FAMILY: OleaceaeSyringa vulgaris (Common Lilac)

General Information

Common Lilac is an upright deciduous shrub introduced to North America from southern Europe. They serve as a good wind break or screen when planted in a row or in masses. When planted in this manner, their dense, low growth provide good protection from the wind and serve as cover for birds and other wildlife. But Common Lilac is known first and foremost for its highly fragrant flowers that bloom in May.

Plant Habit and Form

Common Lilac grows 8 to 15 feet tall and 6 to 12 feet wide. It can have a leggy shape with an irregular silhouette that loses its lower branches after some years but retains a crown of foliage. The 2- to 5-inch simple, opposite leaves are ovate to broad-ovate in shape and dark green.

Growing Requirements

Common Lilac grows best in soil with a neutral pH but full of rich, organic matter such as leaf mould and peat. It is hardy in zones 3 to 7. It is a remarkably resilient, tough, long-lived shrub.

Flowering and Fruiting

Common Lilac boasts large panicles of fragrant purple flowers at the ends of its branches. The shrubs fill the May garden with perfume. Following the flowers, smooth 1/2 inch, beaked capsules form at the ends of the branches.

Pests and Diseases

Despite being bothered by powdery mildew, aphids, scale and lilac borer, the Common Lilac persists seemingly unbothered by any of these liabilities.

ID Tips

Opposite leaf arrangement, beaked capsules, large panicles of fragrant purple flowers.

FAMILY: FagaceaeQuercus palustrus (Pin Oak)

General Information

Pin Oak is a popular tree due to its pyramidal shape and sturdy straight trunk. It is distinguished from other oaks by the lower branches often drooping and its glossy green, deeply lobed leaves which turn crimson in the fall. In the open landscape, the Pin Oak with its drooping branches creates a picturesque silhouette.

Pin Oak is native to North America and can be found in the northeast and north central United States, extending north into Ontario. It is not as vigorous in the lower tier states.

Plant Habit and Form

Pin Oak reaches 75 feet in height and 40 feet wide. It has a pyramidal form with a symmetrical, smooth crown. The 3- to 6-inch leaves of this deciduous tree have 5 to 7 deep lobes. In fall they turn a showy reddish bronze. The gray trunk is furrowed and ridged.

Growing Requirements

Pin Oak grows best in full sun. It is hardy in zones 4 to 7, growing slowly and not as vigorously in zone 8. It prefers moist, acidic, well-drained soil rich in organic matter.

Flowering and Fruiting

Pin Oak has yellowish male catkins in spring and produces acorns in the fall. The shallow saucer-like cup holds only the base of the acorn. These fruits are enjoyed by squirrels and other mammals.

Pests and Diseases

Pin Oak exhibits chlorosis on high pH and limestone soils due to iron deficiency. Galls can occur but do not pose a great threat to the Oak. Scales, aphids, lace bugs, and leaf miners can pose problems though.

ID Tips

Glossy green leaves with 5 to 7 deep lobes. Distinctive drooping branches. Small acorns that sit shallowly in the saucer-like cup.

FAMILY: RosaceaePrunus serrulata ‘Kwanzan’ (Kwanzan Flowering Cherry)

General Information

Kwanzan Flowering Cherry bears very attractive, double pink flowers in spring. It is a spectacular sight in full bloom and has been planted in Washington, D.C. for the annual Cherry Blossom Festival. This variety of Flowering Cherry produces no fruit.

Kwanzan Flowering Cherry is not native to North America but can be found in Massachusetts, Washington, D.C. and California. Its potential planting range includes the central and lower tiers of United States, from Massachusetts to California including the Pacific Northwest states.

Plant Habit and Form

Kwanzan Flowering Cherry reaches 25 to 30 feet in height. It has a vase-shape with a spreading crown. The 3- to 5-inch alternate leaves of this deciduous tree are simple, ovate to lancelolate, and turn yellow in the fall. The reddish to brown bark is glossy and has prominent horizontal lenticels.

Growing Requirements

Kwanzan Flowering Cherry grows in full sun. It is hardy in zones 5 to 9 and prefers moist, well-drained soil and has moderate drought tolerance.

Flowering and Fruiting

Kwanzan Flowering Cherry bears a profusion of very showy, double pink flowers that cluster in large clumps. This variety of Japanese Flowering Cherry is sterile and typically doesn’t produce fruit.

