Sunday, June 12, 2016

A Dozen Evergreen Trees for Small Gardens

Strawberry Tree flowers and fruit
1. Arbutus unedo 'Compacta' - Compact strawberry tree
Size: 8' tall by 8' wide
Comments: Related to our native madrone tree; peeling, reddish bark; dark green foliage; clusters of white, bell-shaped flowers in spring; red fruit in fall resembling strawberries
2. Chamaecyparis nootkatensis 'Pendula' - Weeping Alaska cedar
Size: to 20' tall; width variable
Comments: Choose carefully to get the tree shape you want; some are pencil-shaped, others spread 6- 8' wide; yellow-green foliage; weeping habit; Northwest native tree
3. Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Gracilis' - Slender Hinoki cypress
Size: to 20' tall x 5-6' wide
Comments: There are several types of Hinoki cypress, all beautiful, small trees that work well in urban gardens; dark green flat sprays of foliage with nodding tips; some varieties have gold edged new foliage; slow growing
4. Cryptomeria japonica 'Elegans Compacta' - Plume cedar
Size: to 15' tall
Comments: 'Elegans Compacta' is much smaller than the species; grey-green foliage turns coppery-red or purple in cold weather
5. Cupressus sempervirens - Italian cypress
Size: 25' tall x 3' wide
Comments: 'Glauca' - blue Italian cypress has bluish foliage; 'Stricta' is green, also very narrow. These are classic Mediterranean garden trees; great accents
6. Garrya eliptica 'Issaquahensis' - Coast silk tassel
Size: 10' tall to 20' wide
Comments: Northwest native tree; hard to find but well worth the search; 10" long catkins in winter, very striking
7. Laurus nobilis - Sweet bay
Size: 12' - 20' tall and wide, depending on conditions
Comments: Once this tree gets going, you'll have all the bay leaves you'll ever need for cooking; upright, column-shaped tree with aromatic leaves; good in containers
8. Magnolia 'Little Gem' 
Size: up to 20' tall x 8' wide
Comments: Column shape; glossy green leaves with brown, felty undersides; creamy white flowers in summer
9. Pinus contorta contorta- Shore pine
Size: 20-30' tall and wide
Comments: Northwest native tree; open growth habit; takes sea coast conditions well, gets its name "contorta" because of the shape these trees take in the winds off the water; tolerates salt spray
10. Pinus flexuosa 'Vanderwolf' - Vanderwolf pine
Size: 18'+ tall x 6-8' wide
Comments: Dense, pyramidal shape, blue-green foliage
11. Pinus strobus 'Nana' - Dwarf white pine
Size: to 7' tall x 5' wide
Comments: Very slow growing; long needles with bluish cast; graceful; may have weeping habit
12. Tsuga mertensiana - Mountain hemlock
Size: 20 ' tall x 8-10' wide
Comments: Graceful, layered growth habit; blue green foliage; very slow growing; native to high mountains from Alaska to the Sierras in California; does best with some protection from hot western sun exposure