Choosing and Growing Trees

Trees bring lasting beauty and value to the landscape. They can also be the longest to mature and cost a significant amount of the landscaping budget. Making wise choices saves many mistakes.

Trees are also a very important part of the environment. They provide food for wildlife and people.

There is something soul satisfying about trees, in a ways few other plants can match, so they inspire some musings and inspired thoughts, as well.

3 Tips For Landscaping Successfully With Ornamental Trees

August 27, 2018 by Ilona Erwin

What are Ornamental Trees?

These trees are usually small with special features like interesting bark, showy flowers, or eye-catching foliage. An ornamental also has a pleasing shape and fits easily into modern yards. This may seem like a tall order of outstanding characteristics, but the “ornamental” part of the description means that the trees are selected and bred to deliver in a big way.

The main feature, however, is that the size is smaller than majestic shade trees.

Examples:

ornamental cherry trees — Cherry trees along a path

Using Smaller Size Trees

Because of the more compact dimensions, a greater number of this type may be included in a suburban landscaping plan. The shorter heights may not interfere as much with overhead lines. (Though it is still wise to give utility lines a wide berth from your trees).

Read more about Positioning Trees in Your Yard on Ilona’s Garden website.

First Tip for Success

(1) Even though more trees can be planted, avoid a “spotty” look. One of the key rules of good design is to repeat elements in a cohesive way. With ornamental trees, choose to have groups of the same choice, or use the primary cultivar in several spaces within the landscape plan.

Dotting a different tree into each possible spot create a disjointed effect that lacks harmony. It is a common mistake made with perennials. The same rule applies to trees, perhaps more so.

I edge very close to disregarding this design principle at times. Something of a “collector” there is a wide selection of many desirable trees in the ornamental class. But the rule is to use a number of one plant, the effect being so much more pleasing.

Success Tip #2

(2) Choose specimens that do well in your climate zone and planting conditions. Nothing undermines the good looks of your landscaping than unhealthy trees. Or worse: dead ones! Buy from a reputable local nursery for best results or do your research to discover which of the ornamental trees thrive best on your property.

Consider:

Soil pH
Soil structure: sandy, loamy, or clay
Drainage is very important. Good or poor drainage, and whether the tree tolerates the moisture levels of the soil.
Insect and Disease problems likely in your area. Some trees are resistant to problems and some much more susceptible.

Ornamental Trees in Your Landscape

Tip #3: Visit an Arboretum

This is one of my favorite tips for successful landscaping of all types. Visit a local arboretum. In my own area of Ohio we have two that I love, Chadwick and Dawes Arboretum.

No book can match the real world lessons of how a plant may look at maturity in the yard. While trips to parks and neighborhoods are great places to pick up ideas on trees to plant, the Arboretums will provide the names and placement inspiration. Taking notes can be as simple as snapping photos of favorites and their plant labels.

Learn from Arboretums

Making a Garden Plan

1910 garden plan showing ornamental trees

With these tips, once the trees are in place, bring bulbs and groundcovers to the base of the trees to accentuate the beauty of the season they are most attractive. Many will “play nice” with perennials and other plantings to create lovely pictures in a chosen season.

Dogwoods with spring flowering bulbs and Virginia bluebells is a scintillating spring example. Think of your own, and make pictures that bring special beauty to your property.

Are You Ready To Plant?

With these 3 tips to guide your landscape plan, choose some ornamental trees which match your situation and conditions. Fall is an ideal time to plant trees. For most species it is better than the spring. Put together a plan that includes those chosen for fragrance (Crabapples, Witch hazels), winter interest (Contorted Hazel, Stewartia Pseudocamellia), or autumn color (Acer palmatum spp, Fringe trees).

These are only a few of myriad choices available, and if you match the choice to the property (tip #2) this may well be your favorite part of the garden landscape.

Is It Fall Already?

October 3, 2016 by Ilona Erwin

Yesterday’s winds, today’s rain, and the smell that has been on the air tells me so. The asters blooming, the store displays burgeoning with mums (I bought two huge ones at Sam’s Club) also tell the undeniable story that summer has past.

I still have tomatoes ripening on the vine, and they should continue to the first frost, which I expect around midway through October. How did the summer get away from me?

Oh yes, all through the hot and humid days which kept me immobile in my house. When the weeds had their way – and due to my health I could do nothing about them. Do weeds laugh? If so, mine were in the throes of hilarity.

But such restrictions do have their bright side, believe it or not. I am learning, once again, to savor the days and their blessings. To be thankful for the gift of a hummingbird sighting, or a morning spent muddling about. The small joys to be had, no matter what the circumstance.

And now it is fall.

In Ohio, these really are the best of days. A cool, crisp edge to the air, and intense skies of celestial blue. A clear, strong blue so unlike summer’s. The bird calls change, with a Blue Jays strident voice above the others.

The menu changes, too, with everything becoming apples, pumpkins, and soups.

There is always a sense of reflection in the autumn, for me. Is it that way for you?

Looking back over the growing season as it now comes to its natural close, brings a little sadness, too. I am one of those people who begins with a burst of enthusiasm, and closings bring more melancholy than satisfaction.

The only antidote for closing is the cycle of seasons, a slow accumulation of progress and the sense of ebb and flow that the larger picture gives. I find comfort and satisfaction in that.

