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MAD for Trees
  • Home
  • Madison's Trees
  • Upcoming Tree Giveaway
  • Resources
  • Partners
  • Past Events
  • In the News
  • Donate
  • About Us

Step 1 - Find the right tree for your space (and Check Availability)

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Understory Trees

#

Native Shrubs

Step 2 - Preregister by filling in your Tree Pledge

Thank you for your interest in planting native trees in Madison CT. 

  • This form contains important preparation and care information for your tree. 
  • Complete and return to MAD for Trees (mad4trees@gmail.com). 
  • We will contact you as soon as possible to discuss your tree and pick-up. 

Please note: To provide you with the best value and to help ensure that your tree establishes itself for a long healthy life, we are giving away small container trees, most ranging from 2 to 7 gallons. 

Tree Pledge form final (pdf)

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Understory Trees - scroll down

1. Cornus florida - Flowering Dogwood (SOLD OUT)

 

Habitat

  • native to the eastern and central United States
  • zone 5 with selection of proper genetic material
  • grows naturally as an understory tree

Habit and Form

  • a small deciduous tree
  • grows to about 30' tall with an equal or greater spread
  • shape is rounded to somewhat flat-topped
  • branching is approaching horizontal
  • branches low to the ground with a short trunk

Summer Foliage

  • opposite, simple leaves
  • oval to ovate shape
  • leaves 3" to 6" long
  • leaf color is medium green

Autumn Foliage

  • red or reddish purple
  • generally quite showy
  • colors early and color holds for an extended period

Flowers

  • flowers are small and yellowish green
  • the showy part of the bloom the four white bracts
  • bloom time is mid-May
  • bloom is effective for 2 weeks
  • flowering occurs before leaf out

Fruit

  • bright, shiny red fruits
  • held in tight clusters of 3 to 4
  • each fruit is 0.33" to 0.5" long and elongated

Bark

  • quite attractive
  • develops small square or rectangular blocks
  • resembles alligator skin
  • color is dark gray, brown or black

Culture

  • prefers a cool, moist, acidic soil that contains organic matter
  • full sun promotes greatest flowering but tolerates partial shade well
  • not tolerant of stresses such as heat, drought, pollution, road salt
  • best transplanted at a small size

Landscape Uses

  • lawn tree
  • specimen
  • border
  • has four season appeal in flowers, fruits, fall, color, bark and branching character

Liabilities

  • flower buds can be killed or injured by cold in zone 5
  • dogwood borer
  • dogwood anthracnose
  • powdery mildew

Cornus florida - Flowering Dogwood

2. Nyssa sylvatica - Pepperidge / aka Black Gum / Black tupelo  (1 available)

 

 Habitat

  • native to northeastern United States down through Texas
  • hardy to zone 4

Habit and Form

  • a large deciduous tree
  • 30' to 50' tall
  • 20' to 30' wide
  • pyramidal in youth maturing to a flat-topped crown
  • slow growth rate

Summer Foliage

  • alternate leaf arrangement
  • simple, ovate leaves
  • 3" to 6" long
  • dark green leaf color

Autumn Foliage

  • florescent yellow to orange to red or purple colors
  • very showy

Flowers

  • not ornamentally significant
  • polygamo-dioeceous; primarily acts like a dioecious species

Fruit

  • bluish-black drupes
  • 0.5' long
  • ripens in late September

Bark

  • dark gray brown bark color
  • bark has irregular ridges, block-like

Culture

  • has a taproot, making it difficult to transplant
  • prefers moist, well-drained, acidic deep soils
  • full sun
  • fire resistant
  • fall pruning recommended

Landscape Use

  • specimen
  • street tree
  • lawn tree
  • for fall foliage

Liabilities

  • leaf spot
  • rusts
  • tupelo leaf miner

Nyssa sylvatica - Pepperidge aka Black gum or tupelo

3. Franklinia alatamaha - Franklin Tree (SOLD OUT)

 

 

Habitat

  • native to southeastern United States
  • zone 5

Habit and Form

  • a small deciduous tree
  • 15' to 25' tall
  • almost as wide
  • rounded to conical dense crown
  • upright
  • medium texture
  • slow growth rate

Summer Foliage

  • alternate leaf arrangement
  • simple, deciduous leaves
  • oblong leaf shape
  • 4" to 8" long
  • serrate leaf margin
  • bright green leaf color

