The Three Hollies

This is the first post written "in real time! All the previous ones have been catching up the story so far!

When all of the clearing of the Bottom Garden has been done, there will mainly be three holly trees left in the corners. 

Each of them is/was a similar height to this photo below - around 25 feet.

Each has already had some pruning work done to varying degrees. The one above (top left on the plan) had a number of lower branches removed to let some light through into the Bottom Garden in late afternoon. The remaining form is not particularly attractive.

The one at the very bottom corner of the garden was more in the form of a giant bush and the bottom 9 foot or so was removed to clear space below, generating about another 12 feet of garden in the corner. The remaining form is tall for a holly, overgrown and straggly in parts.

And the third one in the top right of the garden behind the new shed has already been cut back fairly dramatically in height last year.

There was actually a fourth one, adjacent to the top left, which was in the way of where I am (or, more accurately, was!) intending to build steps down the garden. That was chopped down and dug out earlier in the year. Golly gosh it was a difficult blighter 🤨

The tree behind the shed that was cut right back last year has grown back fantastically and is showing really strong and healthy new growth. I've come to the realisation that the other tree at the top needs the same treatment, so this will be cut back to around 8 or 9 feet, which should generate a more tree like form that I can prune out to keep uncrowded and healthy in future. It will also fit more into the scale of the replacement trees that I'm planning on planting  in future. The tree in the bottom corner needs some work cutting out remaining dead and straggly parts, but should be able to retain a lot of the height on the boundary, which helps to blend with adjacent neighbours' trees there.

"Before" looking up the Bottom Garden.

"After"

View from bedroom after

Incidentally, the three hollies are forming the skeleton of the new Bottom Garden and have given the house the name Bwthyn Celyn, or Holly Cottage, as recognition of this.