Which tree to plant close to the house?

[User952539]

My house is wonky. It was extended in the late 70s/early 80s and in the process it became asymmetrical. I can’t change it but would like to visually disguise it by putting a tree in front of it. The problem is it would quite close to the house
Id ideally like something evergreen but that isn’t essential. Any ideas for trees that shouldn’t cause issues with the foundations? I wanted eucalyptus but my googling shows that would be a bad plan..

Would you be better planting in large half barrels or ceramic pots, something like a couple of palm or evergreen honeysuckle. Can you attach some decorative trellis or metal panels to the wall. What do you mean by wonky.

How close are you talking? And how long do you plan to stay in the house?
What about a fruit tree?

do not plant any trees close to a house.
frying pan, fire.

The house is a 1950s house. It’s wonky in that it’s a symmetrical house with two gables but on one side the windows are offset and it’s very noticeable. I’m trying to visually disguise it.

Its an expensive house and we’ve been doing a renovation. Lived here 15 years and we are likely to be here another 20ish.

In front of the wonky gable there will be a planted area and so my thought was to put something tall and fairly slim to visually disguise the issue. I also considered Italian cypress but I don’t think any cypress is a good idea since they’re thirsty. It would be about 1.5-2m from the walls of the house.

I know in an ideal world you keep trees away from walls but Google is telling me that actually trees rarely damage foundations unless it’s something notorious for causing problems like willow which doesn’t damage foundations. It can damage drains or oak which is massive and can suck up too much water

Acer.

I could plant in a barrel if I could still get the height

Or an open bottomed barrel to hoist it up but still give access to the ground

A) wouldn't a tree take years to grow tall enough to disguise the wonkiness?
B) when it does grow tall enough, wouldn't it make the upstairs room with the window it's hiding very dark?

I was thinking of buying something reasonably established. The windows are offset in the other direction if you see what I mean. So there’s a large expanse of wall in the corner I would be looking to disguise.

I've seen lots of lovely shrubs planted close to houses. Or how about an Acer. I've also seen them planted within a few feet of houses before

A shrub could work if it was a tall one.

What about training a climbing hydrangea over the wonky area? Nobody would notice the anomaly then. Or Pyracantha, that's evergreen. No issues with shrubs close to houses, but trees are a no.

I'd plant a climbing hydrangea to creep up the wall. They don't do any damage but are so beautiful when established and a little bit of pruning will create a very neat and even cover.

Also I think Italian cypress aren't that demanding of water. I've got two in very hot dry beds. They're very well established admittedly but they've pretty much stopped growing at about 20 feet high and just stand their as two elegant sentinels in the garden.

Otherwise a cherry, rowan or hawthorn are the standard small trees near houses.

I'm no horticultural genius by any stretch of imagination.
But, we planted pencil pine trees (cypresses) in full sun in part of our garden. Issues with the soul meant that we had to dig big cylindrical holes, put one of those plastic membranes around the walls if the holes, then refill with new soil and plant.
Some took first time, but we had to replace 2 after about 1 1/2years. Once established there are no issues whatsoever. They grew beautifully tall and straight and it's surprising how well anchored they are - no issues during storms. After the 1st year they grow steadily and reasonably fast.
Regular feeding and watering the first year in particular are crucial.
I don't know what type of soil we used or what type if fertiliser. DH dealt with it all. Buy as big as you can afford (ours were quite dear but it was an investment and part of a landscaping scheme) from a specialised garden centre and ask them for specific advice.

There are lots of trees or shrubs that would be fine with that, anything with a contained root system.

Acers, magnolias, rhodedendrons/azaleas, olives, and figs to name a few. And I agree cypresses, if the right variety, would probably be fine too. Anything that can be grown in a pot is unlikely to damage your foundations.

Can you post a photo so we can see what you mean?

Magnolia grandiflora. They are evergreen and have huge dramatic white flowers and are often clipped to follow the shape of a wall in stately homes.

This isn’t my house (I wish!), but it’s the same shape. The left hand gable is wider because previous owners filled in an alleyway and joined it to the garage.

What you need is a focal point to draw the eye away from the anomaly, and it doesn't even have to be an attempt to physically hide the problem. In fact, it might be better if it doesn't, or it might have the opposite effect to the one intended.

Is the rest of the garden, path, driveway etc symmetrical? It would be better if it wasn't. You could use different materials, planting heights, change the direction of a path to a curved one that leads the eye to something like a specimen shrub in a pot, or a statue etc.

I agree, rather than try to hide it I would use a variety of plants to create a whole load of different places that draw your attention away from the house's asymmetry.

Unfortunately in front of the house there is a large driveway with very limited planting area. The only bed is directly in front of the left hand wonky gable

Would something fairly wide work? something like a spreading japanese maple or tree fern? Which aspect is it?

Dobbies and the like do established acers if you have a few £££ they are fairly Hardy as well.

An acre could work. It’s west facing so gets the later afternoon/evening sun

Acer not acre!

Acres don’t like wind so has to be relatively sheltered spot