Autumn Foliage

  • orange-red fall color
  • showy

Flowers

  • white flowers
  • blooms in summer
  • fragrant
  • showy
  • 3" in diameter

Fruit

  • dry rounded fruit
  • up to 1" in diameter
  • not ornamentally important

Bark

  • branches low on trunk
  • white stripes along bark
  • winter interest

Culture

  • prefers well-drained, rich, acidic soil
  • needs moisture
  • partial sun to full

Landscape Use

  • specimen
  • patio tree
  • for fragrant flowers
  • good four season plant

Liabilities

  • root rot
  • needs extra watering

Franklinia alatamaha - Franklin Tree

4. Halesia carolina - Carolina silverbell (SOLD OUT)

 

With its showy silvery flowers Carolina Silverbells, Halesia carolina, creates a show-stopping display in spring. Bells of white bloom in spring before leaves appear. This open-form tree grows into a loose pyramidal shape, slowly to 20-30′ tall and wide. A lover of acidic soils and part shade, Carolina Silverbells is a perfect choice planted with Azaleas, Hydrangeas and other acid-loving shrubs. Deer resistance.


 Habitat

  • native to southeastern United States
  • zone 5
  • in native areas it grows as an understory small tree

Habit and Form

  • a small to medium-sized, flowering tree
  • reaches 30' to 40' tall
  • 25' to 35' wide
  • shape is irregular to rounded and broad
  • branching often begins low on the trunk

Summer Foliage

  • alternate, deciduous leaves
  • simple, ovate or elliptic shape
  • dark green color

Autumn Foliage

  • yellow-green
  • develops early in the fall

Flowers

  • pendulous, white, bell-shaped flowers
  • in clusters of up to 5
  • bloom time is early May

Fruit

  • interesting four-winged, oblong fruit
  • persists into winter
  • 1" to 0.5" long

Bark

  • attractive, smooth, muscle-like bark
  • base color is steel-gray with creamy-white striping
  • bark on twigs exfoliates slightly in fine silvery shreds

Culture

  • full sun to partial shade
  • prefers a moist, well-drained, acid soil
  • use container grown material; B&B plants are difficult to establish

Landscape Uses

  • for showy spring flowers
  • as a specimen
  • mixes well with evergreens such as rhododendron
  • as a small shade tree

Liabilities

  • chlorosis on high pH soils
  • twig kill in severe winters
  • relatively pest-free


Halesia carolina - Carolina silverbell 

5. Asimina triloba  - Pawpaw tree (SOLD OUT - should plant in pairs for fruit)

 

With leaves and branches that deer avoid, and fruit that is loved by all, the pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is a fascinating native tree. It’s the only local member of a large, mainly-tropical plant family (Annonaceae), and produces the largest edible fruit native to North America.  


Habitat

  • native to New York down through Florida across through Nebraska
  • hardy to zone 5

Habit and Form

  • a deciduous small tree or large shrub
  • multi-stemmed
  • spreading branches form a rounded crown
  • 15' to 20' tall and equally as wide

Summer Foliage

  • alternate leaf arrangement
  • simple, deciduous leaves
  • 6" to 12" long, 3" to 6" wide
  • dark green leaf color

Autumn Foliage

  • yellow fall color

Flowers

  • purple flowers
  • 1" to 2" in diameter
  • blooms in early May
  • somewhat showy

Fruit

  • greenish-yellow berry, turning black
  • edible
  • 2" to 5" long
  • taste like bananas

Bark

  • dark brown
  • rough and scaly
  • fecal odor

Culture

  • transplant from containers
  • prefers moist, fertile slightly acidic soils
  • full sun
  • prune tolerant

Landscape Uses

  • naturalized areas
  • for fruit
  • street tree

Liabilities

  • no serious pest problems
  • fruit can be a litter problem
  • hard to transplant


Asimina triloba - Pawpaw

6. Cersis canadensis  - Eastern Redbud (SOLD OUT)

 

Habitat

  • native to the southeastern and central United States, from New Jersey south
  • hardy to zone 5 and protected, warm parts of 4
  • proper choice of genetic material is necessary for success in zone 5 and colder

Habit and Form

  • a small, deciduous tree
  • 20' to 30' tall
  • 25' to 35' wide
  • shape is rounded to broad and flat-topped
  • branching is upright and spreading to irregular

Summer Foliage

  • alternately-arranged, simple leaves
  • wide, heart-shaped leaves
  • leaves emerge bright green tinged red and mature to a dark green
  • stems have a zigzag growth pattern

Autumn Foliage

  • color is yellow-green
  • can be a showy, bright yellow on some plants in some years

Flowers

  • very showy
  • small, purplish-pink pea-like flowers
  • numerous and appearing before the foliage
  • bloom time is late April to early may
  • in clusters of 4 to 8

