Many of the trees we inherited from the previous owner were either too big for our garden or not in a great shape and, unfortunately we had to have them removed. They are still part of the garden though.

Photo of the tree removal

We chopped their leaves and small branches and turned them into mulch. Their trunks 'reincarnated' in so many different forms. They are seats near the fire pit, they are part of the many pile logs around the garden and some of them were buried or placed to form a 'stumpery' underneath the fig tree, at the very back of the garden. We also use them as 'natural' plant supports.


We’ve created this small woodland space because as soon as the trees we've planted - birches and amelanchier - had achieved a reasonable height they formed a dappled shaded area at the back of the garden. That is very much appreciated in the Summer when the garden receives relentless sunlight from 8am to 7-9pm but that also meant we had to tweak part of our planting scheme.

Out went the suffering sun-loving perennials, in came ferns, epimediums, geraniums, alpine strawberries, brunneras.
Another reason to create a stumpery comes as a response to a moth 'situation', which has been attacking our fig tree over the past two years. The moth, called Fig-leaf Skeletoniser (Choreutis nemoranam), has come recently from continental Europe and we hope that, by underplanting the tree using hügelkultur-inspired techniques, the buried rotting wood will attract beetles that can predate it.
Damage caused on the fig leaves by the moth  Fig-leaf Skeletoniser
Damage caused on the fig leaves by the moth Fig-leaf Skeletoniser
Moth caterpillar has emerged.
Moth caterpillar has emerged.
Damage caused on the fig leaves by the moth  Fig-leaf Skeletoniser
Damage caused on the fig leaves by the moth Fig-leaf Skeletoniser
The stumpery was readily adopted by frogs and because it is a different habitat within the garden, which will attract more biodiversity and ultimately, increase our garden resilience against pests (even though the jury is still out regarding the moth biological control!)
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