LET's TALK TREES
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ABINGTON TOWNSHIP Shade Tree Commission LET’s TALK TREES List of Recommended Trees and Shrubs for Homeowners (updated 9-19-14) The Abington Township Shade Tree Commission recommends that homeowners plant trees and shrubs that perform well in our area. The growth rates and size at maturity will vary depending planting location, soil type and other environmental factors. To see photographs of the recommended trees and shrubs, and to learn more about their habits and required care, please visit the following websites: Virginia Tech Tree Fact Sheets and Apps: http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/ Common Trees of Pennsylvania: http://dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/plants/commontrees/index.htm Landscaping with Native Plants: http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/cs/groups/public/documents/document/dcnr_003304.pdf To read further about tree selection and placement, please visit the following web sites: Vermont Tree Selection Guide: http://www.vtfpr.org/urban/documents/vttree%20guide.pdf Selecting Landscape Plants: Shade Trees: http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-610/426-610_pdf.pdf Selecting Landscape Plants: Flowering Trees: http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-611/426-611_pdf.pdf Trees for Overhead Utility Easements: http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/430/430-029/430-029_pdf.pdf Trees for Problem Landscape Sites- wet and dry sites: http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/430/430-026/430-026_pdf.pdf LARGE TREES GROWTH FALL WILDLIFE NAME SIZE LIGHT SOIL RATE COLOR BENEFIT 40-60H x Medium to Fast Sun - Part Food Source - Fruits Red Maple Moist Yes 40-60W 10-12' in 5-7 years Shade and Young Shoots Sugar Maple 60-75H x Sun - Part Food Source - Seeds Slow Well Drained Yes (Acer saccharum) 40-50W Shade and Twigs Burr Oak 70-80H x Slow 15-20' Food Source - Acorns Full Sun Wet/Dry (Quercus macrocarpa) 70-80W over 20 years and Twigs Chestnut Oak 60-70H x Medium to Fast Sun - Partial Well Drained Food Source - Acorns Yes (Quercus prinus) 60-70W 12-15' over 7-10 years Shade Drought Tolerant and Twigs Page 1 Saw Tooth Oak 35-45H x Medium Food Source - Acorns Sun Well Drained (Quercus acutissima) 35-45W 16 ' in 32 years and Twigs Swamp White Oak 50-60H x Slow to Medium Sun - Partial Drought Food Source - Acorns Yes (Quercus bicolor) 50-60W 12-15' over 10-12 years Shade Tolerant and Twigs Willow Oak 40-60H x Medium Food Source - Acorns Full Sun Wet-Dry (Quercus phellos) 30-40W 1-2' per year and Twigs American Linden 60-80H x Medium Sun - Partial Moist, Food Source - Twigs, (Tilia americana) 40-60W 20-30' over 30 years Shade Well Drained Seeds and Nectar Silver Linden 50-70H x Medium Moist, Food Source - Twigs, Full Sun (Tilia tomentosa) 30-50W 10-15' over 5-10 years Well Drained Seeds and Nectar American Beech 75-100H x Slow 9-12' Moist, Shade Tolerant Yes Food Source - Nuts (Fagus grandifolia) 75-100W over 10 years Well Drained Sweetgum 60-75H x Medium to Fast Moist, (Liquidambar styraciflua Full Sun Yes Food Source - Seeds 40-59W 20' over 20 years Well Drained - Rotundiloba) Cucumber Magnolia 50-80H x Medium to Fast Full Sun - Partial Moist, Food Source - Seeds (Magnolia acuminate) 50-80W 10-15' over 6 years Shade Well Drained American Elm Hybrids 60-80H x Medium to Fast Food Source - Seeds Sun Moist - Dry Yes (Ulmus americana) 30-50W 10-12' over 5 years and Twigs Sycamore 75-100H x Medium to Fast Full Sun - Light (Platanus occidentalis, Moist 75-100W 2' per year Shade Platanus x acerifolia) Bald Cypress 50-70H x Medium Full Sun Wet-Dry Yes (Taxodium distichum) 20-30W 50-70' over 30-50 years Dawn Redwood 70-100H x Fast 50' Full Sun Wet-Dry Yes (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) 25W over 15-20 years Food Source - Fruits Hackberry 40-60H x Medium to Fast Sun Wet-Dry and Twigs; Shelter (Celtis occidentalis) 40-60W 20-30' over 10-15 years and Nesting Sites MEDIUM - SMALL TREES GROWTH FALL WILDLIFE NAME SIZE LIGHT SOIL RATE COLOR BENEFIT Sassafras 30-60H x Medium to Fast Full Sun - Moist, Well Food Source - Twigs Yes (Sassafras albidum) 25-40W 10-12' over 5-8 years Light Shade Drained and Fruit River Birch 40-70H x Medium to Fast Food Source - Buds, Sun Moist (Betula