pioneer species with its slightly shiny silvery-white trunk. Its timber is used to smoke haddocks, among other things, and its trunk can be tapped for sap that can be made into wine.
Small-leaved lime (Tilia cordata)
Although you won’t get green lime fruits from this tree, it is one of our most beautiful native species. You can eat the leaves in salads, and brew a pleasant, uplifting tea from the flowers.
Willow (Salix sp.)
Fast-growing and so many to choose from – weeping, goat, twisted, even cricket bat! These trees survive in the dampest of places, so will suit a water-logged or riverside garden. Goat willow provides a vital source of sugary nectar and pollen for newly emerged bumblebee queens.
Photo credits:
hawthorn - Andrew Menage
alder - Dean Morley
hazel - S@ndrine
holly - Tambako The Jaguar
rowan - Kevin Walsh
silver birch - Arthur Chapman
small leaved lime - Dinesh Valke
weeping willow - Jim Barton
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