Growing for success | Branch out and keep cool

By Riverside Gardens

Nov 9, 2023

The spot to be: Mini golf shade. Trees make a huge difference to the environment around them and add to the aesthetics of the area. Photo by Contributed

Larry Smith and the Riverside Gardens team talk all things pots, plants and pruning in their weekly gardening column.

Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content

With just a few warmer days in the last week or so, we have already had customers talking about the coming heat of summer. It makes us wonder why there are so few trees planted in our gardens and surrounding urban areas.

Trees make a huge difference to the environment around them and add to the aesthetics of the area. They can even affect our moods and feelings of wellbeing. Trees cool the area surrounding them, and this is not just limited to where the shade falls.

Cool, moist air is created when hot, dry air evaporates moisture from the foliage as it moves through the canopy of the tree. This cool, moisture-enriched air then drifts down through the surrounding garden, creating a much more pleasant microclimate for other smaller plants and shrubs to grow and do the same on a smaller scale.

This cooling effect is the same principle that evaporative air conditioners work on, and it all happens without you having to turn it on or pay for the running costs. It is just taking advantage of the tree’s natural cooling system as it tries to cool itself. Trees also slow the wind speed down on windy days, helping you achieve a more stable temperature inside your home in both winter and summer.

Colourful: Maple autumn blaze. Photo by Contributed

In our garden at home, we are lucky to have a large 60-year-old established deciduous tree that shades about 70 per cent of the back garden. On hot summer days, it can be up to 10 degrees cooler.

These trees also shade the back half of the house, which in turn keeps the house cooler. Okay, so we do have to clean the gutters twice a year, but that is a small price to pay for so much benefit, savings and appeal.

A few well-placed trees can create an allusion of space in a front yard by appearing to push the house back as you look under the canopy. If you take a drive down a street with an avenue of carefully chosen trees, you will notice a change in the ambience of the area.

Blooming: Corymbia ficifolia. Photo by Contributed

Trees should be an essential part of most landscape projects, particularly in our neck of the woods, and there is a vast range to choose from that thrive in our climate.

Native trees like small gums, Wilga trees, Agonis, Kurrajong trees and Flame trees can make great features. Deciduous trees like maples, ornamental pears, cercis trees, gleditsia, and birch trees are great if you want to let in the winter sun.

There are plenty of others to choose from. Be adventurous, have a look around, talk to gardeners, talk to our Garden Centre staff, and remember it is a long-term choice, so you need to get it right.

There are some amazing trees that do so well here, and there are just so many benefits, so where are all the trees?