nigra) 40-46W 30-40' over 20 years Seeds, Leaves and Twigs American Hornbeam 20-30H x Slow 8-10' Food Source - Buds, Sun - Shade Wet-Dry Yes (Carpinus caroliniana) 20-30W over 10 years Seeds, Leaves and Twigs European Hornbeam 40-60H x Slow to Medium Sun - Food Source - Catkins, Buds, Well Drained (Carpinus betula) 30-40W 10' over 10 years Light Shade Seeds, Leaves and Twigs Page 2 American Hophornbeam, 25-40H x Slow 10'-15' Full Sun - Well Drained Food Source - Buds, Ironwood 20-30W over 15 years Shade Dry Catkins and Seeds (Ostrya virginiana) Tartarian Maple 15-20H x Slow to Full Sun - Drought Variable (Acer tataricum) 15-20W Medium Light Shade Tolerant Amur Maple 15-18H x Slow 12-20' Full Sun - Moist, Well Variable (Acer ginnala) 15-18W over 10-20 years Light Shade Drained Hedge Maple 25-45H x Slow 10-14' Full Sun - Wet-Dry Variable (Acer campestre) 25-45W over 10 -15 years Light Shade Trident Maple 20-25H x Slow to Drought Full Sun Yes (Acer buergeranum) 20-25W Medium Tolerant Paperbark Maple 20-30H x Slow 6-12" Moist, Well Full Sun Variable (Acer griseum) 10-15W over 10-15 years Drained Japanese Pagoda Tree (Sophora japonica) FLOWERING TREES GROWTH FALL WILDLIFE NAME SIZE LIGHT SOIL RATE COLOR BENEFIT Serviceberry, Shadbush Medium 9-10 Sun - Moist, Well Food Source - Fruits, (Amelanchier canadensis/ 15-25 H Yes over 5-8 years Partial Shade Drained Twigs and Leaves laevis, arborea) Sweetbay Magnolia 10-20H x Medium Sun - Moist (Magnolia virginiana) 10-20W to Fast Partial Shade Cockspur Hawthorn 20-30H x Slow to Medium Sun Well Drained Yes (Craetagus crusgalli) 20-35W 10-14' over 6-10 years Moist, Well Food Source - Seeds, Eastern Redbud 20-30H x Medium Full Sun - Drained - Foliage and Flower Pollen (Cercis canadensis) 25-35W 7-10 over 5-6 years Light Shade Adaptable for Honeybees Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida) Slow after planting, Pagoda Dogwood 15-25H x Partial Moist, Well Medium when Food Source - Fruit (Cornus alternifolia) 20-30W Shade Drained established Cornelian Cherry Dogwood 20-25H x Sun - Moist, Well Medium Food Source - Fruit (Cornus mas) 15-20W Partial Shade Drained/Dry Japanese Dogwood 20-30H x Moist, Well Slow Sun Yes Food Source - Fruit (Cornus kousa) 20-30W Drained/Dry Flowering Crabapple 15-25H x Moist, Well (Malus Slow Sun Yes Food Source - Fruit 25-30W Drained Numerous Cultivars) Japanese Stewartia 20-40H x Slow Sun Moist Yes (Stewartia pseudocamila) 10-15W Japanese Snowbell 20-30H x Medium 9-10' Full Sun - Moist, Well (Styrax japonica) 20-30W over 7-10 years Partial Shade Drained Page 3 Tree Lilac 20-30H x Medium 9-12' Full Sun Well Drained (Syringa reticulata) 15-25W over 6-8 years Sargent Cherry 20-30H x Full Sun Well Drained Yes Food Source - Fruit (Prunus sargentii) 20-30W EVERGREEN TREES GROWTH FALL WILDLIFE NAME SIZE LIGHT SOIL RATE COLOR BENEFIT Well Drained - Eastern Redcedar 40-50H x Medium Sun Tolerant of (Juniperus virginiana) 8-20W Adverse Conditions Fraser Fir 30-40H x Sun - Moist, Well Slow (Abies fraseri) 20-25W Partial Shade Drained Japanese Cryptomeria 50-60H x Medium 50-60' Moist, Well (Cryptomeria Full Sun 20-30W over 30-40 years Drained japonica) American Holly 40-50H x Full Sun - Well Slow Food Source - Fruit (Ilex opaca) 18-40W Partial Shade Drained Nelly Stevens Holly (Ilex ‘Nelly R. Stevens’) Swiss Stone Pine 30-40H x Well Medium Full Sun Food Source - Seeds (Pinus cembra) 15-25W Drained Lacebark Pine 30-50H x Well Slow Sun Food Source - Seeds (Pinus bungeana) 20-35W Drained SHRUBS It may be desirable to plant a shrub instead of a tree, for example, where there are utility wires or other space limitations. The following native shrubs are good choices for homeowners. UPLAND SHRUB SPECIES (drier conditions) RIPARIAN SHRUB SPECIES (wetter conditions) Witch hazel Hamamelis virginiana Smooth alder Alnus serrulata Mapleleaf viburnum Viburnum acerifolium Red chokeberry Aronia arbutifolia Arrow-wood Viburnum dentatum Black chokeberry Aronia melanocarpa Blackhaw Viburnum prunifolium Buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis Nannyberry Viburnum lentago Red-osier dogwood Cornus stolonifera Cranberrybush viburnum Viburnum trilobum Silky dogwood Cornus amomum Winterberry Ilex verticillata Spicebush Lindera benzoin Ninebark Physocarpus opulifolius Black willow Salix nigra Nannyberry Viburnum lentago Page 4 .