Pests and Diseases

Kwanzan Flowering Cherry has a relatively short life span of about 15 to 20 years. It can be bothered by aphids, tent caterpillars, spider mites, scale, and verticillium wilt.

ID Tips

Conspicuous horizontal lenticels along twigs, branches and trunk. Twigs have very prominent large red buds. Very showy clusters of double pink blossoms along the branches.

FAMILY: RosaceaeMalus floribunda (Japanese Crabapple)

General Information

Considered to be one of the best Crabapples for flowering and form, Japanese Crabapple are prized for their prolific, fragrant blooms in spring. This deciduous tree produces yellow and red fruits from late summer into fall that can be made into jelly. The fruits are also favored by a variety of wildlife.

Japanese Crabapple is not native to North America. Its distribution range includes Massachusetts, Connecticut and Washington DC on the east coast. The range also includes the states of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Louisiana, Kansas and Oregon.

Plant Habit and Form

Japanese Crab Apple reaches 15 to 25, sometimes 30, feet in height. It has a rounded, spreading canopy of densely set branches. The 2- to 4-inch long, alternate green leaves have serrated margins and are elliptical in shape. The leaves turn yellow in the fall but are not showy.

Growing Requirements

Japanese Crabapple grows best in full sun in moist, well-drained acidic soil. It can tolerate other conditions to a moderate degree, although it is not particularly drought tolerant.

Flowering and Fruiting

Japanese Crabapple bears a profusion of very showy 1 1/4 inch fragrant, pale pink flowers that mature to white in April and May. The subsequent yellowish fruit has a reddish tinge and are borne in abundance. They are small, about 1/2 an inch in length, and they can create quite a litter for the homeowner. Fortunately the fruit is favored by a variety of birds.

Pests and Diseases

Japanese Crabapple has moderate disease resistance but can be susceptible to fire blight, powdery mildew and apple scab.

ID Tips

Red buds open to pale pink flowers and mature to white in spring. Slender, elliptical, serrated green leaves. Broad, rounded, dense canopy.

FAMILY: FagaceaeFagus grandifolia (American Beech)

General Information

American Beech is a handsome deciduous tree found at low elevations in the North and higher elevations in the South. Its range extends across eastern North America from New Brunswick to Florida.

The wood of the American Beech is used to make flooring, furniture, railroad ties and plywood. It makes excellent firewood due to its high density and good burning qualities. It’s a popular food source of various mammals and bird species including black bear, deer, chipmunks, ducks, ruffed grouse and blue jays.

Plant Habit and Form

American Beech is a sturdy, medium to large tree growing 50 to 70 feet, sometimes exceeding 100 feet. It has a wide spreading, rounded crown with low hanging branches that can touch the ground. The leaves are 2 to 6 inches long and 1 to 2 1/2 inches wide with small, incurved, marginal teeth.

Growing Requirements

American Beech prefers moist, well-drained, acidic soil but will not withstand wet soils. It prefers full sun but will tolerate partial shade conditions. It grows slowly underneath an understory of conifers or hardwoods but grows faster in canopy openings and will eventually ascend into the overstory.

Flowering and Fruiting

American Beech is monoecious, flowering in April and May. The male flowers are yellowish green and droop in long stemmed clusters while the female flowers appear on short spikes. The female flowers evolve into triangular edible nuts enclosed by spiny bracts maturing in fall.

Pests and Diseases

American Beech has a few minor pest problems that include leaf spots, beech bark disease, aphids and beech scale.

ID Tips

Toothed leaf margins, smooth gray wrinkled bark, short trunk with wide spreading crown.

FAMILY: CornaceaeCornus florida (Flowering Dogwood)

General Information

Flowering Dogwood is a small tree growing about 15 to 30 feet tall. It grows in the eastern and central United States, and extends north and west into Ontario, then south from Michigan to eastern Texas and Mexico, and east to central Florida.

One of America’s most popular ornamental trees, Flowering Dogwoods are among the earliest blooming trees in spring. With its dense crown it provides useful shade in gardens and has a graceful and relatively compact shape.

Plant Habit and Form

Flowering Dogwood has a short trunk with a full, rounded crown measuring about 15 to 20 feet across. The branches lie horizontally in a tiered fashion. The bark on mature specimens is broken up into small scaly brown to black blocks. It has simple, opposite, deciduous leaves that are 3 to 6 inches long and about 1 1/2 to 2 inches wide.

