There are plenty of terrific trees—in all sizes—for your yardscapes

One of my friends, a fellow ardent gardener, likes to say, “the best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The next best time is today.” I can’t argue with that logic. The trees I planted when I arrived at my new home eight years ago are well established now, and those I’ve added since then—I can’t help myself—are also doing very nicely. Granted, none of them are going to be huge shade trees in my lifetime, and that’s fine with me. I didn’t plant them for that reason. Most of them have many charming traits—they flower, or have spectacular fall colour, or are unique in some way such as being very ancient and the only species in their genus.

Take a drive through any subdivision or down a main street in many cities and towns, and you’ll see a number of the same tree species planted everywhere: maples, many of them the invasive and, well, ugly Norway maples; flowering crab-apples which look fabulous for about a week until their fruit forms later; spruce trees, including the lovely-if-cared-for blue spruces; other non-descript conifers like globe ‘cedars’, yews, dwarf Alberta spruce…. Now, let me be clear—there is absolutely nothing wrong with these trees and shrubs—well, except for the Norway maples! But there are so very many fabulous trees out there that you can plan to add for a more colourful future.

            

Location, location

When looking at adding a tree or three to your garden, consider what size it will be at maturity. You don’t want to plant a linden, that can reach 130 feet tall at maturity, near your house; nor do you want to deal with pruning around telephone or power lines. If you’re a rural dweller, you may have many more options for planting larger tree species, but again, you don’t want to plant too close to your house, or near your septic field or power lines.

Happily, there are many dwarf and smaller species of trees that have been developed for suburban and urban yardscapes. One of my favourite trees is the ginkgo, Ginkgo biloba, which is the sole surviving species of a genus that has been around for some 270 million years. Ginkgos are much desired as street trees because they are tough as well as gorgeous—but they can be very slow growing and get to quite a size. However, last year I found a dwarf variety, ‘Jade Butterfly’, which will be only 15 feet tall and maybe ten feet wide at maturity. That tree promptly found a home in my yard and is flourishing!

Any reputable nursery will provide details on a tree’s growth rate, height at maturity, hardiness and growing requirements; and such nurseries will also have knowledgeable staff on hand to help you choose your perfect tree.

a large, mature magnolia

How to plant a tree

We often say that if you can get a shovel in the ground, you can plant something, and this is true for trees as well—although how you purchase your tree will affect how you plant it.

Bare root trees are usually only available in late autumn through to spring, when the tree itself is dormant, and in the case of deciduous species, without leaves. These need to go into the ground as soon as possible, and because they are bareroot, they tend to settle in and establish more quickly than does a potted tree.

Container-grown trees have advantages in that they can be planted at any time (that the ground isn’t frozen solid, of course!) because their roots are protected by the potting mixture they’re growing in. So long as you water the tree faithfully until such time as you’re ready to plant it, it should do fine in its container. (Don’t try this at home—but some years back I had a tree that I didn’t get into the ground before freeze up, and it spent the winter outside, in its container, and did just fine when I planted it.)

Whether planting bareroot or container-grown trees, dig a hole that is twice as wide but basically the same depth as the size of the root ball or mass of your tree. Remove the tree from its container and gently loosen the root ball. You may need to do what we call “scuffing up the roots” which is to cut a few of the roots with a sharp knife, especially if the plant has been in a container for a while and is rootbound. This won’t hurt the tree—it’ll trigger new growth in the roots which will expand outward and not grow in a ball.

Once the tree is positioned in the hole, backfill in with soil—the same type as you dug out, not potting mixtures—and tamp down gently to remove any air pockets. Water thoroughly, and if necessary, push the soil down a little around the trunk so that water runs towards the tree’s roots, and not away from the hole. Mulch your new tree with a good two inches of mulch, to help protect its roots from excess heat or cold, and to help retain moisture in the soil while also preventing weed growth.

Some people provide a stake to help the tree grow straight for its first year or two. This is fine but after a couple of years remove it and any guide wires, so the tree strengthens on its own. You can put mouse guards around the trunks of young trees to prevent damage from chewing rodents, but the most important thing to remember is to water your new tree faithfully—deeply, several times a week in normal spring and summer, and even daily in dry weather. The trick is to water well, not often—give the soil around the tree a thorough soaking and then check the next day to see if it is still moist. More trees are lost to underwatering during the first few years of their life in a new yard than to pests or diseases.

 

So many choices

Many of our deciduous trees have very attractive flowers, fruit and good autumn colour. Here is a handful of choices.

Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis) is an eastern North America native species, highly tolerant of most soil conditions. It produces stunning magenta or white flowers before leafing out with heart-shaped foliage that turns gold in autumn.

Magnolia trees are surprisingly hardy in our climate, depending on your choice of species. Flowers may be white, pink, purple or yellow and some are highly fragrant.

Flowering dogwood (Cornus kousa) These showy beauties have pink, red or white flowers, which last for many weeks before producing fleshy fruit beloved by birds. Several choices offer variegated foliage in gold and green or cream, pink and green.

Ivory Silk lilac tree (Syringa reticulata ‘Ivory Silk’) is a tough lilac species that grows to a maximum of 20 feet and covers itself in huge, fragrant ivory-coloured flowers. Salt tolerant and deer resistant, it is popular in street plantings. 

Fringe tree (Chionanthes) has cascades of fragrant white flowers in late spring. Hardy to zone 4, and growing to about 20 feet at maturity, it should be much more popular than it is.

Seven Sons tree (Heptacodium) is another under-utilized small ornamental tree. It produces its fragrant white flowers in September, unlike most of its fellow trees, and these turn into showy reddish-purple fruit which last well into autumn.

Linden or lime tree (Tilia) is a tree that needs space to grow, but it is one of the absolute best for pollinators. Its sweetly scented flowers are a bee magnet. Popular as a street tree, linden is a tough and tolerant shade specimen.

Tulip tree (Liriodendron) is another rapid-growing tree that can eventually reach 60 feet or more. It has large, fascinating leaves that turn gold in autumn, and beautiful, unique green and orange flowers.

The elegant Japanese katsura-tree (Cercidiphyllum) boasts heart-shaped foliage and excellent fall colour. It’s a fast-growing species that can reach 50 feet tall at maturity.

Ginkgo biloba is a unique and ancient species with striking and easily recognized twin-lobed leaves. Often used as a street tree because of its toughness and handsome fall colour, the main species can get quite large; however, there are dwarf and semi-dwarf choices available, too.

Shadbush, serviceberry or chuckly-pear (Amelanchier) is native to North America and one of the first showy trees to flower in the wild, with sparkling white flowers which turn to very tasty fruit—if the birds don’t get them first. Serviceberry has excellent fall colour too and is highly tolerant of most growing conditions.

Among my personal favourite evergreen trees are the weeping false-cypresses (Chamaecyparis ssp.) with their elegant, drooping branches and blue-green or green and gold variegated foliage. Otherwise, my fondness for evergreens tends towards the groundcover or dwarf varieties that won’t grow big, but add colour and texture to the garden. ‘Gold Cone’ juniper grows to about 5 feet tall and has feathery gold-green foliage; there are dozens of dwarf blue spruce varieties available, and many choices for thujas (“cedars”) and other species that won’t get huge. The only eventually-large evergreens in my yard are the deciduous conifer dawn redwood (Metasequoia) and the ancient and unique Thujopsis, or hiba arborvitae.