Fruit

  • flattened legume pods
  • 2" to 3" long
  • often numerous and persistent

Bark

  • bark on stems is glabrous and reddish-brown to dark brown
  • older branches have a scaly dark brown bark that exfoliates some to reveal orangish inner bark
  • somewhat ornamentally appealing, especially when coupled with the branching habit

Culture

  • full sun to light shade
  • likes a moist, well-drained, soil, but is adaptable to most soils that are not permanently wet
  • avoid very dry and hot locations

Landscape Use

  • lawn tree
  • specimen
  • for showy spring flowering

Liabilities

  • lack of cold hardiness if proper genetic material isn't used
  • twig kill and dieback in zones 5 and 4
  • wood can be brittle with trees splitting at crotches
  • canker


Cersis canadensis - Redbud

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Native Shrubs - scroll down

1. Prunus maritima - Beach plum (SOLD OUT)

 

 Habitat

  • native to Northeastern United States and New Brunswick
  • hardy in zone 3

Habit and Form

  • a medium deciduous shrub
  • a rounded, densely branched shrub
  • grows to 6' tall
  • plant tends to sucker
  • medium texture
  • fast growth rate

Summer Foliage

  • alternate leaf arrangement
  • simple, deciduous leaves
  • leaves are elliptical in shape
  • dull green leaf color
  • petiole is pubescent with glands near the leaf base

Autumn Foliage

  • somewhat showy

Flowers

  • white flowers
  • flowers borne singly
  • flowers are 0.5" in diameter
  • flowers in May

Fruit

  • fruits are dull purple color
  • 1" in diameter
  • ripen in august
  • edible

Bark

  • reddish brown bark
  • horizontal lenticels

Culture

  • full sun
  • easily transplanted from bare root, B&B, or containers
  • prefers a well-drained soil
  • prune after flowering in spring
  • salt tolerant

Landscape Use

  • specimen
  • for flowering effect
  • for edible fruit

Liabilities

  • short-lived
  • many insect and disease problems

Prunus maritima - Beach plum

2. Kalmia latifolia - Mountain-laurel (SOLD OUT)

 

 

Habitat

  • native in eastern North America
  • hardy in zone 5 and protected locations in zone 4
  • typically found at the woods edge, edge of water or where light filters through the forest canopy

Habit and Form

  • generally has a rounded shape
  • can be dense-compact or loose-open depending on how much light the plant receives
  • mature size is typically 5 to 12' tall, with a similar spread
  • can be significantly larger, especially in the southern Appalachian Mountains
  • branching is irregular
  • a broadleaf evergreen

Summer Foliage

  • leaves arranged alternately
  • leaves clustered toward the shoot tip
  • color is dark green and glossy above
  • in full sun foliage can be yellow-green

Autumn Foliage

  • evergreen; no fall color

Flowers

  • showy, lasting 2 weeks or more
  • blooms in late May and mostly in early June
  • 4" to 6" diameter clusters of small individual blooms at branch tips
  • individual flowers are 0.75" to 1" across
  • normal color is pink that fades to nearly white

Fruit

  • non-ornamental, small dehiscent capsules
  • brown-tan color

Bark

  • lightly ridged and furrowed
  • trunks gnarled and twisted
  • brown-tan color

Culture

  • partial shade to full sun
  • often touted as tolerant of heavy shade, but plants under those conditions are very thin and open and bloom sparsely
  • requires a cool, moist, acidic, organic soil for best performance
  • avoid windswept sites

Landscape Use

  • for evergreen foliage
  • for showy blooms
  • foundation plantings
  • excellent in partially shaded sites

Liabilities

  • foliar burn in exposed sites
  • will languish in heavy, high pH soils
  • lacebug
  • leaf spot can be especially troublesome on non-resistant cultivars in moist, heavy shade.

Kalmia latifolia - Mountain-laurel

Note - we have just added 30 additional shrubs to the Fall 2023 event. 

They include 6 each of the following:

  • Highbush Blueberry - SOLD OUT / given as a pair
  • Rhododendron canadense - SOLD OUT
  • Viburnum dentatum (Arrowwood) - SOLD OUT
  • Clethra alnifolia (Pepperbush) - SOLD OUT
  • Myrica pensylvanica (Northern Bayberry) - 3 left


And we also have a few Sugar Maples just released by Bob. 1 left


If interested - please download and complete the Tree pledge form and email back to mad4trees@gmail.com 


 

 


Clethra alnifolia

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