But fall time is a joy. Just that transition where everything balances on the cusp of change -a mad rush to enjoy all the fruits, the warmth, the abundance before winter’s advent during November. Time for walks in the woods, gathering the fallen leaves, a color scheme of oranges, yellows, purples, black.

I love fall, but it is a parting, a closing; so it is always tinged with the edge of a certain awareness of its brevity. It is the season of my life, as well. I sense I must enjoy and savor in this season. Enjoy each clear day, prepare during each cloudy one, and gather comforts in memory and materially for the winter ahead.

But a large lesson of the seasons is to not get ahead of oneself… one season at a time.

chinquapin leaves and acorns — Chinquapin leaves and acorns

A couple weeks ago I was taking a walk in a small park my husband and I like for its proximity and short, manageable trail distance. During a respite on a metal bench at one of the overlooks, a loud “kerplink” signaled falling acorns.

It caught my attention and I looked around for the nuts. They were so tiny, and the oak leaves were different from the usual Red or White oak, or the huge Burr oaks of my county. The leaves were almost dainty in their size and scallops, one had turned a premature yellow. Tufts of green ones, nuts attached, had blown off the trees on this upland ground, cut through with a fast running creek at the bottom of the ravine.

What were they?

The Oak at Indian Run

I have identified it as the Chinquapin Oak. It is also called Yellow Oak or “Yellow Chestnut Oak” as the shape of the leaves are reminiscent of Chestnut leaves.

The description says it is often found on the summit of hills, and this was the location of these.

I brought home some of the fallen leaves and a couple acorns to photograph. The nuts seem unusually small, and I thought of little cups for a fairy garden vignette. The drought of this summer may have contributed to how small they were, but maybe this is normal for the Chinquapin.

It is a “climax species on dry, drought prone soils, especially those of limestone origin“

What Is In a Name?

Latin name of this oak species is ‘Quercus muehlenbergii‘. I like the common name (first known use: 1612) which seems to be derived from Virginia Algonquian chechinquamin, denoting the acorn as an edible nut. citation

The word ‘chinquapin’ seems to be used in old times for sweet nuts, like Chestnuts, and the acorn of this tree (called by one source, the Shin oak) was supposed to be sweet. If it anything like other acorns, it has to be prepared properly to actually be edible.

This was the rabbithole I went down because I wanted to know what kind of oak this was. Oaks are incredibly important in their ecosystems.

Homesteader Heirloom Apples and Real Cider

September 20, 2016 by Ilona Erwin

The Renaissance of Heirloom Apples

Traditionally, an old fashioned fall treat has been the availability of aromatic autumn apples and the rich complex flavor of pressed cider.

Although grocery stores attempt to carry “cider” in pasteurized containers all year, the taste is insipid in comparison to the special flavor that blended heirloom varieties give to their juices.

Some of those heritage types especially loved for cider making were in danger of being lost, but there has been a resurgence in planting and growing the old heirloom trees. We can now enjoy many of these flavors, again.

Apples Are An Old Standby For Americans

We make apple desserts and sauce, cook them with meat and poultry, and eat them fresh. And nothing is as American as apple pie!

What Can You Learn From This Page?

The old types and how they are best used, tips on which you want to choose for cooking, eating fresh, or making cider. Products for preparing and preserving the fruits, resource books, and some great apple pie recipes follow in the paragraphs below.

Informative videos for picking and choosing some of the selections you may find in a Farmers Market near you!

About Old Fashioned Apple Varieties – What were they used for?

Cox Orange Pippin

Old Time Apples

Cooking? Fresh Eating? Long Storage?

FIND THE RIGHT APPLE FOR YOUR PURPOSE

Ashmead’s Kernel apple is not a pretty face, but has delicious flavor and is useful for eating, salads, cider, and cooking. Wow- if I were a homesteader this is the apple I would want to grow. Learn more about Ashmead’s Kernel

Gravenstein is a coastal type of apple. Quite famous in the past, a very old variety that originated in South Denmark. It is used mainly for cooking and cider.

Esopus Spitzenburg apple is an eating apple. It was Thomas Jefferson’s favorite. “The flavor is truly aromatic and matches the complexity of the English aromatic apples. The flesh is a buttery dense yellow, and there is a rich sharpness which is often characteristic of high quality dessert apples.” It is not a very healthy tree, though.

Cole’s Quince apple is a very rare cooking and eating apple.

Adam’s Pearmain apple is an old-fashioned dessert apple. Dry rather than juicy, it has an aromatic flavor.

Cox’s Orange Pippin is an old dessert apple variety, Gala apples are today’s version.

Antique Varieties

Grow The Best For Your Climate

Old Southern Apples: A Comprehensive History and Description of Varieties for Collectors, Growers, and Fruit Enthusiasts, 2nd Edition

Not every apple tree grows well in every part of the nation. Farmers developed those which grew well. Like many other fruit crops, there were particulars ones that were prized by those in Southern Climates.

This book, in its second edition, provides history, cooking and growing information of the classic apples of the South.

All About Apples

Learn about the old apples

Trees of Antiquity
Trees of Antiquity : fruits of all kinds-heirloom trees,
Apple Journal- “A Passion for Apples”
Apple Journal is a comprehensive resource for growers and consumers about apples and apple growing. Find information about cooking, nutrition, variety selection and usage, farm market reports, historical archives, and orchards

For Cooking And Eating

Cooking, Eating, Or Applesauce?

