FAMILY: EricaceaeKalmia latifolia (Mountain Laurel)

General Information

Mountain Laurel is a large evergreen shrub or small tree with leathery pointed leaves. It is found in eastern portions of the United States, from Maine to Florida extending west to Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Louisiana. It is common in the Appalachian Mountains and along coastal plains from Maine to Florida. Its North American range extends into southern Quebec. It is an understory species found in a variety of forests and growing among numerous plant species.

Plant Habit and Form

Mountain Laurel is a hardy shrub of variable size ranging from 7 to 15 feet, growing as large as 25 feet along the southeastern U.S. Piedmont range where they grow in dense thickets. It has many twisting branches, often becoming straggly and more open in mature plants. The leaves are glossy dark green above and yellowish green underneath, elliptical to lanceolate in form, and 2 to 5 inches long. Mountain Laurel is monoecious with 1-inch bowl shape flowers, varying from white to rose with purple markings, appearing in late spring and early summer. The bark is thin and gray-brown, with splitting and shredding on older branches.

Growing Requirements

Mountain Laurel requires acidic, cool, moist, well-drained soils. It grows in sun or shade, flowering best in sunnier locations. It is hardy to zone 5 (with protection in zone 4).

Flowering and Fruiting

Flowers are quite showy, appearing in late May and June, and occur in 4 to 6 inch clusters. The blooms start out pink and open to white with purple markings. They are followed by brown fruit capsules that remain on the plant through winter.

Pests and Diseases

Mountain Laurel is susceptible to leaf spot, lacebug, white fly and scale.

ID Tips

Large shrubs with broad evergreen leaves elliptically shaped with pointed tips, whorls of showy pink to white flowers followed by persisting fruit clusters held upright.

FAMILY: EricaceaeLeucothoe (Drooping Leucothoe)

General Information

Leucothoe is a broadleaf evergreen weeping shrub with lance-shaped leaves on arching narrow stems. It is an attractive medium size landscape plant, valuable for use with other evergreens, as foundation plantings, or in woodland gardens. This plant is native to North America and can be found along shady stream banks in the southern Appalachian Mountains.

Plant Habit and Form

Leucothoe grows 3 to 5 feet, occasionally to 6 feet. It has a graceful drooping habit with a fountain-like effect. The slender stems have almost no branching. Lustrous green leaves are borne alternately on stems with new growth varying in colors from red to bright green, bronze to purple. In winter, the leaves are bronze to purplish in sunlight. In spring the arching branches are covered with creamy white urn-shaped flowers, but the lustrous, leathery leaves often cover the display.

Growing Requirements

Leucothoe can be fastidious about its growing conditions. It requires a shaded location with evenly moist but well-drained, slightly acidic soil that is high in organic matter. It does not tolerate dry, hot, sunny conditions or clay soils. Overhead irrigation systems of watering from above the plant can create problems for this plant. It is important to avoid wetting the foliage when watering. Leucothos is generally hardy in zones 5 to 8.

Flowering and Fruiting

Leucothoe blooms in spring with racemes of creamy white, urn-shaped flowers borne along the branches. Due to the abundant, handsome, leathery foliage, the blooms go not create a showy display and often go unnoticed. The fruit is a dry round capsule.

Pests and Diseases

Leucothoe is highly susceptible to a number of leaf spot diseases and root rot brought on by unfavorable cultural conditions.

ID Tips

Low habit with graceful arching branches of alternate, leathery, evergreen leaves that turn red or bronze in winter.

FAMILY: EricaceaePieris japonica (Japanese Pieris)

General Information

Pieris is a compact, broadleaf evergreen shrub with much appeal as a landscape plant. It’s quite versatile and works well with other broadleaf evergreens, in the shrub border, as a foundation plant, or massed in the woodland garden. Its attractive foliage emerges bronzed or red, and it bears snowy white pendulous blooms in late winter and early spring. One note of caution is its toxicity to livestock.

Plant Habit and Form

Pieris japonica has a neat, mounding, haystack-shaped form. Its branches are spreading with somewhat tiered branching to the ground. It grows 9 to 12 feet high with a spread of 6 to 8 feet. New leaf growth is a rich bronze to red color maturing to dark green. The trunk is dark brown and furrowed.

Growing Requirements

Pieris grows in zones 4b (with some protection) to 7. It appreciates moist, acid, well-drained soil rich in organic matter. It tolerates full sun preferring partial shade, and requires some shade in the South.