Growing Requirements

Flowering Dogwood can tolerate full sun but prefers partial shade in the warmer extremes of its range. It is hardy in zones 5 to 9. It grows best in cool, moist, acidic soils rich in organic matter. It is not tolerant of drought, heat, pollution and road salt.

Flowering and Fruiting

Flowering Dogwood’s flowers comprised of four greenish white, occasionally pink, bracts surrounding a compact head. They are followed by clustered bright red, ovoid fruits about a 1/2 inch long. Some trees retain fruit in winter. The fruit is popular with a wide variety of bird species including turkey and ruffed grouse.

Pests and Diseases

Trees can be bothered by dogwood and flatheaded borers, twig girdler, and dogwood scale among other pests. Cankers can occur on the trunk and limbs.

ID Tips

Reddish purple twigs, large flattened flower buds, horizontal branches, and white flowers comprised of four bracts in May.

FAMILY: BetulaceaeBetula nigra (River Birch)

General Information

River Birch is a beautiful, deciduous native tree. Although it doesn’t have the papery white bark of Betula papyrifera, its trunk is gray to black with creamy orange portions and scales that provide a showy, year-round interest. It produces attractive, long thin catkins in spring that hang gracefully from the branches.

River Birch is found in eastern portions of the United States from southern New England south to Florida and west to Kansas and Minnesota.

Plant Habit and Form

River Birch is a medium size tree growing 50 to 70 (sometimes over 100) feet tall. Pyramidal when young, it bears a rounded to irregular shaped crown at maturity. It is a strong tree with a single trunk but can often grow as a multistemmed plant. Its branches have a drooping habit. The leaves are alternate and irregularly oval, about 2 to 5 inches long with toothed margins. They open silvery green, maturing to dark green in summer, then turn golden bronze in fall.

Growing Requirements

River Birch is hardy in zones 4 to 9. It prefers moist river bottom soils but is adaptable to drier soils. It grows in areas of full sun or partial shade. It has a high tolerance of acid soils where it can be dominant. Despite thriving in moist soils, it is only moderately resistant to flooding.

Flowering and Fruiting

River Birch is monoecious with male and female flowers appearing on the same tree. Male catkins form at twig tips in fall and mature in April or May of the following year. The only birch that doesn’t produce fruit in the fall, the fruit matures in late spring or early summer.

Pests and Diseases

Trees are usually free of serious disease but can be bothered occasionally by Anthracnose leaf blight.

ID Tips

Catkins in spring, mostly in 3s. Diamond shaped toothed leaves. Bark gray to black with soft orange scaly bark.

FAMILY: AceraceaeAcer saccharinum (Silver Maple)

General Information

Silver Maple is an fast growing tree with a vase-like shape and graceful foliage. Its wood is harvested alongside Sugar Maple and used as soft maple lumber. It has the largest winged seeds of all native maples in North America that are produced in abundance and serve as food for many wildlife species.

Silver Maple is native to eastern North America extending across Canada to southwestern Ontario and south into the United States all the way to Louisiana, central Georgia and northwestern Florida. This tree is found growing in wet areas where few other trees can.

Plant Habit and Form

Silver Maple can grow 50 to 70 (sometimes to 100) feet tall with a spread of 40 to 60 feet. Its branches form a strong, upright canopy with a spreading vase-like form. Pendulous, drooping branchlets create a graceful appearance. Its attractive foliage is yellow in fall.

Growing Requirements

Silver Maple is hardy in zones 3 to 9, performing better in the landscape up through zone 7. It prefers moist soils along stream banks and the slightly acidic moist soils in woods. It is tolerant of other growing conditions but will not reach maximum size.

Flowering and Fruiting

Flowers are monoecious and greenish yellow to red. Flowering occurs in March and are borne in clusters. Fruit, 1 1/3 to 2 1/3 inches long, matures in late May and June. Its fruited is one of the largest of all maples.

Pests and Diseases

Gray mold spot is one of the primary diseases of Silver Maple. It can also be bothered by tar spots, powdery mildew, Verticillium wilt, and anthracnose. Tent caterpillars, maple leaf cutter, bladder-gall mite, cottony maple scale, and other scales can plague Silver Maples.

ID Tips

Deeply 5-lobed leaves 6 to 7 inches across with clusters of short-stemmed, greenish yellow flowers appearing before the leaves in spring that produce paired seeds with widely spread wings. The bark on young trees is smooth and silver while the bark on mature trees has shaggy, narrow scales that are loose at the ends.