Did you realize that certain fruits have qualities of texture and flavor that make them best for cooking or fresh eating? The same goes for qualities that produce the best cider or applesauce.

Make Lots of Apple Sauce

Heirloom Varieties And Their Uses

Brier’s Sweet Crab originated in Wisconsin. Very sweet and good as dessert apple and for applesauce.

Newell’s Late Orange is good for cooking.

Dula Beauty, great for baking, hails from North Carolina. Dark red with yellowish, crisp flesh.

Winter Banana is a tart-sweet apple which makes it good for cooking. Also prized as an eating apple which has a “banana aroma”. Originated in Indiana.

Bentley’s Sweet is a very sweet and long keeping apple. Late ripening dessert apple.

Bietigheimer, from German origins, is an early ripening cooking apple.

Bramley’s Seedling, an English variety, is good for baking and cider. It has a sharp taste that is excellent used in those ways.

Chenango Strawberry, from New York, an aromatic apple good for eating and cooking.

Duchess of Oldenburg is an old Russian apple which is fine for both eating and cooking.Has a tangy flavor reminiscent of Winesap.

McIntosh Red is widely available in supermarkets, but is an old variety. Great for salads, and for cooking and baking. Famous for its sweet but mildly tangy flavor.

Margil was widely grown in England in the1700’s and established popularity in the Colonies here by the 1750’s. It is now a rare apple, tends to the small side with russet coat. Its flesh is tender, ivory, very sweet, and flavorful. Red Jacket Orchards of Genvea, New York grows it and I found it in my market in Ohio. Delicious!

Northern Spy from New York in the early 1800’s; it has a spicy, aromatic flavor. Quite famous for pies.

Softer apples are best for applesauce

Best varieties to use: Pippin, Rhode Island Greening, McIntosh, Elstar, Cortland, Fuji, Gala, Gravenstein

Source: Kightp

Cider Apples

Best apple varieties for cider making

Cider is a blend of several apple juices made from crushed apples.

How To Make Cider

Crush ripe apples and extract their juice under pressure.

If making an alcoholic sort of cider there is a fermentation process.

“The four types of apples for cider are describes as sweets, sharps, bittersweets and bittersharps. Sweet and sharp are easy enough to understand (eg Cox and Bramley) but the bitter types are apples grown specifically for cider and are not used for eating or cooking.

The specific thing about these fruits is that they have high levels of tannins, flavour compounds which set your teeth on edge if you bite into the apple, but which ferment out to give a richer, aromatic flavour with good mouth feel in the finished cider” [1]

Old Fashioned Cider

Apple Cider

Special Cider Varieties

American Varieties for Cider

Red Limbertwig
Harrison Cider
Campfield

English Varieties for Cider

Kingston Black – Bittersharp
Dabinett – Bittersweet
Sweet Coppin – Sweet
Crimson King – Sharp

How To Press Cider From Your Apple Crop

New England Cider Pie

Recipe from James Beard– that man really knew how to cook!

Ingredients

Pie dough for a 1-crust pie
2/3 cup boiled cider or 2 cups apple cider- boiled down to 2/3 cup
2 tablespoons sugar- to taste
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon unsalted butter -melted
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Pinch of salt
3 large well beaten eggs
2 tart apples such as Granny Smith- peeled | cored | coarsely grated
3 tablespoons packed light or dark brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream

Instructions

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to a large circle about 1/8-inch thick. Fit it, without stretching, into a buttered 8- to 9-inch pie pan. Trim off the excess dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border. Fold under the edge of dough, pressing along rim of the pan and forming a high, fluted border. Chill the pie shell while you preheat the oven to 375° , with a rack in the lower third.
In a bowl, whisk together the boiled cider, sugar, melted butter, lemon juice, salt, and eggs. Add the grated apples and stir to blend well. Pour the filing into the pie shell; sprinkle the brown sugar and nutmeg over the top.
Bake until mixture is just set in the center, usually 50 minutes.
Let the pie cool on a wire rack. Serve warm, topped with ice cream or whipped cream.

Apple Gadget – Pare lots of apples

Norpro 865R Apple Master-Apple, Potato, Parer, Slicer & Corer with Vacuum Base & Clamp

This is the original style of apple parer you may have seen in your grandmother’s kitchen. Still works great!

Baking and Cooking Apples

Apples need to retain their shape to be good for cooking and baking, should not be too sweet. Good varieties are: Granny Smith, Jonathan, Jonagold, Pippin apples, Gravenstein, Braeburn, Fuji, and Pink Lady Apples

All American Favorite

Middle Western touch of cheddar cheese. Photo by bucklava

Deep-Dish Apple Pie from Emeril Lagasse.