Flowering and Fruiting

Pendulous, branched inflorescences (up to 6 inches long) with urn-shaped, showy white flowers bloom March to April. Light green or red floral buds form during summer and remain attractive throughout fall and winter. Brown capsule-like fruit persists through the year on fruiting stalks.

Pests and Diseases

Lace bug, mites, and chlorosis (due to alkaline or neutral pH soils) can be problematic.

ID Tips

Upright, multistemmed evergreen shrub with bronze to red new leaf growth maturing to dark green and winter floral buds opening late winter or early spring as pendulous panicles of white, urn-shaped flowers.

FAMILY: AquifoliaceaeIlex opaca (American Holly)

General Information

American Holly has been a popular landscape plant for centuries. Native Americans prized preserved holly berries for use as buttons and were used for bartering among different groups and tribes. In the 1600s, the berries reminded the pilgrims of their English holly, an ancient symbol of Christmas across England and Europe. The wood is close-grained and moderately heavy but not particularly strong. It has been used for specialty items such as small furniture, wood engravings and scientific instruments. When dyed black, it has been used as a substitute for ebony in making piano keys.

American Holly grows from Massachusetts to Florida, west to Missouri and Texas. It has become adapted to maritime forest conditions as well as the dry, scrub conditions of mid-peninsular Florida.

Plant Habit and Form

American Holly has dense branches that grow nearly horizontal in a spreading crown that gives it a pyramidal form. It has alternate, leathery, 2 to 4 inch evergreen leaves, 1 to 2 inches wide, with sharp pointed tips. The bark is thin and grayish brown. American Holly can grow up to 50 feet tall, occasionally taller under optimal growing conditions.

Growing Requirements

American Holly is hardy in zones 5 to 9. It grows best on well-drained, sandy soils but will tolerate less well-drained soils. It does well in full sun but has good partial shade tolerance. It’s ideal for naturalizing on moist, slightly acidic soils.

Flowering and Fruiting

American Holly is dioecious and has small (about 1/3 inch in diameter), greenish white flowers that bloom from April to June. Fleshy red globular fruit matures September to October but may be retained on the plant until spring. The fruit provides winter interest and serves as an excellent food source for wildlife.

Pests and Diseases

American Holly can be bothered by the holly leaf miner, various types of scale, berry midge, white fly and spider mite among other pests.

ID Tips

Alternate, elliptical, spiny, 2 to 4 inch evergreen leaves with pointed tips. Fleshy, berry-like, bright red fruits about .3 inch in diameter. Grows to 50 feet tall.

FAMILY: PinaceaeAbies concolor (White Fir)

General Information

This ornamental fir species is not native to New England but can be found as noble specimens if you look closely enough in arboretums and botanical gardens. The fine aroma of the White Fir makes an excellent Christmas tree. The branches keep their shape and retain their needles well. It is a useful lumber product for boxes, crates, doors and sashes.

A favorite tree of squirrels and rodents for its seeds, seedlings are also browsed by deer. Grouse enjoy feeding on the buds and needles as well as using the trees for winter roosting. Porcupines gnaw on the bark and can occasionally girdle seedlings. Regeneration can even be limited in certain areas due to gophers.

The native range of the White Fir extends from northern Mexico up to southeastern Idaho and central Oregon, and from central Colorado to the mountainous regions of the Pacific coast, specifically in elevations of 4,000 to 10,000 feet along ¬the western Sierra Nevada range. White Fir thrives in moderately humid climates with long winters and moderate to heavy snowfalls.

Plant Habit and Form

The White Fir is pyramidal in shape with medium to coarse texture. The bluish-green needles curve up and outward arranged horizontally on branches, similar in shape to a rib cage. The bark is heavily ridged. Trees grow up to 125 to 150 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet in diameter, with a dome-shaped crown.

Growing Requirements

White Fir is generally tolerant of a wide variety of soil conditions and can be easily transplanted. It is reported to be very adaptable to cultivation and even tolerates city conditions. It prefers moderately deep and well-drained sandy-loam soils, appreciating moderate to strongly acidic granular and clay loam as well.

Flowering and Fruiting

White Fir is monoecious with densely grouped, reddish male cones around a half inch long occurring on the underside of twigs and erect female cones found primarily in the uppermost crown. Flowering occurs May, June and into July depending on the elevation. Seeds mature in September and disperse about 3 weeks later.

