trees for coastal aeres

[bubbles40]

I live on top of cliffs facing the sea A plot of land in front of my property has untill now been usedas a paddock for my daughters horse, i now want to plant trees on it, this year i have tried silver birch but the cold winds and frost this april damaged the new leaves.It is very exposed to sea spray NE winds and very dry due to a slope away from my property,any help would be gratefully received.

thank you,Barbara.

[dmsjps]

Hi bubbles, I have a lovely tree in my garden and thanks to AB, I now know what it is: a Tamarisk. Apparently they grow well in windy, coastal areas:

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/plants/plant_finder/plant_pages/11330.shtml

 

It's much nicer in real-life than it looks on the photos too. Also, because I didn't know what tree I had when I bought my house 12 years ago, I only cut my Tamarisk back very gently and it has hence grown to approximately 20ft high, so you can neglect them too, if you want to and they will still keep on growing! Having said that, the flowers aren't so abundant and the green is a little less, but it's still a very pretty tree all the same - and hardy, as you need.

 

Next step is probably to try your local garden centre if you want more variety. Good luck, hope you get it looking as you want it soon.