Fringe Tree, Japanese Flowering Apricot, Halesia

Thanks Brenda, I just remembered that I didn't specify deciduous. The mature spread of the trees is a concern too but I'll probably be ready for a change by the time the tree matures enough to affect my current plantings.

Fringe Tree will grow a little more more up than out, so canopy will be minimal over other plants. The native one is pretty, but the fall color of the other one, species retusa, is spectacular, and it blazes gold for an unusually long time, many weeks. Apricot may grow too fast for your purposes. Crape myrtle is always attactive, and I garden around the roots with no issues, although occasionally pulling out baby trees is necessary.

I'd plant a Japanese Maple. There are so many varieties out there of various sizes and most of them are just georgious. Of course, they can be expensive and somewhat slow growing. If you plant one it would be a crime to change it out when it matures so it probably isn't what you are looking for =)
I love the pink magnolias too (aka. tulip tree). Those georgious flowers on bare stems in early spring are just wonderful. Of course there are many things you could pick but that's what I'd do. -Ais.

shari
you said deciduous, i know, but i wanted to show you this small magnolia - evergreen w/long blooming period. i chose this for my front yard where height & spread is an issue.

Here is a link that might be useful: magnolia grandiflora

Cotinus corrigya
Acer buergianum (my fav small maple)
Magnolia virginiana australis (not deciduous, but also doesn't have the heavy large leaves of M. grandiflora. Wonderful fragrance when in bloom)
Halesia carolina (attracts early butterflies and is one of my fav trees. Blooms the same time the Daffs do.)
Styrax japonica 'Pink Chimes' (similar to Halesia, but with pink bell flowers)
Vitex agnus castus (can be a pain to keep in tree form, but oh, when it blooms, it's a knockout)

Some very good suggestions so far. Marsha, thanks for the link to that magnolia. I had not heard of that one before and I had considered a Little Gem for elsewhere in the yard.

Thanks everyone! Any more suggestions?

if you want to move the plant eventually, maybe consider a really big focal point pot so it would be slightly more mobile when you get tired of it. the fact that it's in a pot would bonsai it to a degree, too. you might be able to consider somethings that would get bigger normally becuse of that. since it would be above the ground, you could plant around the base without worrying about its roots.

i second the jap maple suggestion. they do really well in pots, too. one downside- like most maples, they have shallow roots and will suck the dirt around them dry. you can plant at the bases, though. ooh- what about a harry lauder's walking stick? i guess it wouldn't get as big as you want, and i don't know if it could tolerate being planted at the base. a contorted mulberry is another idea. i can't think of many others, off the top. i have very very little full sun, and so have sort of blocked those out of my memory. i know there's some really good small tree books at the lib, though- maybe look through one of those for some additional ideas. or a nursery online that specializes in trees, like forestfarm. best of luck and let us know what you do! tammy

I'm not planning on moving the tree."A change"was referring to the existing sun perennials that might have to be moved in the future if the mature spread of the tree blocks too much light. Right now I have nothing but full sun so I think it will be a long time before that's a problem.

oh- ok. that makes sense. sorry, i totally read it the wrong way. tammy

LOL, yeah I thought you were gonna move/remove the tree when it got mature. Duh, makes sense you would move the plants around. -Ais.

Great small trees:

Edgeworthia chrysantha (Paperbush)- unusual winter-flowering (fragrant!)small tree- 6-8 ft tall.

Cornus angustata (Evergreen Dogwood)- Keeps it's leaves all winter, flowers heavily in early spring, interesting edible red fruits. Would prefer a little afternoon shade, but handles the sun without burning.

As previously mentioned- Chionanthus retusus (Fringe Tree)- an ideal specimen tree.

Prunus mume- (Flowering Apricot)- beautiful winter flowers, fast growing!

Incidentally, all of these are available from David Parks, at Camellia Forest Nursery in Chapel Hill.

Good luck! Karl
Greenville, NC

Vitex...(chasteberry tree) It can stand heavy pruning and it's long blooming period (extended by deadheading)will draw many pollinators to the flowers you plant at its feet.
Not too wet, not too dry location with good sun.
Or, you can plant a contorted filbert (Harry Lauder's Walking Stick) for winter interest. Second thought..don't because they get badly chewed up by Japanese beetles.

If it's a wet spot you're planting on, you could plant a curly willow. It's upright growing and won't cause heavy shade but enough to shield flowers from late afternoon sun.

Vitex is beautiful but watch out for seedlings in your plant beds -- they're famous for that.

I have a special soft spot for the native fringe tree -- I think the habit is more graceful than the Chinese and I have not seen a Chinese fringetree with fall color, so they don't all have it. The native fringetree flowers can be wonderfully fragrant, like coconut, but not all are. And they can be hard to find. I was a sucker and bought one at the Botanical Garden that's less than 6" high -- it will probably take 4 years at least to bloom, but it's better than nothing. I have 2 fringetrees already on my property, but they are probably males (no fruits yet), and fringetee is impossible to grow from cuttings. They're wild volunteers growing at the edge of fields.

