Trees 49 Ideabooks

Growing citrus trees is incredibly rewarding, especially when you bite into a delicious slice of sweet, tangy fruit. Maybe oranges are your favorite... more »

Forests, whether Tolkien's Lothlórien or the woods behind the schoolyard, hold a magic unequaled. They envelop amicably, protect from view and shelter from heat. Forests reveal themselves only gradually: The prospect of a new sight past the next group... more »

Pinyon pines, also known as pinion or piñon, are a group of small evergreens native to the dry, upland plains and foothills of the American Southwest, the intermountain regions of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and northern Mexico. Pinyons... more »

A specimen tree that's unique and attractive, and offers year-round interest, makes sense in a garden; it's useful, hardworking and will perform season after season. Saucer magnolia (Magnolia x soulangeana) performs most notably in one season... more »

Whether you are looking for a well-behaved, smaller-size ornamental tree, wish to add some height to a native planting area, want to inject some great fall color and winter interest into your garden or just love something different, the Pacific Northwest... more »

River birch (Betula nigra) is a one of the best trees for year-round interest. With its multicolored papery bark that peels away from the trunk, this North American native species is a great choice for a driveway entrance, backyard habitat or woodland... more »

Among the coastal shrubs and wild chaparral that call the mountainous coast of California and Oregon home, the pendulous catkins of coast silktassel (Garrya elliptica) are a prize. While most plants sleep through winter, coast silktassel comes... more »

It seems there's no end to big, bad and ugly weather events. When big storms hit with wet snow, heavy rains or gale-force winds, trees suffer. Mature trees are susceptible for any number of reasons, and when an old tree gets irreparably damaged, the loss... more »

Not many plants boast a better guise without their leaves, and Harry Lauder's Walking Stick (Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’) is probably the most distinct of them. Named for a connoisseur of unusual walking sticks, this contorted specimen shines... more »

In late fall or early winter a leafless persimmon tree, branches bending under the weight of dozens (hundreds?) of gleaming orange fruits, looks like something out of an ancient Japanese brush painting. Before the fruit display, or along with it,... more »

This is the most familiar and beloved California oak — the tree that cities and high schools are named for. A big live oak is a tree to treasure, protect and build a landscape around; it will dictate the microclimate of your garden, overseeing... more »

This is a very reliable tree with one true gift — sort of a Susan Boyle of the arboreal world. That gift is brilliant fall color: orange, red, sometimes yellow. For most of the year, Chinese pistache is so understated and well behaved (no messy... more »

My daughter planted Arbutus ‘Marina' in her Mediterranean-style courtyard, because it reminds her of madrone trees at summer camp. Every time I see her tree, I think of carving a seventh-grade girl’s initials on a madrone trunk while on a... more »

Winter is often thought of as the time of year to escape the harsh elements and head indoors to get cozy. Most plants are dormant, and the garden is a much more subdued place than in the spring and summer, when there's all that vibrant and budding color.... more »