Use the included Pie crust recipe

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter
2 pounds Granny Smith apples-sliced 1/2-inch thick
2 pounds Macintosh Apples-sliced 1/2-inch thick
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
packed
1 lemon- juiced
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Pinch ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup pecan pieces
1 egg- beaten
4 ounces Wisconsin Sharp Cheddar-grated
1 Pie Crust recipe below

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large sauté pan, melt the butter. Add the apples and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the sugars, lemon juice and flour. Continue to sauté for 2 minutes. Season the apples with nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt. Mix thoroughly and remove from the heat. Mix in the pecans. Cool the mixture.
Lightly dust a surface with flour. Cut the dough in half. Roll out each half to 12 inches in diameter and about 1/8-inch thick. Fold 1 circle of dough in fourths. Carefully lift the dough and place in a 10-inch deep-dish pie pan. Unfold the pie dough and spoon the apples into the pie shell. Place the second round of dough over the apples. Using a sharp knife cut away the excess dough. Using your fingers, crimp the edges of the pie firmly to seal the dough completely. With the same sharp knife, make 3 slits, about 4 inches long and 2 inches apart, across the pie dough. Brush with the beaten egg, place the pie in the oven, and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Remove the pie from the oven and sprinkle the cheese over the top. Return the pie to the oven and continue to cook for 8 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly. Let cool to room temperature before slicing, about 1 hour. Serve with vanilla ice cream.
Pie Dough:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
11 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
3 tablespoons solid vegetable shortening
5 tablespoons ice water
Sift the flour, sugar, and salt into a large bowl. Using your fingers, work in the butter and shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add 4 tablespoons of ice water and work with your fingers until the water is incorporated and the dough comes together. Add more water as needed just until the dough comes together, being careful not to over mix. Form the dough into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.
Yield: enough for 1 double crust pie

Bake A Great Apple Pie – KitchenAid can Help

KitchenAid 30 Double Wall Oven – Stainless Steel

Dependable appliances that work well to deliver you the best baking, and roasting outcomes.

Thanksgiving Cider Pie

Old fashioned pie from the archives of the Columbus Dispatch “Cooks Corner”

New England Speciality

Serving Size

Serves: 8

Ingredients

Crust:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
8 tablespoons (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter-diced
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons ice water
1 large egg yolk-lightly beaten
Filling and topping:
2 cups apple cider
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 large eggs at room temperature-separated
1 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
1 to 2 tablespoons whipping cream or whole milk
Confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

Combine flour, butter and salt in a food processor. Pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add ice water and egg yolk. Process until moist clumps form, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 30 minutes or longer.
Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch round. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate. Fold in overhanging dough to form a high-rising border. Flute the edges. Refrigerate dough at least 30 minutes. (Pie shell can be prepared 1 day ahead; cover with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated.)
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
To make filling: Put cider in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until cider reduces to 1/2 cup, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Add sugar, water and butter to cider and return pan to high heat. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and cook until mixture reduces to 1 cup, about 10 minutes. Transfer mixture to a medium, heatproof mixing bowl and cool to room temperature.
Whisk yolks into the cooled cider mixture. With an electric mixer on high speed, beat egg whites until just firm. Fold them into the cider mixture in three additions.
Spoon filling into the prepared pie shell. Bake 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350° . Continue to bake until crust is golden brown, and filling has puffed and set and has become dark brown on top, about 25 minutes more. If filling and crust are browning too quickly, cover pie with a buttered sheet of foil.
Cool to room temperature.
To serve, place creme fraiche in a serving bowl, and whisk in 1 to 2 tablespoons cream to lighten slightly. Dust pie with confectioners’ sugar. Garnish with creme fraiche.

Growing Heirloom Apples – Resources

Useful Info from Urban Homestead
Growing information on old heirloom apples, common questions.

Keep Your Apple Crop – Old Fashioned Apple Rack

Orchard Rack, 6 Drawer

With good air circulation, the drawers slide for easy access. Ideal for keeping apples, squash, potatoes, and even drying herbs.

Cider
Apple cider notes from a personal point of view. The apples we grow are described more fully in the varieties page
Real Cider and Perry
Old Scrump’s Cider House: one of the most valuable web resources for cider & perry enthusiast.
The Wittenham Hill Cider Portal
All about small-scale cider making, cider growing, and making apple juice and vinegar – written by Andrew Lea, a food scientist and hobby cidermaker
In Celebration of The Apple
Apple recipes

Ornamental Garden Trees For A Small Yard

January 8, 2016 by Ilona Erwin

Small Trees Ornament the Garden

A selection of some of the best small garden trees to give your place flower and foliage. There are so many ways to use these to create interest and year round beauty in your landscape.

The Best Garden Trees For Your Property

For Flowers and Foliage

Good reasons to give consideration to the choices you make when deciding to make a garden:

Trees are one of the most important parts of a garden plan.
They are one of the largest investments, in both time and money, and one of the most rewarding, as well.
This large woody plant will require more time to come into maturity than other plants, and will grow taller.
It will impact the garden more than anything else you plant.

While the bigger trees, called “shade trees”, are more of everything – shade, time for maturity, cost, the ornamental trees are just as important.

Besides their beauty, smaller sizes might qualify them as the only trees to be planted within a small sized garden.

Usually an ornamental tree is grown for some outstanding aspect: leaf ,bark, color or gracefulness, and quite often their flowers.

We are usually very familiar seeing them in Springtime. The dogwoods and crabapples flowering with a grand spring show catches our attention. This is one big reason to include them in a landscape plan, along with the fact that they can be grown quite close to the house.

There are so many choices, but some of the most popular with a taste of a few you may not have considered are given a short introduction in this post.

You may find that a small ornamental tree or two may be the perfect addition to your landscape.

