Neighbours and trees

[Dilbertian]

My 2 neighbours on one side have a lot of mature trees at the bottoms of their gardens, which naturally grow over the side of my garden. This leads to a lot of maintenance for us. We have a cordial relationship with our neighbours, they are happy for us to use the windfalls and no issues with trimming the trees and disposing of the cuttings. One neighbour would prefer me to trim the overhang more often, as a major prune every few years is uglier than pruning yearly.

On my side of the fence I have mostly shrubs and dwarf trees. One of the shrubs, a solanum, has managed to climb into one of the neighbour's trees. This tree no longer grows as far over my garden as it used to. Presumably the Solanum has reduced the amount of light that part of the tree gets, so it doesn't grow outwards on this side.

It makes me wonder whether allowing climbers to extend up into my neighbours' trees would actually be a good idea, if it reduces the amount of pruning I have to do. That side of the garden is west-facing and gets a lot of sun.

Thoughts?

If neighbour has specifics about the trim they needed to pay to have it professionally done. Imo.
Unless you invoice them for your work?

TBH I agree with them. I'm just a lazy gardener.

You aren't their gardener!! Not sure chopping to their specifications isn't bordering cfery.

I think climbers into trees can look lovely, so I would do that anyway. Paul Noel is supposed to be a good rose to plant to climb into a tree.

@Lockdownlovernotfromliverpool

You aren't their gardener!! Not sure chopping to their specifications isn't bordering cfery.

It's really a non-issue They are quite right, because if I pruned a bit every year, it would maintain privacy for both of us.

I get a lot of benefit from the neighbours' trees... birdsong, greenery, beauty. Plus roots in my beds and under my patio, invasive saplings, rotting windfalls and loads of leaves to sweep up!

I'd not thought about planting a rose. I would love that. Is it fragrant?

I've got a wisteria that isn't happy where it is, and a jasmine that I allow to scramble over my shrubs, rather than let it climb upwards into the neighbour's trees. I'm considering moving the wisteria and relaxing my attempts to control the jasmine. Perhaps even encourage it upwards. It currently sprawls across a deutzia which needs pruning before the jasmine has finished flowering. Honeysuckle is another climber that I love, and would consider planting on that side. And then, of course, there's clematis. Lazybones has never planted it because of having to keep the roots in shade on the sunny side of the garden, but if I planted it behind the existing shrubs...

I would talk to your neighbour about climbers. Lonicera henryi (evergreen honeysuckle) is quite capable of smothering a mature apple tree, and other things (eg Rosa "Kiftsgate", Vitis coignetiae for example, even Clematis montana) can be even more vigorous. There's a fine line between restricting growth on your side and the climber becoming vigorous enough to threaten your neighbour's trees, and if the climber is getting out of hand, you would have to think how you would prune it one it was high in your neighbour's tree.

Is there a climber that dies back in the winter and climbs again the next year?

Do all climbers climb as high as their support, or are there any that do not climb higher than, say, 3-4m?

Is there a climber that dies back in the winter and climbs again the next year? They can be pruned and allowed to regrow - clematis, for example, boston ivy and virginia creeper.

Do all climbers climb as high as their support, or are there any that do not climb higher than, say, 3-4m? The point of climbers is they use the strength of other plants to support them in their upward quest for light, so yes, they aim to climb to the top of their support. How far they get depends on the vigour of the plant and how much food it can store in its roots. Some climbing roses will stay within 3-4m, others will grow far higher if they need to.

s