(Dwarf White Fir, White Fir)

Irregular branching and a smaller mature size are hallmarks of the dwarf white fir cultivar 'Compacta'. It produces attractively colored needles that are light seafoam to blue-green. White fir is a pyramidal evergreen tree native to the western United States, but this selection remains more of a shrub to small tree. Its cones are oblong and held upright on mature branches, occurring only after several decades of growth. Always slow growing, 'Compacta' is densely branched and needled. When young its...

(White Fir)

The small-growing white fir cultivar 'Rochester' produces needles that mature to silvery blue but emerge pale chartreuse in spring. White fir is a pyramidal, slow-growing evergreen tree native to the western United States and adjacent highlands in southwestern Canada. Its cones are oblong and held upright on mature branches. White has a fine-textured symmetrical growth habit, even making an exquisite choice for a Christmas tree.

Grow 'Rochester' in full to partial sun and a slightly acidic,...

(White Fir)

White fir is a pyramidal evergreen tree native to the western United States. The cultivar 'Violacea' has particularly beautiful coloration with intense silvery-blue needles that appear silvery white when new. Their cones are oblong and held upright on mature branches. White fir has a fine symmetrical growth habit and is an ideal native for year round interest. These trees prefer full sun, slightly acidic, well-drained soil and are more tolerant of heat, drought and pollution than other firs. In...

(Marie's Fir)

Look through the evergreen boughs of Marie's fir to see the ghostly white bark that often is blushed with purple hues. This conifer is a subalpine species native to the mid- and high elevations of the central Japanese island of Honshu. Although a pyramid when young, Marie's fir becomes more oval or flat-topped in silhouette at maturity. The bark is pale gray or brown with a powdery covering known as bloom, occasionally touched with hints of purple. Large, old trees display the ghostly white bole.

Young...

(Christmastree, Veitch Fir)

A handsome evergreen with deep green needles that curved upwards to reveal the silvery undersides, veitch fir also produces purplish cones. A tall conifer evergreen that is relatively fast-growing, it is native to central and southern Japan. Its smooth bark is sandy brown to gray in hue.

The non-prickly needles are short and glossy, dark green with silver to blue-green undersides. Needles densely line the branches' end twigs. Male and female cones are borne in late spring; the female cones become...

(Maple, Norwegian Sunset™ Maple)

Norwegian Sunset maple is a rapidly growing, uniformly branched deciduous tree discovered as a chance seedling in a bed of Shantung maples (Acer truncatum) in Oregon. Its upright oval habit resembles that of its other suspected parent, Norway maple (Acer platanoides). This straight-trunked hybrid has glossy dark green five- to seven-lobed leaves that turn orange-red to red in fall. Small yellow flowers in spring give rise to winged green fertile fruit.

Plant this maple in full...

(Oregon Vine Maple, Vine Maple)

Oregon vine maple is a small, clump forming, deciduous tree native to northwestern North America. In spring, it bears small drooping clusters of attractive white and purple flowers, followed by winged reddish-green fruits. The pretty fan-shaped leaves of medium green emerge from crimson buds in spring and turn brilliant scarlet-orange to red in the fall. The green bark provides winter interest.

This maple prefers partial shade, shelter from high winds, and moist, well-drained soil. It makes a...

(Douglas's Rock Maple)

Native to rocky slopes and moist ravines in far western North America, this small, hardy, relatively drought tolerant maple makes a good choice for low-maintenance landscapes within its native range. An upright, typically multistemmed shrub or small tree, it has shallowly three-lobed, medium-green leaves that turn a good yellow in fall. Although rather sparsely branched and rangy in shady sites, it forms a much denser plant in partial sun. Its greenish yellow flowers appear in early spring, followed...

(Ash-Leaved Maple, Boxelder)

Box elder is a medium-sized to large, fast growing, short-lived deciduous tree native to many regions in North America. Typically low-branched with furrowed light gray to gray-brown bark, it bears bright green, compound leaves with three or sometimes five leaflets. Inconspicuous greenish yellow flowers emerge with the leaves. Male and female flowers occur on separate trees. Box elder is rarely grown as a landscape tree due to its weedy, weak-wooded nature, but a few cultivars with unique ornamental...

(Ash-Leaved Maple, Boxelder)

Box elder is a short-lived deciduous tree native to many regions in North America. Although sometimes scorned as an ornamental plant because of its weak wood and its penchant for self-sowing, it has given rise to many attractive cultivars. Introduced in the late nineteenth century, 'Auratum' has three-parted, lemon-yellow leaves with contrasting red stems. The leaves hold their color through summer. Fall color is usually unremarkable. A female selection, it produces inconspicuous greenish yellow...