Small Trees With A Big Showy Burst Of Bloom

Seasonal Interest

Most of the ornamental trees are chosen for their showy flowers during the spring bloom, but check out whether they have fruits or great autumn color. Many do. This extends the contribution a planting makes to the overall effect, a feature very important in front yard plantings.

These ornamental types of trees are so attractive and useful, that every garden should boast at least one. They can be part of a foundation planting, placed in even postage stamp sized plots, and combined as an understory with larger trees.

Many of them flower, some have beautiful foliage with good autumn color. They can be part of a perennial border, provide groups in suburban landscapes, some are even good for fruit. (Some of England’s most famous gardens use small trees in their borders or trained against house walls).

Describing A Wide Selection Of Choices

The well-known Crabapples, Flowering Cherries, and Japanese Maples are included here. Natives such as the Redbud and Cornus Florida are favorites for many home owners. There are less well known choices such as Fringe trees, Silverbells, and Amelanchier, which lend grace and distinction to a garden.

While it isn’t possible for a humble blogpost to list and describe every single possibility of small tree, I hope you find a few to light up your landscape.

Seasonal Features

Spring Flowers	Good Fall Color	Berries/Fruit
Amelanchier	Amelanchier	Amelanchier
Cherry	Cherry
Fringe Tree	Fringe tree
Crabapple	Japanese Maple	Crabapple
Magnolia	PawPaw	PawPaw
Redbud	Redbud
Cornus Florida	Cornus Florida
Cornus Kousa		Cornus Kousa
Hawthorn		English Hawthorns
Silverbell

Crabapple Trees

Beginning with this most useful and hardy group, the Malus spp., brings a range of leaf color, fruit size and hue, and flowers from hot pink (called “red”) to purest white to all sorts of landscape situations. This type of tree deserves it popularity for many reasons.

crabappleblossom — Soft pink flowers on a weeping branch

My ‘Red Jade’ Crab (which I think might have been misnamed at the nursery)

This weeping form is one of my best crabapple choices. It has weathered through the worst of winters, and the wettest of springs. Birds eagerly strip off the tiny “apples” quickly, so it isn’t quite as bright during winter. But I don’t complain!

Hardy And Colorful Species

General Information about Crabapple Trees

Apple trees, including the crabapples, are trees for full sun. They are very tolerant of most soils, and difficult conditions. If you have clay soil, or even somewhat wet conditions, the crabapple will do well for you. It might prefer a well drained site, and slightly acid soil pH, but it will tolerate soils different from its main preference. As with any tree, it is good to provide drainage and feed the trees for optimum health.

A crabapple does best with some judicious pruning. It helps to open up the tree and give it a better shape.

MORE RECOMMENDED VARIETIES

I have a weeping crabapple variety that has grown well for me. Purchased as “Red Jade”, that name did not match up with the Red Jade example in Dawes Arboretum. Whatever the name, if you find a tree that has pink flowers, weeping form, and bronzed foliage, buy it and try it.

There are many weeping varieties of crabapples and I love them. They add a grace that the upright types don’t have.

These are useful for both informal and formal plantings, and much hardier than the weeping cherry trees.

3 Best Crabapples to Grow

Crabapples are one of the favorite ornamental trees in most of the USA.

The farther north, the better the performance, since cherries and magnolias sometimes are damaged by cold. The one drawback is “apple scab” a fungal disease which robs the tree of its summer leaves.

Consider these three varieties when choosing to plant a crabapple tree in your garden.

Prairiefire Is One Of The Best Crabapple Varieties

“Prairiefire” is my first choice, the one which I have most planted in my own landscape.

Plant ProfilePrairiefire Crabapple

In my area of Ohio the crabapple trees get smacked with scab and lose all their leaves, so I researched the variety that would be resistant.

This is the one decided upon, and it has not disappointed. While the word ‘resistant’ does not mean the tree will never succumb to a particularly bad year for fungal infection, it does mean that most years the trees will retain their pretty bronze to purple leaves.

Besides this, every year the tree is just covered with a burst of bright pink bloom that is just beautiful. Late interest is provided by dark red very small fruit, which feed wildlife.

All in all, this is one of the best crabapple trees for most conditions.

Andirondack

Another scab resistant tree, but with white flowers. This one i shard to source in nurseries, maybe because it is an older variety.

Snowdrift

The ‘Snowdrift’ crabapple tree is covered in white flowers in spring and does resemble a mound of pure white, but sweetly fragrant snow, which is alive with bees!

A wonderful rounded tree which is spectacular in spring.

It does have a susceptibility to fireblight and scab, so if those diseases are a problem in your area, you may want to consider a different variety.

That said, I like this tree for its free bloom that simply covers the tree and for its even and pleasing shape.

Crabapple Golden Raindrops: Well Established: Container Size: #5

Rare golden colored fruits. When you want something different for your yard, a golden fruited crabapple can stand out in the winter landscape.

Purple Leaf Plum Foliage Brings Contrast

short lived purple leaf plum At its best in spring.

People love the foliage. It is a deep dusky purple, and the tiny pink flowers are more of an afterthought. Nice as a specimen out in the yard, less so as part of a foundation planting.

Description of Prunus cerasifera

Purple foliage and hardy to zone 4. Many love this tree for its dainty pale pink flowers and deep purple foliage.

It is not a long lived tree, but will give many years of enjoyment and is striking in the landscape.