Pests and Diseases

White Fir are disturbed by many different bark beetles. Needle rusts can cause problems in Christmas tree production.

ID Tips

Bluish green, 2 to 3 inch needles that are flat and blunt to pointed arranged horizontally on branches like a rib cage. Olive green to purple cones are 3 to 5 inches long.

FAMILY: PinaceaePicea abies (Norway Spruce)

General Information

Norway Spruce is an important timber tree in its native land and it is the traditional Christmas tree in Europe. The tree is used extensively in cultivation as a screen or windbreak and provides important winter cover for a number of wildlife species. Its seeds are consumer by a wide variety of birds and small mammals.

The native range of Norway Spruce is eastern and central Europe, extending north into Scandinavia. It is considered to be one of the most widely planted conifers in North America, from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario, south through New England, the mid-Atlantic states and west to Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Plant Habit and Form

Norway Spruce is cone-shaped when young but becomes more columnar as it matures. It’s a large evergreen growing 40 to well over 100 feet tall. It bears graceful branches with upturned tips and small pendulous branchlets that tend to droop downward from the main branches. The gray-green to blue-green leaves – flat to triangular needles between .5 to .8 inches long – are stiff and point upward like a bottle brush. The bark is reddish brown with thin, gray surface scales.

Growing Requirements

Norway Spruce is hardy in zones 3b to 7(8), preferring cooler climates. It thrives in moderately moist but well-drained, acidic sandy soils but can tolerate average soils given adequate moisture. Even established trees should be given supplemental watering during extended dry periods. It prefers full sun conditions; trees become thin and shabby in full shade. In the warmer limits of its range, zone 8, Norway Spruce will tolerate the growing conditions but will not thrive.

Flowering and Fruiting

Norway Spruce is monoecious, with male and female flowers. Female flowers are terminal, reddish pink, and located on the crowns of trees. The cylindrical cones are 4 to 7 inches long, 1 ½ to 2 inches wide, and occur at the ends of branches.

Pests and Diseases

Norway Spruce are susceptible to red spiders, spruce gall adelgid and tip weevils.

ID Tips

Stiff, dark green, flattened to triangular needles that are .5 to .8 inches long, graceful branches with upturned tips, and narrow, cylindrical cones about 4 to 7 inches long.

FAMILY: PinaceaeTsuga canadensis (Eastern Hemlock)

General Information

Eastern Hemlock is an evergreen conifer with upsweeping branches and shallow, wide-spreading roots. It reaches ages of 800 years and older. At the end of the 19th Century and beginning of the 20th Century, Eastern Hemlock was valued for its bark which was used as a source of tannin for the leather industry. Due to its brittle nature, Eastern Hemlock is not important to the timber industry today.

Dense stands of Eastern Hemlock provide valuable wildlife habitat. They can be climbed by small black bear cubs and, consequently, black bear mothers spend most of their time in early spring within close reach of these trees in parts of Minnesota. In the southern Appalachian Mountains, forests of hemlock provide nesting sites for many bird species. The seeds are eaten by mammals and birds and in winter the foliage provides browsing for moose, white-tailed deer, and snowshoe hares.

In cultivation, Eastern Hemlock is planted as an ornamental. As a group planting, it serves as important shelter and cover for deer and other wildlife (e.g., ruffled grouse and turkey). It makes a graceful hedge and provides excellent screening.

The native range of Eastern Hemlock extends across Ontario to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. It continues south throughout New England, the mid-Atlantic states, to Northern Georgia and Alabama in the Appalachian Mountains and west to Missouri, Wisconsin and Minnesota. It’s also found in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, New York and Pennsylvania.

Plant Habit and Form

Considered to be one of the most beautiful conifers, Eastern Hemlock is pyramidal with a broadly conic crown and grows to be 60 to 70 feet tall. The branches are often drooping at the ends and the foliage appears fine and feathery, giving the tree its graceful form. It is considered to be medium-growing. The leaves -- flat needles between .3 to .7 inches long -- are light green in spring with new growth, changing to dark glossy green as they age. The bark changes from smooth, to flaky and scaly, and finally matures to furrowed wide flat ridges.

