Feel sad that neighbour cut down trees

[Eatingbiscuits]

Woke up this morning to one of our neighbours having a row of trees cut down in their garden. Beautiful tall evergreen mature trees which were home to squirrels and birds. Not a single tree or bush left, they've cleared their entire garden. I saw a squirrel run along the boundary as they were cutting down the trees and it broke my heart. We live on the outskirts of a city and this was a little bit of nature for us and we would love watching the squirrels come and go and listening to the birds in the trees. I know there's nothing I can do about it because it's their garden but I feel so sad. Would other people feel the same or am I overreacting? Any suggestions at what I can plant in my garden instead to replace them? Although it would take decades to grow trees like that again.

Plant some trees in your garden then. In time they will mature.

I’m sorry O

I’m sorry OP. I would hate this too. A friend did this and I looked at them very differently afterwards. I take the attitude that when you have trees in your garden you have a responsibility to them and the wildlife in them but it’s not a popular one. I would feel bereft as well.

Now you have space along the boundary to plant your own trees if you like them as a new home for the wildlife ☺️

I'd be very sad too OP. My neighbour cut down two really mature trees and it changed the landscape for everyone around and really buggered up the habitat for wildlife.

I used it as motivation to turn my garden into a wildlife haven. Two years on and my garden's full of birds, squirrels and lots of pollinators. Obviously I don't have mature trees, but things are coming along brilliantly.

My best tips for things to plant/do - a crab apple tree, create paths for hedgehogs https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/, plant pyracantha (flowers for bees, berries for birds to eat and thorns to make habitat for them, definitely make a pond, bird baths and several fast growing shrubs e.g. viburnum opulus, buddleija (for butterflies), holly.

Is the squirrel digging up YOUR garden and leaving it looking like the Somme some seasons or with bloody oak trees growing from the nuts the little fuckers forgot they’re buried the next?
the squirrels are the one vermin I could live without seeing again!

I’d feel really sad about that too, you’re not overreacting. Our neighbours on the back have a huge conifer and birds nest in it every year, it’s lovely watching the adults taking food to the chicks. I’m sure the wildlife will find somewhere else just as nice.

If you plant some now, in five years time you could have some decent size plants.

Reminder - winter is the best time of year to plant trees/ hedges

Depends what trees they were, conifers and evergreens aren't always great for wildlife. We have a big garden and got rid of all the conifers and they were just a dead zone with nothing growing underneath them and not a single nest. Your neighbours may be planning to replace them with something better, but it's always a shock when they go.

In terms of what to plant in your own garden I would look at things like silver birch, liquid amber or acres.

I’ve been in the position of having to have dangerous trees cut down from my garden, they were much too big for where they had been planted and could have crashed down into one of four houses. The roots were also causing damage. This was after taking professional advice from two separate tree surgeons (I really wanted to just get them trimmed but it was too late).

I’m not a big fan of rows of evergreen trees either: there’s often a solidity to them that gives a sense of them looming over a garden, like those horrible leylandii hedges. One or two interspersed with some prettier trees look better and don’t feel so gloomy. I’m guessing a variety is also better for wildlife.

Yes I'm hoping they had a good reason, but doesn't make it any less sad though. I am planning on putting more plants in my garden next summer, and hopefully a tree now to make up for the ones cut down. But it's going to take years and years.

that poor little squirrel losing his little nest, i would be so upset too OP, you could mount a nest box for them if you can find somewhere high enough to make them feel safe.

What sort of evergreen trees - were they conifers? You can get fast growing conifers to plant in your own garden if that’s what you want. You might regret it though in the long term, probably for the same reason your neighbours did if it ends up cutting out your sunlight.

Grow a silver birch. We have a mature one at the back which is a weeping variety and is about 4m x 4m. At the front I planted an upright variety last autumn. It was 1m tall and very spindly when it arrived. Its now over 2m tall with a much sturdier trunk and looks very happy, the blue tits like to rest in it. In 10 years it should be 5m tall (it won't grow taller as its a 'dwarf' variety).

What sort of evergreens? If leylandei I can completely understand getting rid of them. They offer very little in terms of wildlife habitat.

This!!!!

I love trees but they can become a nuisance, our neighbours had a huge tree that totally over shadowed our garden, pidgeon poo on washing, no sunshine. Thank goodness the tree has now gone.

Yes they’d have done it for a reason and it’s not protect trees at all costs, if you want trees op, plant a line of them, nothing is stopping you. You can then have the shade, the dead areas and the squirrels eating all your flowers and digging up your pots.

Our tree (well , rental)had a tpo on it..
Didn't stop awful neighbours over the back paying some twat to sit on our wall and cut it right back.

We had a boggy area in the centre of the lawn. Was a pain dogs bringing in muddy footprints. Planted a weeping willow three springs ago. It's magnificent this year. Dancing in the wind. The birds like it for shade. The plum trees don't grow tall but do feed the birds. Apple trees do to. Nesting happens in the evergreen hedges rather than the trees.

It's hard because one persons lovely tree and haven for wildlife is another persons dangerous nuisance that needs to be dealt with at significant cost.

The solution of course is to have your own trees. But beware of planting big ones too close to the house.

No you're not overreacting. It's sad the way that nature just gets decimated because people prefer whatever convenience suits them. It's like the ubiquity of tarmacking all front garden space because mowing a lawn or having a shrubs or a tree that drops leaves is just too much effort.

It's very sad especially when there is a wholesale removal of a lot of trees.

Anyone in an area where there are any large or striking trees you love, it's worth looking at whether it has a tree protection order on it (search on your local council website). If it doesn't, write into the council and ask them to consider protecting it.

It’s absolutely gutting. But you can’t do anything

@SirQuintusAurelius and don't forget the stunning plastic grass trend 😡