The purple leaf sand cherry is a shrub that was bred from this plant; it is useful if you have less space.

Use In the Landscape

Provide contrast to the green and -to really pop- paired with yellow foliaged plantings.

The flowers are not as showy as some of the other Spring flowering trees, but they make up for it with a beautiful mahogany-colored presence. This large shrub/ small tree makes a nice accent.

Purple Pony Fruitless Flowering Plum Tree, Tree ships about 4 feet tall, 12 inch container

Shipped potted as a potted five gallon tree in its original soil and container. Deep purple foliage and small pale pink flowers cover the tree in spring. Popular ornamental tree for Midwest gardens.

Dogwoods

There are two main types of dogwood trees that are planted for ornamental purposes. One is pictured at the beginning of this article, the Cornus kousa, or Asian dogwood, and the other is our native tree, Cornus florida.

It is our native tree that is suffering from Dogwood anthracnose.

A Variegated Dogwood

Stellar Pink® Variegated Dogwood (4 feet tall in 3 gallon containers) A fantastic variety of color!

Pink flowers in one of the most beautiful of spring flowering trees.

Cornus Kousa, Chinese Dogwood

Among the many reasons to plant this tree is its many season interest. Flowers in spring, fruits in summer, leaf color in fall make it worth consideration for your garden. The Chinese dogwood appreciates some protection from wind in a cold climate.

Cornus Kousa ‘Satomi’

Amelanchier or Juneberry

These are trees that have become more and more popular. They have a refined white bloom in spring, berries that birds love, and fine fall foliage.

There are a number of named varieties and they can range from large shrubs to small tree proportions.

They have a slender look to them and are a great choice to plant in a small grouping.

I’ve grown two types, the tree form Amelanchier laevis and the shrubby A. canadensis. I prefer the A. laevis, even though it struggles bordering a farmfield with lots of wind. The shrubby ones stay very short and spread into a large clump, They bloom fine, but yield meager berries, comparatively.

Want to know about the Juneberry trees?Serviceberry Trees

Ornamental Cherry Trees

Cherry Blossoms Have Sweet Fragrance

Cherry blossoms have gorgeous fragrance, even if it is fleeting. the beauty of the tree inspired the Japanese to center some of their most recognizable icons and observations around it.

Incredibly Graceful Tree

Japanese Weeping Cherry Tree 'Higan' (2-3 feet tall in trade gallon containers)
Japanese Weeping Cherry Tree ‘Higan’ (2-3 feet tall in trade gallon containers)

These are 3-4 ft. tall and will be shipped in trade gallon containers with soilless media and 9 months slow release fertilizer.

Cherry Trees For The Garden

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT ORNAMENTAL CHERRY TREES

Ornamental cherry trees are often sold in areas where their hardiness is questionable.

If you are zone 5 and colder you will be taking a chance, but the outstanding beauty of the trees lead many to take that chance.

When I first gardened my Kwanzan Cherry died in one of the colder winters we experienced- just a couple years after I planted it. Since then I had planted a couple other types of trees that were lost in a similar way (I don’t always learn after the first time).

There is nothing more disappointing than losing a tree to an unusual cold winter… you know, the “once in ten years” cold temperature.

This caveat is not set in stone, since a micro-climate or similar condition can make your experience different. The ornamental cherry trees are most definitely worth the risk. They are lovely in a way few other trees can equal.

If you do grow an ornamental cherry , many of the named varieties are Japanese. They like acidic, moist, but well-drained soils. Prefer loam, but thrive in clay, as well. Full Sun to Partial Shade sun exposure.

Prunus x subhirtella is one of the best and most popular. It may bloom in the fall if it is the “Autumnalis” variety.
P. ‘Shizuka’ is recommended for its large blooms.
Prunus ‘Spire’ is a small upright form that is great for restricted spaces.

Flowering Cherry – Prunus subhirtella pendula

The flowers are a showy pink, fall leaf color is yellow. Height will be 25 – 40 feet, vase shaped form. Not drought tolerant.

Akebono Flowering Cherry Tree

Pink spring flowering, 25 feet in height and spread at maturity.

Japanese Cherry Source: Cherry blossoms on Allposters

The Yoshino Cherry grows at a moderate rate to 25 feet. Best in warmer areas, zone 6-8, but it is reputed hardy in zone 5b (I wouldn’t chance it in this degree of cold, however). Reasons to grow this one?

Beautiful flowers
With age, has a graceful weeping look
good yellow fall foliage and beautiful bark for winter interest

Fringe Trees

Chionanthus virginicus

fringe tree Named for their “fringe-y” looking flowers in soft ivory, these native trees are scented and hardy.

Varied Shape And Size

I decided to plant a number of them (they are dioecious, needing male and female for berries). for me, the size and shape of them were widely varying. I wish I had known that before choosing them to be repeated features.

I would still plant them because they are beautiful trees, but I would use them as singular specimens.

Plant ProfileChionanthus viginicus

The Star Magnolia for The North

I grow the white flowered form, which is more common than the pink. It is spectacular when it blooms, starting early in its life and growing more beautiful with age.

Pink Stardust Magnolia

Or Magnolia Stellata Rosea for pink blooms.

Hardy, with a pink blossom, most stellata types have white flowers, this particular tree is one of the most highly rated by many gardeners. Hardy in Zones 4-8, which means it will take very cold winters and provide beautiful bloom.