Growing Requirements

Eastern Hemlock is hardy in zones 3b to 7(8). It is very shade tolerant and seedlings can survive in as little as 5 percent of full light and establish themselves under mature maple canopies, eventually replacing the species in some cases. In the southern and western limits of its range, Eastern Hemlock is confined to moist, cool growing sites (e.g., valleys, northern and eastern slopes). It tolerates warmer and dryer conditions in northern areas of its range. Overall, Eastern Hemlock prefers moist, well-drained soil. It has been reported to be the most lime tolerant in the genus. Due to its shallow root system, it is susceptible to wind-throw when exposed by timber cutting or planted in open areas.

Flowering and Fruiting

Eastern Hemlock is monoecious, with male and female flowers. Flowers are inconspicuous and the fruits (small cones) are about .5 to 1.0 inch long. Large crops of cones are frequent and occur about every 3 to 4 years. Seed is dispersed by gravity and wind.

Pests and Diseases

Eastern Hemlock is not particularly tolerant of pollution, heat, and drought. The most damaging insect pest for this species is the wooly adelgid which can destroy large trees in 3 years if left unchecked. Other pests include spider mites, bagworm, and gypsy moth.

ID Tips

Pyramidal in shape with graceful horizontal to pendulous branches, short flattened needles, and small cones about .5 to 1.0 inch long.

FAMILY: CupressaceaeJuniperus horizontalis (Creeping Juniper)

General Information

Creeping Juniper is an evergreen, prostrate shrub with a shallow root system. It is known for colonizing sand dunes as well as providing stabilizing properties for reducing erosion in a wide variety of sandy areas in grassland regions, along the edge of advancing forest vegetation and on rock lake shores. Creeping Juniper has been found on dunes as old as 345 years in lower Michigan.

Numerous wildlife, from big game including mule deer and bighorn sheep to marmot species such as prairie dogs, rely on Creeping Juniper as an important food source. Bird species such as rose-breasted grosbeaks, brown thrashers, black-billed cuckoos and hermit thrushes among others, are found in underbrush areas dominated by Creeping Juniper.

In cultivation, Creeping Juniper is one of the more popular ground covers in the U.S. Its adaptability and resilience in hot, dry, sandy and rocky soils make it a valuable landscaping plant -- an excellent selection for the tough conditions of urban landscapes. There are numerous varieties that exhibit diverse characteristics of texture, color, height, and shape which account for its popularity.

The native range of Creeping Juniper extends across all Canadian provinces. It continues south through New England and across the northern tier of the U.S. west to Wyoming and Montana.

Plant Habit and Form

This coniferous evergreen is prostrate and low-spreading in habit, with trailing branches that reach up to 10-20 feet or more and short, erect stems generally less than 10 inches tall. A mat-forming shrub, it is considered to be slow- to medium-growing with plant size found to be related to site conditions and climate. There are two types of leaves, awl-shaped and scale-like, with color varying from light green to bluish tones. Foliage turns purple in colder months. Glands are present on the undersides of the leaves. The bark is thin, scaly and shedding.

Growing Requirements

Creeping Juniper is hardy in zones 4 to 9. It grows best in fertile, well-drained soils but is more commonly known for growing in sandy, poorly developed soils. Highly adaptable, it tolerates heavy soils, steep north-facing slopes, swamps and exposed situations. Full sun is required.

Flowering and Fruiting

Creeping Juniper is dioecious. Flowers are inconspicuous and the fruit is 2-3 seeded, small, blue berry-like cones found on recurved stalks. Seeds are most likely dispersed by wind and wildlife.

Pests and Diseases

Spider mites and Juniper blight can cause serious problems.

ID Tips

Leaves are pointed, blue-green in summer, and purple in winter. Berries are .25 to .33 inches in diameter. Prostrate growing habit with floppy branches.

FAMILY: CupressaceaeThuja occidentalis (Eastern Arborvitae)

General Information

In the 16th Century, European explorers learned about the medicinal properties for treating scurvy with Eastern Arborvitae foliage from Native Americans. As a result the tree was called arborvitae, meaning “tree of life”. Today, the tree is used widely in the building industry due to its decay resistance. Fencing, log cabins, shingles, boats and canoes are primary commercial uses. Eastern Arborvitae’s essential oils are incorporated in cleaning products and insecticides. In cultivation, the tree is often overused in landscaping plantings for hedges and foundation plants.

