Evergreen Trees - scroll down
Abies balsamea - Balsam Fir (2 available)
Habitat
- native to most of northern United States and into Canada
- zone 3
Habit and Form
- evergreen tree
- 50' to 60' tall by 20' to 30' wide
- slender, conical shape
- fine to medium texture
- slow growth rate
Summer Foliage
- needles are variable, up to 1" long
- 2 lateral sets of leaves arranged horizontally, V-shaped parting between sets
- leaf tip is notched
- dark, shiny green with 2 white stomatal lines on underside
- buds are resinous
Autumn Foliage
- no fall color (evergreen)
Fruit
- brown resinous cones
- cones shatter soon after maturing
- cones typically found only in upper third of the canopy
- 3" to 4" long
Culture
- easily transplanted because of shallow root system
- prefers cold climates
- well-drained, acidic soil
- dislikes heat and dry air
- not well-adapted to cultivation
Liabilities
- loses nice "Christmas tree" shape with age
- problem pests and diseases include: spruce budworm, woolly aphid, and several cankers
- often performs poorly under landscape conditions
- often damaged by deer
Pinus strobus - Eastern White Pine (2 available)
Habitat
- native throughout all of New England; from Newfoundland to Georgia and west to Iowa
- cold hardy to zone 3
Habit and Form
- evergreen tree
- conical in form when young, losing a defined shape with age, becoming picturesque
- 50 to 80' tall by 30-50' wide, can reach well over 100' tall.
- many lateral branches creates a moderately dense canopy
- fine texture
- fast growing
Summer Foliage
- light green with a bluish cast
- 5 needles per fasicle
- thin flexible needles, 4" long
- serrated margins and two stomatal lines on underside
Autumn Foliage
- no fall color (remains green)
- needles persist for 2 years
Flowers
- monoecious
- no ornamental value
Fruit
- light brown cones, often numerous
- cones are 6-8" long
- curved with a pointed tip
- takes two years for cones to reach maturity
- cones typically clustered in the upper third of the tree
Culture
- easily transplanted, easily grown
- prefers moist, well-drained, slightly acidic soil
- sun, although young trees tolerate light shade
- cold tolerant
Liabilities
- white pine weevil is common, causing leader death, but plants recover with an altered form
- wood is weak and cannot tolerant strong winds
- susceptible to salt, air pollution, and white pine blister rust
- often suffers significant damage from ice and heavy snows
Pinus strobus - Eastern White Pine
Thuja occidentalis - Eastern Arborvitae (2 available)
Habitat
- native to northeastern North America
- zone 3
Habit and Form
- a scale-leaved evergreen
- medium-sized tree
- 30' to 50' tall and 10' to 15' wide
- landscape plants mostly seen in the 20' to 30' size range
- conical shape
- dense and compact
- can be single-or multi-trunked
Summer Foliage
- leaves are small and scale-like (2mm long)
- scale-like leaves overlap forming flattened, rope-like shoots
- each leaf has a small resinous gland on the back
- color is green to dark green
- branchlets in horizontal planes or sprays
- crushed foliage emits a distinct tansy-like odor
Autumn Foliage
- foliage discolors to yellowish-green and even somewhat brown at times
- winter color is considered ugly by sone and cultivars have been selected for green winter foliage color
Flowers
- not of any ornamental significance
- monoecious
- at the branch tips
- borne singly
Fruit
- small cones with thin, overlapping scales
- brown to tan
- 0.33" to 0.5" long
- not particularly noticeable except when then is heavy cone set
Culture
- easily transplanted from containers and B&B
- likes moist air
- prefers moist, deep, loamy soil
- tolerant of acidic and alkaline soils
- generally quite adaptable and tolerant once established
- can be sheared to maintain shape and size
- full sun; partial shade is tolerated but plants become thin, open and much less appealing
- tolerant of somewhat wet soils
Liabilities
- leaf miner
- bag worms
- foliar burn in very harsh sites
- spider mites
- heavy snow often causes damage
- a favorite food of deer
Tall / Shade Trees - scroll down
Platanus Occidentalis - Sycamore (6 available)
Habitat
- native to eastern half of United States
- hardy to zone 4
Habit and Form
- a large, deciduous tree
- pyramidal in youth
- broad, rounded crown when mature
- 75' to 90' tall
- 60' to 70' wide
- coarse texture
- rapid growth rate
Summer Foliage
- alternate leaf arrangement
- simple, deciduous leaves
- 3 to 5 lobed margins
- ovate leaf shape
- 6" to 10" long
- medium green leaf color
Autumn Foliage
- turning yellow-brown
Flowers
- monoecious, with separate male and female flowers
- deep red flowers
- blooms in late March
- not ornamentally important
Fruit
- rounded, tannish brown fruit
- 1" in diameter
- fuzzy looking
- found solitarily
- showy
- persist
Culture
- moist, deep, rich well-drained soil
- full sun
- moderately salt and drought tolerant
Liabilities
- can be pollarded and pleached readily
- canker strains is a serious problem
- anthracnose
- cold injury in harsh winters
- powdery mildew
- American plum borer
- sycamore lacebug
Quercus rubra - Red Oak (7 available)
Habitat
- northeastern and north-central U. S.
