Nurseries offer right tree for you

By Molly Day
Muskogee Garden Club

June 27, 2007 08:23 pm

— Jared McClure, co-owner of Green Valley Nursery and Tree Farm in Claremore has considerable experience with planting trees and shrubs in the landscaping jobs the company does.
McClure has suggestions for how to be successful when adding hardwood to your home's yard and gardens.
“Using the cold hardiness and heat zones for selecting trees and shrubs is a good place to start,” McClure said. “You can also cross some zone lines if you put plants in the right place.”
For example, there are 150 varieties of Japanese maple. Many of them thrive here if they are protected from the scorching and dehydrating effects of south winds. Plant them on the north or east side of a building; they should never receive sun after 2 p.m. Most grow six to 12 inches a year coming out of the container and then one or two feet a year after being established.
McClure has had good luck with several Japanese maples in Oklahoma landscapes.
• Emperor I Japanese maple, which has been available here for three years. It grows to 15-feet tall, has thick stems, is drought resistant and suffers less wind damage.
• Fireglow Japanese maple has orangey-red color, grows to 15-feet tall in morning sun and afternoon shade.
• Coral Bark Japanese maple has chartreuse leaves and red bark that shows well in the winter when the leaves have fallen. This variety can take more sun.
• Garnet Japanese maple is a grafted, weeping lace leaf type. It stays 5-to-6-feet tall and wide. McClure said it is good as an accent for a corner planting with hostas and rocks. The homeowner just has to prune branches six or eight inches a year to prevent them from touching the ground.
• Virdis Japanese maple is similar to Irish lace with dissectum leaves. Summer color is chartreuse foliage and fall color is yellow and orange.
Some evergreens are good landscape plants. McClure pointed out that all evergreens shed their two-year-old needles. The needles turn yellow and drop within a few days and it is not cause for concern.
• Globosa spruce grafted onto a standard gets less fungus disease because the taller trunk helps maintain circulation. It grows to 5 feet, about 4 to 6 inches a year. These trees grow best in part shade after 1 in the afternoon or in full shade. Overhead sprinklers cannot be used near them.
• Blue star juniper is a full-sun tolerant, tough plant that has no insect problems. It also should not have irrigation directly sprayed on it. Nice accent plant for entryway.
• Weeping Norway spruce is a specimen tree with chartreuse new growth. It will grow to 20 feet in 20 years. Drought tolerant and must be planted high with good drainage. Good choice for near water features.
• Columnar Norway spruce grows 3 feet wide and up to 15-feet tall in full sun to part shade. Keeps good column form.
• Boulevard cypress is a full shade tree that is easy to maintain for topiary form. The needles are soft.
• Spiral juniper makes a nice specimen with some pruning to maintain the spiral.
• Heitzi and Blue Point are the best spiral cultivars.
• Blue Point juniper is a drought resistant variety for full sun. The roots are non-invasive.
• Blue Atlas cedar or weeping cedar (Cedrus Atlantica Fastigata) grows to 35 feet tall and 20 feet wide. They are drought resistant but be sure to plant high for good drainage. The roots are not invasive.
• Oakleaf holly grows symmetrically so it needs little pruning. Good to anchor the edge of a home. Place in full sun or part shade.
• Sky Pencil holly is usually available in a three and seven gallon size. It is a good choice for an architectural jog in a new home. Grows best in full sun or part shade and is drought tolerant after established. McClure said this tree is ugly when it is new and becomes pretty in three years.
• Capitata yew grows slowly in shade or part sun. If it is planted where there is good drainage and its roots never soak in water, it has little insect or disease problems. Easy to keep in pyramidal shape.
• Double Knockout Rose grows to three by three feet and blooms all season. The new leaf growth is a burgundy color. Light pruning throughout the season will keep them blooming spring to fall.
• Euonymus Moonshadow grows well in full shade and is the most scale resistant variety. It is an excellent border plant.
Other shrubs they carry include: Azalea, Abelia, Pieris Japonica, English boxwood, Mahonia, Nandina (Harbor Belle, Gulfstream, Standard, and Dwarf), Wine and Rose Weigelia, Itea, Viburnum and Photenia.
For planting shrubs, McClure uses a planting mix made up of one-third Back to Nature cotton burr, one-third fine pine bark and one-third sandy loam.
“Ninety percent of tree replacement is due to planting trees below the soil line,” McClure said.
To prevent this problem, trees should be planted an inch or two higher than the soil surface. Watering levees should be formed with the extra dirt to form a pond around the tree.

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