The native range of the Eastern Arborvitae extends from southeastern Canada west through Ontario to southeastern Manitoba. It includes central and northern parts of Minnesota eastward all the way to Southern New England, and south through the Appalachian Mountains to eastern Tennessee. Stands of Eastern Arborvitae are important wildlife habitats for white-tailed deer and many bird species across this range.

Plant Habit and Form

The Eastern Arborvitae is pyramidal in shape with a conical crown. Dense, flat, horizontal branches end in fan-shaped sprays of tiny, overlapping, yellowish green scales. When crushed, these scales give off a spicy, aromatic fragrance. Leaves are bright green above and pale green below. The bark is gray to reddish brown, separated into networks of connected ridges and furrows. Eastern Arborvitae grows 40-60 feet tall at maturity, shorter under cultivation (20-30 feet).

Growing Requirements

The Eastern Arborvitae grows in zones 3 to 7. Most often it is found in moist, nutrient-rich soils near streams that are neutral to slightly alkaline. It is also found in swamps or other wet lowland sites where it grows slowly but can reach ages of well over 100 years. One specimen growing in this type of habitat was found in Ontario and dated at over 1,650 years old.

Flowering and Fruiting

The Eastern Arborvitae is a monoecious species with male and female flowers (tiny cone-like bodies) borne on the end of branches. Flowering occurs generally April to May, with pollination in June, and cones ripening August to September. Seed dispersal occurs most frequently in September, occasionally as early as August or as late as October in northern regions. By November, most seeds have been dispersed.

Pests and Diseases

Spider mites, leaf miner, and bagworm are common pests. Winter browsing by deer can be a problem and in some areas snowshoe hares can cause greater damage than deer. Eastern Arborvitae has few serious diseases.

ID Tips

Foliage in flat, horizontal sprays with tiny oblong cones, just 0.3 to 0.5 inches long.

FAMILY: PinaceaePinus Strobus (Eastern White Pine)

General Information

The Eastern White Pine has a long history of being one of the more valuable trees in North America. Prior to the arrival of colonists in the eastern United States, vast stands of Eastern White Pine were common. But by the end of the 19th century a great number of these stands had been logged.

Today Eastern White Pine is used for many wood products including furniture and matches. The seed is consumed by a wide variety of birds such as yellow-bellied sapsuckers, chickadees and pine grosbeak. It’s bark, seeds and foliage are favored by beaver, porcupine, squirrels, white-tailed deer and mice.

In cultivation, the Eastern White Pine makes a fine specimen for parks and large properties. Urban plantings have proven to be especially successful with seeds grown from trees in eastern Canada and the northern New England states. These trees have a darker blue-green color and are more resistant to snowbreak as well as air pollutants. It is also a popular Christmas tree.

The native range of Eastern White Pine extends across Canada from Newfoundland through Quebec, Ontario and into southeastern Manitoba. The range continues south to Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and in the Appalachian Mountains south to Georgia. It can also be found in western Kentucky, Tennessee and Delaware.

Plant Habit and Form

When young, the Eastern White Pine is conical in shape. As trees mature, they lose this shape and take on a soft, graceful appearance with a whorled crown of horizontal and ascending branches. Foliage is bluish green with 3-5 inch soft needles in bundles of 5. The grayish brown bark is broken into small rectangular, scaly, ridged blocks. Eastern White Pine generally grows 50-80 feet tall at maturity, but has been known to grow in excess of 150 feet.

Growing Requirements

Eastern White Pine grows in zones 3 to 7(8). It grows best in moist, fertile, well-drained, slightly acidic soil but has been known to grow better than other trees, like oak for example, on poor soils. It is a long-lived tree reaching 200 years old if left undisturbed and can exceed 450 years. Eastern White Pine prefers sunny locations, although it can tolerate some shade.

Flowering and Fruiting

Eastern White Pine is monoecious. Flowering occurs generally between May and June, with male flowers developing one to two weeks earlier than female flowers. Cones mature usually in August and September, turning yellow-green to light brown when ripe. Most seeds disperse in the following month.

Pests and Diseases

The greatest insect pest is the White Pine weevil which can kill terminal leaders that result in serious stem crooks deforming the tree. Diseases include White Pine blister rust, red ring rot, and root rot.

ID Tips

Soft, flexible, drooping bluish green needles in bundles of 5 with pendant, slightly curved cones 4-8 inches long.