- zone 3
Habit and Form
- a large, deciduous tree
- to 75' tall
- rounded outline
- upright spreading branches
- large single trunk
- long-lived
Summer Foliage
- alternate leaf arrangement
- 5" to 8" long leaves; 4' to 6" wide
- 7 to 11 bristle-tipped broad lobes
- mature foliage color is dark green above
- leaf surface lustrous
Autumn Foliage
- a mixture of russet-red, yellow and tan
- color develops late
- can be quite good or disappointing
Flowers
- pale yellow-green catkins (male)
- adds slight seasonal interest in May
- monoecious
Fruit
- 0.75" to 1" long brown acorn
- borne singly or in pairs
- acorns have a large, saucer-like cap
- takes two years to mature (black oak group)
- can be numerous, creating a litter problem on lawns and sidewalks
Culture
- full sun
- well drained, acidic, sandy loans are best
- easily transplanted for an oak
- grows rapidly for an oak
- withstands urban conditions well
- needs ample room to develop
Liabilities
- chlorosis on high pH soils
- oak wilt has been a problem in the middle U.S.
- needs room to develop
- numerous caterpillars enjoy oak foliage, but feeding damage is usually not severe
Acer rubrum - Red Maple (SOLD OUT)
Habitat
- very large geographic and climatic range
- eastern United States and adjacent Canada
- zone 3, but plants must have originated from the northern part of its range
Habit and Form
- deciduous
- pyramidal or elliptical when young
- becomes more spreading with age, eventually developing a more or less rounded or oval outline
- a medium to large tree, 40' to 70' tall, but can be over 100' tall
- texture is medium
- relatively fast growing
Summer Foliage
- opposite, 2" to 4" long, 3 or 5-lobed
- medium green upper leaf color, gray-green or frosty underside
Autumn Foliage
- varies from greenish yellow to vibrant scarlet to burgundy
- can be very striking; many cultivars selected for red fall foliage
- often one of the first trees to color
Flowers
- red or orange, in late March and April, showy
- monoecious with male and female flowers on separate branches of a tree; some flowers may be perfect as well
- female flowers more showy with redder color
Fruit
- samaras, 0.75" long
- often display some red color and ornamental appeal
Culture
- easy to transplant and establish
- tolerant of many conditions and adaptable
- prefers moist, acidic soils
- tolerates occasional flooding and wet soils
- on alkaline soils develops manganese chlorosis
- full sun best for landscape development, but can tolerate partial shade
Liabilities
- can be somewhat weak wooded and may suffer storm damage
- because the species is so genetically diverse careful attention is needed to insure adequate cold hardiness and the desired red fall foliage
- manganese chlorosis
- tar spot, verticillium wilt leaf hoppers
Acer rubrum - Red Maple
Acer saccharum - Sugar Maple (6 available)
Habitat
- deciduous
northeastern and north-central United States, adjacent parts of Canada
- zone 3
- primary large, hardwood tree in northeastern U.S. forest
Habit and Form
- large shade tree
- 75' or so, but can be well over 100' tall
- outline is upright oval when younger and more or less gumdrop-shaped to rounded when mature
- dense foliage and branching
- texture is medium
Summer Foliage
- opposite, 3" to 6" long
- 5-lobed, with the 2 basal lobes being smaller
- medium to dark green
Autumn Foliage
- excellent yellow, orange or red
- shaded leaves on plant interior are yellow, while exterior, exposed leaves turn orange with a red cast.
Flowers
- small yellowish green, before leaves in April
Fruit
- samaras, 1" to 1.75" inches long
- as a pair they form a horseshoe shape
Culture
- does not perform well when root zone is restricted
- prefers well-drained, moist fertile soils
- not tolerant of high heat, pollution, road salt
- although shade tolerant, full sun is needed for proper landscape development
Liabilities
- creates dense shade which reduces turf vigor
- needs room to develop
- verticillium wilt
- leaf scorch due to drought
- intolerant of urban conditions of compacted soil, heat, drought, deicing salt
- branches are strong, rarely breaks in wind or under ice load
Ornamental / Understory Trees - scroll down
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
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
Liabilities
- flower buds can be killed or injured by cold in zone 5
- dogwood borer
- dogwood anthracnose
- powdery mildew
Cornus florida - Flowering Dogwood
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
Culture
- prefers well-drained, rich, acidic soil
- needs moisture
- partial sun to full
Liabilities
- root rot
- needs extra watering
