Relatively narrow, tall, good fall color tree choices?

13 years ago

Just getting ready in the event I have a spot open up.

The location has good thick top soil over a typical Missouri clay base. Above average moisture, right on the edge of the soggy area after several heavy rains. I've been able to ride the mower there every week this year, but about 30 feet away I do sometimes have to think about how wet it is. Sun exposure from 9 till 5..... About 40 foot from a fairly heavily salted road. 100 feet-ish downhill from the septic....

Vertically there is no limit. I'd prefer something not very wide so it doesn't crowd out some others. perhaps 20 or 25 foot mature spread?

Trying to resist the Maple/dogwood urge. I have 6 maples already and three dogwoods. What else will get attention in fall?

Nyssa Sylvatica reportedly has a cultivar named "Forum". never seen it in person though.

Perhaps a little quicker growing is a Liquidambar 'Grazam' (GrandmasterÂ) Sweetgum. Just there are SOOOO many 40 year old Sweetgums in St. Louis lol.

Anyone have anything like Oxydendrum arboreum

Sourwood 'Chaemeleon' (also listed as 'Chameleon')? Will it tolerate some wet feet? An Arborvitae and Leyland Cypress are putting up with a damper site not so far away.

Ken, any oaks you can talk me into?

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Comments (7)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
hey .... i can talk a lot about them.. but i have no clue how they would take St. L ....

there are a multitude of robur.. or english oaks.. that seem to be on the smaller side .... slow to get height.. and slow to stay small ....

what about beech??? .. see link ... again ... i know what i can do in my garden.. i dont really have a hand up about other zones and what not ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
hey .... i can talk a lot about them.. but i have no clue how they would take St. L ....

there are a multitude of robur.. or english oaks.. that seem to be on the smaller side .... slow to get height.. and slow to stay small ....

what about beech??? .. see link ... again ... i know what i can do in my garden.. i dont really have a hand up about other zones and what not ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link
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arbordave (SE MI)
13 years ago
"Crimson Spire" oak would be an option (see link) - it has upright form & nice fall color. Should be adaptable to most soil conditions except poorly drained soil.

Nyssa "Forum" has more upright branching than typical Nyssa, but it may still (eventually) grow wider than what you're looking for. I've seen this variety, and it does have nice form & foliage, but the fall color I observed here was mainly yellow.

"Grandmaster" sweetgum would have standard size & shape (not upright) for Liquidambar. "Emerald Sentinel" is narrowly upright.

Here is a link that might be useful: Crimson Spire Oak
tophers
13 years ago
Another you might look into is the "Arnold" Tulip Tree. Supposed to be narrowly upright, not quite as fast-growing as the standard Tulip Tree. Same leaf form. I hear it flowers at a younger age than the standard tree. I don't know about fall color, though...would assume it's the same yellow as the Tulip Tree. They sell them around here, but I've never seen one out of the nursery...so I can't speak to how they look in real life in a landscape setting.
krycek1984
13 years ago
Tulip trees have beautiful form, which is a huge part of their charm. Breeding a narrow/upright form is a travesty to the original tree. What a shame.
Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
Original Author
13 years ago
Dave, Ken, thanks for the links.

When I'm down at the Missouri Botanical Garden next I'll check on their purple beech see how its holding up to the sun.

That Crimson SpireÂ Oak page has links to some more nurseries there. Thanks. I could even live with a few more feet of spread. That would definitely fit

I love them Tulip trees big and open grown also. A narrow one would take some getting used to, but would fit in more suburban spaces. My neighbor has one he transplanted where I can see it all the time, only reason I'm not itching to get one myself.

Again, thanks for the links. There are just SOOO many cultivars available its difficult to keep track even though I keep my Forest Farm catalog handy for reading in the bathroom lol.
gardener365
13 years ago
Ginkgo biloba has a host of narrow forms and is easy to grow.
Fall color is here one day and gone the next, however.

Dax

Relatively narrow, tall, good fall color tree choices?

Comments (7)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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Relatively narrow, tall, good fall color tree choices?

Comments (7)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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arbordave (SE MI)

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krycek1984

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Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
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