By Sparkly
Cumbria,
United Kingdom 
Hello. I planting a small area as a native woodland. I already have 8 silver birch trees, holly and bluebells I need something to go nearer the front ie more shrub like than tree like. Any ideas?
Also, I still don't have any way of dealing with grass cuttings-they make sticky clumps in the compost heap so everything else dries out or same if I leave them in an out of the way place. I did try keeping them in a wheelbarrow near to the compost heap with the idea of adding a little at a time but I got a sticky mess again-and it is heavy to move. It seems a waste to put them in the brown bin-any ideas?
Thanks
11 Oct, 2012
Answers
You could consider hazel, you may even get some nuts off them.
11 Oct, 2012
Thanks, I will look into the hazel suggestion-I could coppice it. and the Guelder rose. Actually my holly is a tree, about 2.5m with a single trunk!
11 Oct, 2012
Who is Iciar and why is his picture against my comment!!?
Nice baby though!
11 Oct, 2012
Not again!
I suggest you use contact us at the bottom of the page and report it to Admin, it seems to be a technical hitch that happens from time to time
11 Oct, 2012
As to shrubs how about hawthorn, berries loved by the birds or blackthorn then you could have sloes for sloe gin.......
11 Oct, 2012
I've been Iciar too a little while ago
Grass cuttings - We have a lot and I leave them in a heap for at least a couple of years. Eventually they turn into quite nice compost, when they finally get over the nasty slimy stage. It does involve having room for more than one heap though, as you need somewhere to put the new cuttings while the older ones finish rotting.
Or sometimes I use them as a mulch round shrubs on poorer soil.They do use up some nitrogen from the soil as they rot but this never seems to affect the vigour of the hydrangeas!
If you cut your grass very regularly so that the mowings are very short you can actually leave them on the lawn, but I haven't tried this.
11 Oct, 2012
Kildermorie's suggestion of the spindle, (Euonymus europaeus) and the Guelder Rose, (Viburnum opulus) will give you fantastic autumn colours and will certainly be the stars in your woodland.
12 Oct, 2012
Thanks to all for comments- are you getting these thanks!! I am not a 100% sure that I am doing this in the right way. Do the thanks go to all who commented and is this on a private message system so it doesn't show up on the thread?
pamg-thanks for that the sloe gin sounds lovely and I have found it very difficult to find any. We do have a lot of damsons (living in the lake district) and I tried them last year for gin. It was really good, fruitier than the sloes and easier to deal with.
steragram-thanks, I will try leaving them longer, I have in the past given up at the slimy stage. Yes, it is always the plan to cut more regularly and not use the box but sometimes....it doesn't get done when it should
15 Oct, 2012
Tell me about it...
15 Oct, 2012
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Holly is a shrub and not a tree. Dogwood, Guelder Rose, Elder and Broom (there are a few varieties) are all native shrubs. Spindle is also native and gives good autumn colours.
11 Oct, 2012