After many delays over the course of many months (they were supposed to be planted last fall), the trees we selected to shade the Keys House have finally arrived! Trees have been a part of the landscape of this house since it was new; the various species — and their arrangements — have changed considerably over the past 135 years. A few ancient elms have survived at the eastern end of the small yard surrounding the house, but for decades the bulk of the yard has had no shade. The following images will depict the transitory nature of the landscape of the house over the span of more than a century:
An early illustration of the house shows a small hedge punctuated by what appear to be fledgeling evergreens. Other types of trees dot the property (which was whittled down in the 1950’s to a much smaller parcel). A former carriage house is at right.
By the 1905 – 1910ish period, the landscape had matured. The evergreens in the hedge are quite tall, but parts of the hedge itself seem to have expired. There are several trees between the street and the sidewalk.
By 1960, the hedge and tall evergreens had disappeared. Several trees fill the space between the street and sidewalk on the west side of the house.
By 2019 the yard was quite barren, and painfully so. The house at the far left is a Radford design, as is one not pictured but directly across the street.
Our new arrivals! Two nine-year-old American Elms now break the monotony and will help to shade the house during our sometimes-unrelenting summer heat.
The two trees are starting to leaf out, slightly behind their more established neighbors. Happy Spring, everyone!
Nice! I just made my first tree purchase. Quite an experience to go to a nursery and pluck one out of the ground. Those are lovely, and they will really make a big difference. Congrats! Also, nice to see the painted side of the house again. That is going to be really sharp!
Thanks, and congratulations to you, also! Trees are fun. These already make a difference with their leaves just starting to grow, so things can only get better from here. I’d kind of like to re-create the early hedge design seen in the two oldest images, but that would require more time and effort than is practical right now. The hedge and evergreens gave the house a delightfully creepy look, but we’re content with this smaller change for now.
The hedge would be a fun look, but it could leave the place feeling enclosed. I think the trees are a good balance. When I saw that picture, I thought, boy, that will be like a 10′ tall fence in a few years. (A few years being around what, 1900?) In that second 1905-10 pic, it seems like they have already thinned out the front side. My parents planted a bunch of evergreen trees that sort of took over their yard. They were cute when young and small, but oppressive when tall.
Your grounded perspective is quite sobering! Suddenly, the hedge and tall evergreens have lost all of their former appeal. Thank you for saving us much time and disappointment! Sometimes less really is more.
You could plant some dwarf arborvitae, juniper, or spruce shrubs that stay small, and can tolerate some trimming to keep in check.
You could also use some small boxwood varietal (if they can handle your climate zone over winter). They are very tolerant of pruning to keep small, although give a very different look than needled evergreens.
But I do agree with the caution of planting what look like small trees, that quickly grow. It’s a common mistake.
Happy spring! Wow, how did you get trees that size and age? I have heard of moving larger trees but I didn’t think you could purchase trees that size. The stuff you see at nurseries generally aren’t much bigger than saplings. I would love to get some trees that size.
The paint job so far looks great. The exterior details are so much more noticeable with the different paint colors; really gives it some nice dimension.
Larger nurseries frequently offer such trees… here is a link to a video showing the tree-moving process. We decided to go this route because at our age we don’t have time to wait for smaller trees to grow large! Glad you like the paint.
Those look nice, and I like the use of American Elms, which were once a common urban tree before the onslaught of Dutch Elm Disease. It’s nice to see them gaining some recognition again now that disease-resistant varieties have been cultivated.
With the disappearance of Ash trees due to the Emerald Ash Borer, I hope there is more recognition of the value of having diversity in urban trees. Ash became the go-to replacement for Elms, and now they’re following the same fate. The high-class Regency neighborhood in Omaha was heavily planted with Ash when it was developed in the 60s, and now it’s at risk of becoming barren of mature trees.
I wouldn’t mind if some new pest or disease targeted Bradford Pear, though. Those are just too popular with tract-home developers (due to their fast growth, and generally attractive habit), but they are terrible long-term trees. Almost guaranteed to self-destruct within 30 years.
A variety of tree species is definitely advantageous in an urban setting! I hadn’t thought about Regency in years; I remember when it was still being developed in the early 70’s. Somewhere I have a sales brochure for an office park there… it was described as something like “Nebraska’s first office condominiums”! That might make for a fun post in the future. Hmmm…. Without the mature trees the neighborhood would look a lot like it did a half-century ago!
Nice! I just made my first tree purchase. Quite an experience to go to a nursery and pluck one out of the ground. Those are lovely, and they will really make a big difference. Congrats! Also, nice to see the painted side of the house again. That is going to be really sharp!
Thanks, and congratulations to you, also! Trees are fun. These already make a difference with their leaves just starting to grow, so things can only get better from here. I’d kind of like to re-create the early hedge design seen in the two oldest images, but that would require more time and effort than is practical right now. The hedge and evergreens gave the house a delightfully creepy look, but we’re content with this smaller change for now.
The hedge would be a fun look, but it could leave the place feeling enclosed. I think the trees are a good balance. When I saw that picture, I thought, boy, that will be like a 10′ tall fence in a few years. (A few years being around what, 1900?) In that second 1905-10 pic, it seems like they have already thinned out the front side. My parents planted a bunch of evergreen trees that sort of took over their yard. They were cute when young and small, but oppressive when tall.
Your grounded perspective is quite sobering! Suddenly, the hedge and tall evergreens have lost all of their former appeal. Thank you for saving us much time and disappointment! Sometimes less really is more.
You could plant some dwarf arborvitae, juniper, or spruce shrubs that stay small, and can tolerate some trimming to keep in check.
You could also use some small boxwood varietal (if they can handle your climate zone over winter). They are very tolerant of pruning to keep small, although give a very different look than needled evergreens.
But I do agree with the caution of planting what look like small trees, that quickly grow. It’s a common mistake.
Happy spring! Wow, how did you get trees that size and age? I have heard of moving larger trees but I didn’t think you could purchase trees that size. The stuff you see at nurseries generally aren’t much bigger than saplings. I would love to get some trees that size.
The paint job so far looks great. The exterior details are so much more noticeable with the different paint colors; really gives it some nice dimension.
Thanks!
Larger nurseries frequently offer such trees… here is a link to a video showing the tree-moving process. We decided to go this route because at our age we don’t have time to wait for smaller trees to grow large! Glad you like the paint.
Those look nice, and I like the use of American Elms, which were once a common urban tree before the onslaught of Dutch Elm Disease. It’s nice to see them gaining some recognition again now that disease-resistant varieties have been cultivated.
With the disappearance of Ash trees due to the Emerald Ash Borer, I hope there is more recognition of the value of having diversity in urban trees. Ash became the go-to replacement for Elms, and now they’re following the same fate. The high-class Regency neighborhood in Omaha was heavily planted with Ash when it was developed in the 60s, and now it’s at risk of becoming barren of mature trees.
I wouldn’t mind if some new pest or disease targeted Bradford Pear, though. Those are just too popular with tract-home developers (due to their fast growth, and generally attractive habit), but they are terrible long-term trees. Almost guaranteed to self-destruct within 30 years.
A variety of tree species is definitely advantageous in an urban setting! I hadn’t thought about Regency in years; I remember when it was still being developed in the early 70’s. Somewhere I have a sales brochure for an office park there… it was described as something like “Nebraska’s first office condominiums”! That might make for a fun post in the future. Hmmm…. Without the mature trees the neighborhood would look a lot like it did a half-century ago!