Types of Trees

Planting different types of trees helps to solve many problems in your garden. We continue to experience drought here in the Mid South, and when you combine that with the fact that many towns and municipalities are restricting water and irrigation, you may have given up on planting trees altogether.

You are truly blessed if you live in the Mid South because you will not find more diversity of native types of trees anywhere in the United States. Planting native material, whether it's perennials, bushes, trees, etc is the best way to save yourself time, money, and heartache (and backache), down the road.

If you are building a new home, we advise you to get a landscape professional to site your house and preserve trees before you begin construction. Try to avoid "landscraping" as many contractors seem to like to do these days.

Design Tips to Help You Work With Trees

• Select types of trees for interest in different seasons: it keeps the garden lively. You will find lists highlighting berries, fall color, flowers, bark, and other seasonal peaks. With flowering trees, don't limit your display to one 2-week period (i.e. nice but overused dogwoods, short lived Bradford Pears); extend and diversify by picking species to enjoy the other 50 weeks of the year. You won't want to forget about special types of trees such as dwarf fruit trees for gift giving or to add interest to your patio, garden, or interior decor.



• Trees have many forms, including: globose, reaching, upright, upright-oval, pyramidal, columnar, weeping, rounded, vase-shaped, and irregular. Each has its special place where it does well and some are good fits for places like power lines and overhangs.
• When you plant, always leave a circle of mulch around the tree measuring at least the diameter of the rootball. It will keep you from hitting the trunk with the mower or string trimmer which could kill the tree.
• Water and fertilize with a high quality slow-release fertilizer. Most trees should grow about a foot a year. Water every week during dry weather, and water slowly but thoroughly.
• Before you buy a tree, be sure you know how big it will get and place it carefully in your landscape.

Types of Trees

Below are types of trees for different areas. Click on the "read more" link, when they are added, to see a full page with different varieties listed for that category. The trees listed below are not an exhaustive list.

• Trees For Wet Sites Many of these are native and thrive along river banks or near other sources of water. They are great for places where water drains slowly after a rain and near a pond or stream.
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• Trees for Dry Sites Even if your area gets plenty of rainfall, many areas still have dry soil. Try these trees for dry areas: Redbud, Eastern red cedar, Japanese black pine, Ginkgo, Godlen-rain tree, Live oak, Chestnut oak, Longleaf pine, and Bottlebrush.

  Check with your local nursery for more suggestions. If they don't have what you need, check our online resources for specialty resources.

• Trees With Multiple Trunks The three and four trunks of multi-trunked specimen trees have a quality that makes them more like a beautiful sculpture rather than just a tree, especially in small spaces where the bark and branch patterns are highlighted. Our favorites for the Mid-South are Japanese maples, Flowering dogwood, Crape mrytle, and the Yoshino cherry.
• Trees For Heavy Soil Many of todays neighborhoods have poor heavy clay soil because building codes prohibit building of shifting topsoil. The good stuff is striped off and sold and your left with the clay subsoil. Try these trees for this type of site: American hornbeam, Sweet gum, Redbuds, and Bald cypress.
• Fast Growing Trees If your in a hurry for fast short-term shade or screen while the slower growing species (that you have planted) are maturing, here's your list. Some choices are: Bald cypress, River birch, Poplar, and Red Maples.
• Trees For Tough Urban Sites Some trees are planted and expected to live in the worst conditions. Along sidewalks and parking lots where there is no room for roots to grow, with exhaust fumes, reflected heat from pavement, and foot traffic that compact the soil. It's no wonder that the average tree in a "downtown" setting only last 7 years. Suburban trees may average a life span of 31 years or more. The following trees are suggested for urban or suburban neighborhoods, for large, open medians, and for similar spots where a group of citizens might get together to plant trees. You can plant: Sweet gums, Lacebark elms, Crape myrtle, Chinese pistache, and Golden-rain tree
• Trees For Containers These trees can withstand some extreme conditions since the roots are exposed to more cold and more heat during the seasons. Try Japanese maple, Pines, Hinoki false cypress, and Crape myrtle, and dwarf fruit trees.
• Trees For Espalier If you want to train a tree as an espalier, choose one of these trees that will stay small. Remember that these trees, trained along a wall, are subject to extreme heat stress if planted along south or west-facing walls. They also need enough room for good root development. Trees such as the Southern magnolia, dwarf types, Oriental magnolias, Japanese maple, Crabapples and apples, and Sweet Bay Magnolias are a good start.
• Trees With Great Winter Foliage These trees can be the backbone of your garden in the fall and winter. Most are evergreens except the American beech, which is listed because its leaves stay of the tree through the winter. They are quiet nice with a parchment look about them. The American beech, Eastern red cedar, Nellie Stevens holly, and Southern Magnolia make good choices.
• Evergreen Trees to Hide Ugly Views Even if you live in the country, you may have some views you would like to hide. The trees listed here will give you a wall of green and create privacy at the same time. Emily Bruner holly, Japanese black pine, American Holly, Nellie Stevens holly, Southern Magnolia, and Foster holly.
• Small Trees For Small Lots, Patios, and Under Utility Poles These trees are ornamental and great for framing a house, for cutouts in a patio, or for courtyards and townhouse gardens. Japanese maple, Fringe tree, Crape myrtle, Redbuds, Chinese pistache, Sourwood, and Carolina silverbell are all good choices.
• Trees With Surface Roots Maybe you have been frustrated with these types of trees in your yard. Some of these trees can have surface roots from 60 feet away! Be aware that black walnuts have a substance in them which does not allow anything to grow around them. So if you have one of these and want a garden in the same area, you may need to get rid of it. Water oak, Bald cypress, Elms, Maples, Sycamore, White poplar, American beech, Cottonwood, Southern Magnolia, Willow oak, Pin oak, and Black Walnut.
• Trees With Ornamental Berries or Seedpods For a great year round garden, choose trees that will give you a show throughout the season, not just spring. These trees with winter berries are perfect for that. They have the added bonus of attracting birds, too. Flowering crabapples, American holly, Winterberry, Flowering dogwood, Sumacs, sowny serviceberry, foster holly, Savannah holly,Yaupon, Luster-leaf holly, Weeping yaupon, Cornelian cherry, Kousa dogwood, Hawthorns, and Deodar cedar are good for pods
• Trees With Showy Bark Color, Texture, or Pattern Bark is especially beautiful in the winter. This is a list of the most outstanding ones that we love. A few that you might want to try are: White oak, American beech, Sycamore, River birch, Crape myrtles, Chinese pistache, Sourwood, Franklin tree, Cucumber Magnolia, Yoshino cherry, and Chinese quince.

You can see that there are many types of trees. We will give each of these categories their own page in the weeks to come so please sign up for our newsletter below so you won't miss out on the updates to our web site.


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For More Information on Types of Trees:

Dwarf Fruit Trees

Transplanting Trees

Return to Home Page From Types of Trees

Trees For Wet Sites

Fast Growing Trees

Mimosa Trees are fast growing, drought tolerant, and will grow in just about any condition. Do you need one?




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