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January 22, 2014

Small Trees for Small Spaces

 

For the past few weeks I’ve been giving you some deciduous and coniferous tree species to think about adding to your yard if you have the space to accommodate them. All of the trees we’ve already discussed are large, spacious trees that need room to grow and expand, sometimes up to 60m tall. And that’s not even going into the root system that necessarily accompanies such a large tree to hold it in place.

To all you urbanites, don’t think I’ve forgotten about you. This week, I’m happy to share ten great small trees and shrubs that don’t grow to such great heights as the previously mentioned species. Again, I’m using this Hardiness Map to give you an idea of where it will grow but for specific ranges, delve a little further into specific information for your area.

I’ve arranged these trees by height starting with the smallest.

Tree Name

Native Range

Preferred Growing Conditions

Growth Habits

Highbush Cranberry Across Canada in Zones 2a – 7b Soil: medium to moist but can stand mildly droughty conditions

Light: Sun and partial shade

Height: to 4m

Trunk Diameter: 12cm

Crown: shrubby round bush; dense leaves

Witch-hazel Ontario eastward to Nova Scotia, Zones 5a – 7a Soil: cool, moist, acidic

Light: full sun to partial shade

Height: 8m

Trunk Diameter: 15cm

Crown: light, open, airy

Choke Cherry From BC to Newfoundland in Zones 0a – 8a Soil: disturbed, rich, moist soils

Light: full sun to partial shade

Height: 9m

Trunk Diameter: 15cm

Crown: slender and fairly dense

Crabapples:

 

Wild Crabapple (in the east)

Pacific Crabapple (in the west)

 

East: Ontario in Zones 5b – 7b

West: coastal BC in Zones 2b – 8a

Soil: tolerant of a wide variety of soils

Light: can tolerate part shade and sun

Height: 9m

Trunk Diameter: 30cm

Crown: fairly open and if left unmanaged can become shrubby

Alternate Leaf Dogwood Eastern North America; in Canada, you will find it in Manitoba east to Newfoundland in Zones 1b – 6b Soil: well-drained but moist

Light: shade tolerant; prefers partial shade

Height: 10m

Trunk Diameter: 15cm

Crown: flat and layered, giving an airy, open appearance

Striped Maple Eastern North America; in Canada, you will find it in Ontario east to Nova Scotia in Zones 1b – 6b Soil: acidic, well-drained but moist

Light: very shade tolerant

Height: 10m

Trunk Diameter: 25cm

Crown: rounded and symmetrical, fairly dense

Sweet Virbunum Saskatchewan east to New Brunswick in Zones 2b – 7b Soil: dry to moist soil

Light: full sun to shade

* extremely versatile tree

Height: to 10m but usually growing 4-5m

Trunk Diameter: 15cm

Crown: irregular, rounded, dense

Pawpaw Currently found in Southern Ontario, Zones 5a – 7a Soil: rich, moist

Light: shade, partial shade, sun

Height: up to 11m

Trunk Diameter: 30cm

Crown: broad and spreading, fairly dense

Native Willows (a few examples here):

 

Shining Willow

Pacific Willow

Sandbar Willow

There are a number of different native willow species available throughout Canada. All of which are hardy to their respective zones. Many native varieties are available on the Pacific coast and are a good option for a small deciduous tree/shrub Soil: varies

Light: varies

Height: 4-12m

Trunk Diameter: varies

Crown: varies

Serviceberry Species:

Western Serviceberry

Downy Serviceberry

Mountain Serviceberry

Pacific Serviceberry

Smooth Serviceberry

Roundleaf Serviceberry

 

There are a number of serviceberry varieties so look for ones that can tolerate the specific climate for your area. Soil: varies

Light: varies

Height: 4-12m

Trunk Diameter: 20cm

Crown: varies

I hope this three part series has been helpful for you and if you do decide to plant a tree this year, share it with me. I’d love to see the before and after pictures. It’s so easy to take for granted what trees actually do for us and pass by without even noticing they’re there. Sometimes it’s just nice to see the difference one tree can actually make.

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Ten Great Coniferous Trees

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Caring for Your Ornamental Pepper

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About Mark and Ben


Mark Cullen is an expert gardener, author & broadcaster and holds the Order of Canada. His son Ben is a fourth-generation urban gardener and graduate of Guelph and Dalhousie University.
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