I have always wanted one of the native Fringe Trees. I hear they are slow growing though. Niche gardens has gallon sized ones for a reasonable price and Cam Forest has large pick up only ones for fifty bucks. Anyone know of another good source?

Lots of good ones above. Halesia and Styrax are high on my list.

For your needs also consider Oxydendrum arboreum (Sourwood), Magnolia liliiflora (a small deciduous magnolia), and x Chitalpa tashkentensis.

Here are a couple more magnolia ideas (I think the second one is the one Ais is referring to above):

Magnolia stellata (Star Magnolia) - gorgeous white star-shaped flowers before the leaves on in the spring (the term for this is precocious), this is actually the earliest deciduous magnolia to flower around here, followed by the next one in my list....

Magnolia x soulangeana (Saucer Magnolia) - this one has the beautiful pink flowers (also flowering before the leaves in the spring) - this one might get bigger than you want since they eventually get to be about 30 feet tall and a similar spread

Also, consider Pseudocydonia sinensis (Chinese quince). The exfoliating bark is really attractive, and I think this is overall a nice looking tree.

The fringe tree Brenda mentioned above (not the native one) is Chionanthus retusus (Chinese fringetree).

Cercis canadensis (Eastern redbud) might also work.

Cotinus coggyria (smoke tree) is pretty, but might be too full looking for your space.

And there are quite a few lovely Japanese maples you could consider.

~Angie

I actually have 2 Japanese maples- bought from Lowes as just 'atropurpureum'- look like Bloodgood, and a Eastern redbud that I have been growing in large tree pots for a few years now. I have been planning on planting one of the JM in the foreground of this bed. I may end up planting the redbud in the bed just for ease of planting because it really needs to go in the ground this year.

I have posted this questions on another forum and Witch Hazel has been suggested. Anyone growing Witch Hazel in allday sun here in the Carolinas?

Shari

I have a Jelena (H. x intermedia) seedling growing in full sun. The American species are understory trees and while they can grow in full sun they look best as part of a mixed planting; the Asian species are showier. H. x intermedia (japonica x mollis) is the one most commonly available commercially. The Arboretum in Raleigh used to have the most beautiful "Feuerzuber" ("Fire Charm") near the old white garden entrance. It had beautiful red fall color. Witchhazels can have two issues: 1). if they are grafted, which most are, they can start suckering from the rootstock, which I think is usually H. virginiana and 2). on many cultivars, the old leaves hang on, obscuring the flowers. Dirr has a chart showing leaf retention but it was only from one observation. I remember that the Fire Charm, Arnold's Promise and one of the Jelenas at the Arboretum did not keep their leaves, but I'm not sure the leaves on the Jelena are not removed by hand. If you are in an open windswept place the leaf retention may not be a problem. They are very charming trees.

I have 1 of the Chionanthus virginica and 2 of the retusa, and I do love the retusa for long-lasting fall color - bright gold like gingko - mine all came from that garden center on Old Apex in Cary. Maybe there are different clones with different fall characteristics - since Alicia's tree doesn't have the color. Here's what Raulston says about it:
"Chionanthus retusus. The Chinese fringetree is a small deciduous tree which may reach 25' in height with glossy, dark green leaves which are handsome throughout the season. The pure white flowers appear in early summer and transform the tree into a solid mass of white. Hardy to zone 5. Native to China, Japan, and Korea and long in cultivation in the west (1845) but has never achieved widespread popularity due to propagation difficulties. The seed exhibits double dormancy and is difficult to germinate. The plant can be rooted in low to medium percentages (our trials usually run 20-50%) with semi-hardwood cuttings under mist in summer. Juvenile cuttings from young seedlings will root easiest and once a ready rooting population is established a stock block could be established to annually shear to the ground to maintain juvenility. Once rooted, cuttings have difficulty in becoming properly shaped plants with a tendency toward shrub rather than tree form. Stubbing a 2-4 year old plant to the ground and pruning the basal sprouts to a single stem as they emerge may speed the development of a tree form plant."

I got one cutting in 6 to root last year, not great, but I'm presently trying the callous first method. Mine do grow somewhat shrubby, so I'm also having some luck with layering.

I'm linking to a great discussion on underused trees on southern forum.

Alicia, I too loved that huge witch hazel at the old white entrance to the Arboretum. I was told that by the staff that it was Ruby Glow, synonomous with Fire Charm - do you happen to know if that's really the case? It's a shame they took that mature tree down - it was spectacular this time of year.