Magnolia stellata profile

The Magnolia

A Queen Among Flowering Trees

Beautiful, showy, and fragrant Magnolias come in a number of varieties for the smaller garden. While Magnolia grandiflora is Queen of the South, there are hardy magnolias that will grace northern gardens, as well.

Varieties Of Magnolias For Small Garden Spaces

Magnolia stellata

Magnolia x loebneri ‘Leonard Messel’ grows to between 15 and 20 feet.

ROYAL STAR

‘Royal Star’ Stellata Magnolia is my favorite, and the one I grow in my own yard. It is just covered in bloom year after year, and starts to bloom while very young.

MAGNOLIA ANN

I grow this particular magnolia and its repeat bloom in summer surprised me. It is a short and open tree which has very and has been hardy and frost resistant in my yard. ‘Ann’ develops a somewhat open habit with deep purple-red, 7-9 inch petaled flowers.

MAGNOLIA JANE

“Jane” is one of the ‘Little Girl’ series of Magnolias that are the result of a cross originally made at the U.S. National Arboretum. Jane was bred for frost resistance, flowers opening just before the leaves appear,(mid-April to early May).

Jane Magnolia

Jane Tulip Magnolia Tree (2-3 ft tall in full gallon containers) Loads of spring blooms

Lovely, hardy tree has beautiful form, leaves, and flowers.

Vulcan Flowering Magnolia Tree

Heavy textured flowers reach 10 inches across. The petals are a dark, intense rose red inside and out. A tough, low maintenance tree. Hardy to USDA zone 5.

Its hardiness is what attracts me to this cultivar. Most magnolias are sensitive to frosts of the north.

When Do You Plant Trees?

In early to mid spring: magnolias should ONLY be planted in spring (to give their fleshy roots time to settle in).

Many other ornamental trees will be as happy planted in the autumn, as well.

The more dormant ( without leaves and “sleeping”), the better, but anytime the tree is planted be sure to not let it dry out. The new roots need to establish.

Hawthorns

A variety of Hawthorns, Crataegus spp., bring bloom to spring yards, and some of them are tough as nails, withstanding harsh conditions and pollution.

In my city yard I grew a hawthorn of unnamed type. It drew many warblers during their migrations.

Hawthorn trees are sometimes subject to disease, and are in the rose family. The Washington Hawthorn is probably the healthiest, and the one I think I grew. It is native to Ohio.

The English Hawthorns come in different colors and have showy berries.

Cercis Canadensis is a Native

Redbud Tree

Cercis canadensis, Eastern Redbud

This is a native tree which has cerise pink blooms in spring. It can be seen all through the Allegheny and Smokey mountains, as well as in yards throughout many parts of the American landscape.

It is the Oklahoma state tree.

In my state, Ohio, it can die out, the branches dying back, or even a loss of the whole tree, but normally it will thrive. I have several, and one does exceptionally well while the other struggles. An understory tree, it likes protection, but not too much shade.

5-6 ft. - Western Redbud

This photo shows how redbud grows naturally: as an understory tree among the taller shade trees. It seems to do best if it receives plenty of light for at least part of the day, yet has wind protection.

Of my own trees, it was the Redbud that had more shade that seemed to suffer more dieback.

Native Silverbell

Graceful tree, little known, that blooms in spring with white, downward facing flowers. It grows in the Piedmont region of the Carolinas. It loves its mountain climate, and won’t do well where it may suffer hot and dry conditions.

Way Down Yonder In the Paw Paw Patch

ANOTHER NATIVE TREE

Want to grow your own paw-paw patch? I grew up with that old song ” …way down yonder in the paw paw patch”, did you? But paw paw trees in the wild usually have their fruits stripped by wild animals long before we get a chance to taste them. You can grow your own and eat the banana like fruits or leave them to feed wildlife. This is a unique heritage tree.

Paw paw tree, Asimina triloba for banana-like fruits.

Native American

Paw Paw Trees - Banana fruit - Asimina triloba - PawPaw - 2 Plants - 3.25" Pot
Paw Paw Trees – Banana fruit – Asimina triloba – PawPaw – 2 Plants – 3.25″ Pot

The fruits will feed wildlife and the large leaves give bright autumn color of pure gold. Plant two or more for pollination.

The leaves are quite large and they identify the tree in the understory. When walking in the woods I often see a patch of them, but have never seen the fruits. They are probably snatched up too quickly in the places I venture.

Maples Famous For Fall Color

Small Trees For Foliage And Form

Distinctive ornamental tree choices

Autumn foliage of cutleaf Japanese maple

There are some very choice ornamental foliage trees, and the nobility among them would be the Japanese maples. They are graceful and create beauty in all seasons, from the budding out of their first leaves, through bright autumn color, to their outlines in winter.

These trees will work well grouped with other plants, trees, or shrubs, or on their own, as specimens.

NAMED JAPANESE MAPLES TO TRY:

Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum Atropurpureum’
Acer shirasawanum ‘Autumn Moon’
Acer palmatum ‘Hogyoku’
Acer shirasawanum ‘Aureum’
Acer palmatum ‘Sango-kaku’
Acer palmatum ‘Crimson Queen’

Graceful Japanese Maple

Japanese Red Maple Tree (2-3 feet tall in full gallon containers)
Japanese Red Maple Tree (3-4 feet tall in 3 gallon containers)

Japanese Red Maple Tree in gallon container.

