Quote:
Originally Posted by Shelley Kunkel
We need to plant trees at our business. I'd like your help in deciding which ones to plant.
These are the trees I can pick to replace the Chestnut Oak:
Trident Maple
Swamp Chestnut Oak
Scarlet Oak (but I don't want this one)
White Oak
Willow Oak (It's a maybe)
Yellow Poplar aka Tulip tree, Canoewood, Saddle Leaf & White Wood
Sweetgum (but I don't want this one)
Blackgum aka Black Tupelo
Chinese Elm
Cryptomeria
Dawn Redwood
Ginko
Japanese Zelkova
Pistachio (it's a maybe)
Live Oak (it's a maybe)
Green Ash aka Red Ash
White Ash
American Beech
Eastern Red Cedar
Bald Cypress
Southern Magnolia (too fragrant for me)
Florida Maple
Sugar Maple
Northern Red Oak
Nuttall Oak
Pin Oak
Shumard Oak and
Southern Red Oak
Which do you recommend & why?
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Shelley - I would not choose the Live Oak because it tends to really spread over the years. They get HUGE and the branches are very long. They provide great shade, but if it is close to your building, it will possibly encroach on it.
The maples are fast-growing, and as such are apt to split and fall over easily when they are full-grown.
I'd look at the Cedar or the Cypress. They are both evergreens, will look nice in winter as well as summer, and don't "shed" very much.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shelley Kunkel
These are the trees I have to choose from to replace the American Holly:
Sassafras
Chinese Fringetree
Golden Raintree
Japanese Dogwood
Japanese Maple
Callery Pear
Chinese Evergreen Oak
Foster Holly
Savannah Holly
Sawtooth Oak
Sand Hickory
Black Cherry
Pond Cypress
American Elm
Slippery Elm
Winged Elm
Mockernut Hickory and
Pignut Hickory
I haven't researched all of them yet.
But you opinion of these will be greatly appreciated.
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The Japanese Dogwood and Japanese Maple are both lovely. The Japanese Maple comes in both a shrubby form and an "upright" form. But they are all deciduous and will lose leaves in the fall. The Dogwoods are all deciduous, and will give nice color, but will shed their leaves in the late fall.
The hickories are all nut trees, and they drop big nuts in the fall.
The Savannah Holly is still a holly. It does not shed leaves very much, but it has thorns.
Sassafras is very fragrant when leaves are bruised or branches are broken. It, too, however, is deciduous and will lose it's leaves in the winter. It also will spread by suckering of the roots, so you could end up with a "forest" of sassafras if you don't nip the suckers as they come up.
The Chinese fringe tree is deciduous but has lovely white "fringey" flowers, and the Golden Raintree is also deciduous but is generally only 20 ft tall at maturity and only had a 20' spread. It has gorgeous yellow flowers, and has pretty colorful autumn foliage.
The ginko is interesting. Although it does shed leaves in the late fall, they tend to all fall off within 2-3 days of each other, so that cleaning up is not a week after week after week affair. The female trees stink, so you almost never see a female ginko, only the males.
Chinese evergreen oak is evergreen, and grows to 20' - 30' high with a 20' - 30' spread.
The elms all shed vociferously in the fall. I think of the choices you have, you might consider the Chinese evergreen oak seriously.
Cheerio!
Elizabeth
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~*~ I believe that a scientist looking at nonscientific problems is just as dumb as the next guy. ~*~
~*~ Richard P. Feynman ~*~
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