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kaig_gw

Native tree IDs (w/pics, long)

18 years ago

Any input / IDs etc appreciated ;)

My house is in a new (3 years old) subdivision. It borders native woodlands/wetlands. Looking along the side of the house, into the backyard:

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As you can see, lateral "canopy closure" has already occured, that is, in the decidious season my yard borders a green wall.

Towards my neighbors, however, the builder left a small strip of wooded land, but it's for the most part some huge pines, and pretty much looking at naked tree trunks isn't that attractive to me:

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It really doesn't do much of a screening job (not that I really need to, I'm actually on good terms with the neighbors ;) )

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I would like to plant some new trees in there, creating a small natural boundary between the two lots. Now, since I cleared a path into the woodlands and beyond today, I was thinking, why not transplant some of the native plants -- cheap and natural. So I got curious what plants actually grow there, and how appropriate they would be for landscape use (if I could find some shrubs to use in my "regular" landscaping, that is (non-formal) mulched beds, that would be a plus, too).

Tree #1:

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Tree #1 foliage:

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Tree #2 foliage (forgot to take a picture of the whole thing). birch / river birch?

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Tree #3 foliage/trunk. 7 leaflets if I remember correctly. (I have maples, too, as you can see in the lower right corner -- some silver maple, some other like here. red or sugar, I guess)

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Tree #4 (in the foreground, still little).

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Tree #4 foliage (most of the foliage looks much healthier)

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Tree #5 has very large leaves (hard to see from this pic, and this one's still a baby).

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Eastern white pine, I believe (set of 5 needles): I have a lot of these in all kind of sizes, right next what is normally a swamp (it's normally too wet to walk there, except for this year -- I suppose due to lack of rain here...)

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A little white pine. Any chance in transplanting one now? (and up to which size, I have a choice of pretty much anything from 2 ft high to 10 ft high). I basically only have a wheelbarrow to move them, though, so that will rule out large ones.

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Tree #6 got me curious, because it looks much like the little apple trees I planted. No flowers / fruit.

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Tree #6 closeup:

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Tree #6 bark:

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This (#7) looks like Junipers? (And here I was thinking I shouldn't have trouble with apple cedar rust, since noone in the neighborhood has junipers. Didn't count in mother nature...)

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Whereever there is #7, there is also #8 nearby: Blueberries ;) Do they like similar soil / conditions?

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#8 close-up. There are some much smaller shrubs, too. Any chance transplanting some into my yard? (I planted some nursery-bought blueberries, too, but they're still tiny). Should I wait until fall or spring?

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A nice looking tree / shrub (#9). I could imagine this as plant for a planting bed, too?

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#9 close-up:

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Thanks!

Comments (11)

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    1. Carpinus or perhaps Betula but looks like Carpinus stem behind. There is also a Hamamelis mixed in
    2. Betula, maybe B. populifolia
    3. Fraxinus
    4. Populus
    5. Paulownia tomentosa
    6. Pyrus
    7. Juniperus communis
    8. Vaccinium
    9. Elaeagnus

    5, 6 and 9 are growing there as weeds.

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    1. Carpinus virginiana - but might be yellow birch
    2. Betula populifolia - Gray birch
    3. Probably Fraxinus nigra - black ash
    4. Populus tremuloides - Quaking aspen
    5. Tilia americana - Basswood - definitely not Paulownia - leaves are alternate and Paulownia will not survive NH winters
    6. Agreed Pyrus sp.
    agree wit the rest.

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Yes: I see the stems and leaf arrangement of Tilia now.

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I agree with #1 thru #3
    #4 looks like Populus balsamifera (Balsam Poplar) to me.
    #5 I agree, Tilia americana
    #6 Most likely Pyrus calleryana - Callery Pear, which is known to many erroneously as "Bradford Pear" because that's the oldest, best selling cultivar.
    Agree with #7 and #8
    #9 Eleagnus umbellata - Autumn Olive

    #6 and #9 are aggressive exotic invasives which you should consider trying to eradicate, not transplanting.

    Also, I'd say it's tempting to transplant wild growing trees and shrubs and it can be done with care, but more often than not it ends in failure. Many wild established trees and shrubs, even when still young, resent the root disturbance and don't adjust well and end up dying or taking several years to recover. Some species are exceptions though and it doesn't always end that way, but like I said often times it does. Out of the trees and shrubs you listed, I'd think the smaller Blueberries have the best chance at being transplanted and would behave the best in the landscape.

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Thanks for the replies, the ID's gave me a much better idea of what I'm dealing with.

    Unfortunately, I guess the autumn olive is the only shrub that might be useful for a landscaped bed (well, plus the blueberry, i guess), but after reading up on it I see why it's a bad plant. On the other hand, it's so common in the entire area here (I see thousands, some planted purposely for example on campus, many on roadsides etc), that I feel eradicating one or two plants (vs transplanting one) wouldn't really make much of a difference.

    Thanks!

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    On the other hand, it's so common in the entire area here (I see thousands, some planted purposely for example on campus, many on roadsides etc), that I feel eradicating one or two plants (vs transplanting one) wouldn't really make much of a difference.

    Yep, it's hard to convince the average person that he/she can make a difference and that is partly why it keeps being a problem. Too many people are unwilling to say "it stops here".

    I would urge you to reconsider your conclusion. And to even educate others about what you've found out.

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I Agree with all salicaceae said, and kman04 except #4 really is Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) (Not a Balsam Poplar).

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Interesting to me that the candles on your white pines are no less extended there in New Hampshire than they are here in Maryland.

    Are they more a function of day length than temperature, perhaps?

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    tree#1 is a blue beech or otherwise an old ironwood

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    I'd agree with Salicaceae's post above, #1 is Carpinus caroliniana (American Hornbeam), not a beech.

    Resin

  • 18 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Common names for Carpinus caroliniana include

    American hornbeam
    Blue beech
    Water beech
    Ironwood
    Muscle tree