Factsheet on Acer Palmatum

Gardening | North Carolina Cooperative Extension

Weeping Japanese Maple Viridis 2 – Year Graft

Cutleaf Japanese maples are broadly bush shaped usaully. Their finely cut leaves make an interesting texture.

Tips For Tree Care

Helpful advice for success with new plantings and maintenance.

How to Plant Your New Tree

For Best Flowering, Fertilize In Spring

Bayer Advanced 701710 2-in-1 Insect Control Plus Fertilizer Plant Spikes, 10-Spikes

Easy to use spike, install in the ground and forget them. The feeding at the rootline will help your tree produce a gorgeous crop of flowers.

Tree Success – Get A Good Start:

Some pruning, some feeding products are necessary, but most ornamental trees grow for a lifetime with little additional care.

I find that crabapples need initial care in the selection, with attention paid to a variety that is resistant to common diseases. They also need more pruning than other trees of this stature.

Cherry trees don’t require lots of pruning, but they are not as hardy as the Crabapples.

Dogwood have been some of the most graceful trees in the garden, but they are now experiencing problems with a disease.

These are a few of the problems to be mindful of when planting many of the commonly offered types of ornamental trees. Many, however, do not have any problems to report.

Care And Maintenance Of Ornamental Woody Plants

PLANTING TO FERTILIZING AND BEYOND

Start out right: dig the hole for your tree to at least 2x the size of the root ball.Use a good quality shovel. I know this one is on my wish list!
Add a little transplant solution for an initial boost.
New trees need consistent moisture.
After the first year, or if you have trees in your garden already, get some fertilizer spikes. They are the easiest way to fertilize shrubs and trees.
Some trees need more pruning than others. I find dogwoods need no pruning, unless twigs die off, but crabapple trees often can use thinning out and shaping. Quality pruners are a boon, and I use loppers for the bigger branches. The Bypass type is preferred for a clean cut.

How To Prune Your Tree

Shaping Your Trees

Pruning Artistically

Although quite graceful when grown naturally, pruning has long been an art that accentuates the Japanese maple’s beautiful lines. They are favorites for Bonsai work, but even in the garden, some judicial trimming can bring out the interesting branch structure.

These are some of the best of the ornamentals for modern homes, and blend well with many styles of architecture.

TIPS

Trim away crossing or inside growing branches.

Keep strong 45 degree angled branches.

Remove dead and damaged parts.

For flowering trees, prune right after bloom.

Secateurs, The Pruning Tool

Felco F-2 Classic Manual Hand Pruner
In America we just call them “pruners”, but one thing is sure: the Felco brand is the best. One of the most highly recommended, these classic pruners will handle most of the jobs required to trim up smaller branches.

Ornamental Trees For The South

I garden in a cold climate, but in the South there are a variety of beautiful trees that thrive in the heat.

Here are a few of the most popular and successful:

Crape Myrtles are seen everywhere and provide lots of color.
Chaste trees
Mimosa with their pom-poms of pink
Melaleuca

Front Yard Curb Appeal

Create Curb Appeal
Use trees to design an appealing front yard, and more garden tips to increase the attractiveness of your property from the curb vantage point.

Dirr's Encyclopedia of Trees and Shrubs
Dirr’s Encyclopedia of Trees and Shrubs

This is the tree information resource everyone wants and recommends. “Michael Dirr set the gold standard for horticultural reference.” That pretty much sums up how highly rated this reference book is, and how useful it will be.

2012 Urban Tree of the Year

January 31, 2012 by Ilona Erwin

Accolade is one of many elms on Arthur Lee Jacobsen’s page.

Ever since the demise of the American Elm tree due to the deadly combination of Dutch Elm disease and the beetle that spread it, arborists, landscapers, and gardeners alike have looked for and hoped that a replacement might be found.

Once upon a time American city streets were lined with these majestic trees. Now, the Society of Municipal Arborists has elected an Ulmus variety, ‘Accolade’ as their Urban Tree of the year for 2012. It is a hybrid of Ulmus japonica and U. wilsoniana, originating from seed collected at the Arnold Arboretum in 1924. There are high hopes for it to be the long awaited elm tree that will bear resemblance to those stately urban street trees of the past, since it is reputed to be resistant to Dutch Elm disease, the elm leaf beetle, and elm yellows. The tree grows to 50 to 60 feet tall, and 30 to 40 feet wide, in the famous vase shape that made the American Elm so admired. There has been a long standing effort to find a replacement for the ill fated American Elm. Maybe this is it.

Morton Arboretum has a specimen of ‘Accolade’

A PDF for Accolade from Urban-Forestry.com

Tree Notes

February 24, 2011 by Ilona Erwin

I think you ought to visit Tree Notes blog, and perhaps put it in your bookmarks. Yes, that would be a good thing to do.

Genevieve majors in trees, and writes posts full of delicious notes on all sorts of trees along with the usual cultivation information. I always find myself engaged in her articles. It is like an interview with each tree.

Advised that there were free downloads from the Purdue University, I took a look. Purdue Education Store, urban tree care has a free download for a PDF of scab resistant crabapple varieties. It was from just one sort of list that I decided to plant the Prairiefire variety,some years ago.