I am interested in planting a Garry Oak in my yard. I live on Vancouver Island where this tree is a native. Does anyone have any experience with this tree? Is it easy to grow? We are not experienced gardeners so would not want anything that is challenging but are looking for a tree native to this area. Do you have any other suggestion that fit the bill?
I grow a few, and have planted a bunch more on other sites. Yes, it's relatively easy to grow, and is quite tough. It's worth considering that the small, contorted trees you often see in your area are not what you'll likely be getting: in a yard/garden setting with (typically) more soil and irrigation, a Garry Oak grows into a pretty big tree-witness the specimens in Victoria neighbourhoods for a sense of scale. In such conditions, it's a faster growing tree than you might think. Are you interested in native trees for ideological reasons, or on the presumption that a native tree will be more durable? If the latter, bear in mind that a urban/suburban yard isn't anything like a 'native habitat', and a 'native' plant might not be the best choice for your conditions. If the former, then perhaps a vine maple, an arbutus (though prone to disease), cascara, or dogwood. Doubtless more suggestions are coming.
Dominant requirement is full sun. Always slow-growing, it cannot compete with other trees. This is what determines where native specimens are seen. Given a large space to itself, your tree would be expected to grow satisfactorily - as long as there is not some unnatural adversity in the rooting environment, such as noxious chemicals. Many examples I see here have a twig die-back condition, this may not be the tree for you if you want a perfectly clean-looking specimen.
I have two growing in my back yard in Langley along with two arbutus and some manzanita. They make up part of what I call my "Gulf Island" eco-system. The location I have chosen in my yard is the sunniest location I have available considering the the shade cast on my yard part of the day from neighbouring trees which I can't, of course, do anything about. The trees are growing well and surprisingly fast considering they get only 6 to 7 hours of direct summer sunshine each day.
There are lots of Garry Oak in our region here on Vancouver Island, some quite massive. Dry rocky free draining soil is required as is plenty of sun, although small specimen in a native setting would of course not get nearly as much. For some reason, not often available.
