Choosing the right tree is a big deal. In the right place, trees are shade and beauty, but in the wrong place they are headaches, sore backs and empty pocketbooks.
Take a few important steps before heading to the nursery. Observe your yard and decide on a planting site before shopping.
There are a number of things to consider when making a tree selection. Answering these questions will help to narrow your choice.
Evergreen trees keep their leaves or needles during winter. Conifers are evergreen trees with needles or scales for leaves. Broad–leaf evergreens are trees such as Madrone or Southern Magnolia that keep their leaves year round but don’t have needles.
For help with Conifer Selection, link to our Conifer Guide.
Deciduous trees lose leaves in winter. Many have leaves that turn bright (Stewartia psuedocamellia shown here) colors before they fall off. They are ideal for planting on the south or west side of a house. Light warms the house in winter and the tree shades the house in summer.
Trees come in many shapes and sizes. Pyramid, lollipop, column, oval, vase & weeping are the most common shapes.
Flowering trees are wonderful additions to the landscape adding large-scale color during bloom–time.
Dogwoods (Cornus), Redbuds (Cercis), Flowering Cherries (Prunus) & Magnolias are all lovely choices.
Maples (Acer) warm the skies in fall with a range of unbeatable glowing colors, as do Crape Myrtles (tree-guide), Redbuds (Cercis) and Ginkgoes. Coral Bark Maple (Acer palmatum ‘Sango Kaku’).
Himalayan Birch (Betula jacquemontii) and Birchbark Cherry (Prunus serrulata) have interesting bark in winter. Many trees hold fruit into winter and provide food for wildlife.
We carry a wide variety of trees year-round. These represent only a fraction of what you will find and are some of our favorites. Note: Viewing a Native Plant will take you into our Native Plant section.