Here is a link that might be useful: Other Thread

Brenda,
You're right, that witchhazel was labelled "Ruby Glow". Dirr says they are different (and that "Fire Charm" is better), but I'd wait until the next edition to be sure. At any rate, that witchhazel had red flowers, beautiful red fall color, and a lovely shape.

It's great to hear that the garden center on Old Apex in Cary carries those trees.

The Johnston co master gardeners are having a tree & shrubs sale. They have Halesia 3gal for 19.00 and Chinese redbud 14.00 for same size. The Halesia would eventually be too big for this spot(I still want one though). Opinions on the Chinese redbud?

The Chinese redbud I have seen look more like large bushes than trees; the flowers are more of a pink than the pink/purple of Eastern Redbud if I remember correctly.

Hey Shari, When and where is the sale?!?

Here's the link.

Here is a link that might be useful: JC Master Gardeners' Tree sale

I'm not sure why that link didn't work.

Brenda, I forwarded my email notification to you.

Chinese Redbud
Small, multi-trunked tree whose limbs are covered with rosy-lavender blossoms in spring.
Light: full sun
Moisture: tolerate of most moisture levels
Drought Tolerant: yes
Soil: must be well-drained
Habit: deciduous
Size: H. 8-12 ft., W. 6-10 ft.
Form: multi trunked, open, wide, irregular
Growth Rate: Moderate
Special Interest: The heart-shaped leaves are thicker than the Eastern redbudÂs. Blossoms are larger than our native redbuds and grow directly on the branches creating the effect of wands of color.
Fact sheet: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/trees-new/cercis_chinensis.html

For those of you who would like to order here's a link to the Johnston co newsletter. You can email the MGs to request an order form.

Here is a link that might be useful: Feb 06 Gardners' Dirt

that's a nice newsletter, by the way. i just subscribed. thanks, shari :)

Shari, I saw a Magnolia 'Ann' at the Riverbanks Zoo yesterday. Gorgeous, deciduous and frangrant for an added bonus!

From this link....
http://schandg.com/gardening/plants/magnolia-ann.html
A: Magnolia 'Ann' was bred at the U.S. National Arboretum. She is a hybrid selection of the lily magnolia and the star magnolia. She is usually multi-stemmed and shrubby, but can also be grown as a small 8-10 foot tree. She blooms a couple of weeks later than the Japanese magnolia (Magnolia soulangeana) which is sometimes called a tulip tree. M. Ann is deciduous, has cup shaped reddish-purple flowers, and looks very similar to the Japanese magnolia.

..... better pics at these links.......

http://www.waverlyfarm.com/catalog-plant.html?code=MGNHBAN

Here is a link that might be useful: Magnolia 'Ann'

WOW! incredible. i love wandering aound jcra to see all the magnolias blooming & pick favorites. wish i had more space & sun to have one.

i just emailed to see if there are any halesias left. maybe i'll get lucky. tam

That is a beautiful magnolia. I'm not particularly fond of the common M.x soulangiana but I like that one.

So, everybody snapping up those Halesias? I decided not to order one. This thread and one I've posted on another forum have made it very clear to me that I don't have enough space for everything I want. I don't think I have the best conditions for Halesia. Still haven't decided what's going in the perennial bed.

Shari

did a bit more research and am thinking twice. for one thing, my soil is decent, but fairly clayish, and is not what i'd call well drained. and those buggers get big!! 80' was mentioned in one spot. will have to think long & hard and see if i can figure out a place. the person i emailed had this to say about deadlines: 'The orders are due in by March 24 and the pick up date will be April 1.' tam

Is this Halesia carolina (tetraptera)? Does get a lot bigger than I realized! (40-50'), but H. diptera only gets 20-25' typicaly and would make a nice understory tree.

yes, that info was for carolina. i guess i should double ck that what they are offering is carolina rather than diptera(you know what happens when you assume something). diptera has nicer flowers anyhow. but i still have the same problem with soil- what i have that's moist isn't really well drained, and what i have that's well drained tends to be dry. the tree would be used as understory, so that would work- and that size is about what i'd had in mind in the first place. i do some cking. thanks, alicia. tammy

I would vote for a coral bark Japanese maple....thecolor of the bark on a cold winter day is absolutely spectacular and provides a lot of interest in the garden! Mine is planted where you can see nandinas with bright red berries in the background and it makes a pretty picture.

I'm always looking for excuses to plant more Japanese maples. That would be my choice.

Don't plant a crepe myrtle. I've learned the hard way about that, as their roots will compete vigorously with your perennials. That will probably be your biggest potential problem with planting a tree in your bed, and that's another reason why a Japanese maple might do the trick -- particularly some of the smaller growing varieties.

Wow, these are some great prices on primo trees from the Johnston County Master Gardeners!

Here is a link that might be useful: Tree Sale