I am very sorry for your loss, and my unintentional faux pas. I love your idea of bloom time coinciding with birth time. I can't speak knowledgeably to zone 5, but in April we have fringe tree (chionanthus) and snowbell (styrax) in bloom here. In addition to the great suggestions above, you might consider the styrax, which is a much nicer tree than the name sounds. In fact, it is sadly underused. It typically has beautiful bell-like white blooms in mid-spring that can be fragrant. It tolerates different soils well, full sun to light shade, and is fairly pest-free (unlike our pink cornus floridas!). The styrax japonicus is the nursery standard and a fine tree; styrax obassia is more fragrant with bigger blooms. A native choice that is shrubbier in general is styrax officinalus. 'Emerald Pagoda' is a japonicus that's highly recommended by those in the know. There are also 'rosea' varieties for pink flowers. Snowbells are well-behaved and easy to garden under also (deep roots). In fact, they would be a very fitting tribute to your grandchildren. All of the suggestions in this thread are excellent. Whatever you choose, God bless you for choosing this way to honor your family! I wish more people would follow this example.

I suspect that road salt could be a problem with the saskatoons, but the other items on your list will probably handle the conditions well. If you're interested in native edible species then go to Oikos Treecrops. They are out of Paw Paw Michigan and have a great selection. Ken Asmus (the owner)has really created something unique in this company. I've purchased a number of items from them and have been exceedingly pleased with the service and quality. You might want to include beach plums in your planting as well. These form an dense weeping hedge that kick out plenty of fruit. Mike

Oops sorry my intent was not to confuse or to incite "wonton lust" it was just pure ignorance. Mindy its good that you brought this up because I think I added the same frustration and confusion to the plant swap. Think I am going to move on to Mid Atlantic.just a square peg. Katy Mindy, Answering this one is like choosing which one of my three daughters is my favorite, which like every good parent I say is impossible. Then again if I had to chose right now as of this moment it is my oldest who is coming home next weekend for a non stop marathon in Excell instruction in the hopes that I will be able to combine records from junk drawers, sweat shirt pockets, ect. and put together a concise record and maintenance plan for the yard that extends beyond the present "Oh you mean the big bush in the front yard." Oops once again I digress here is my list of favorite shrubs as of November 6 at 10:00am. 1. Myrica pensylvanica I have fallen for the quiet elegance of this plant Zone (2) 3 to 6 suspect to 8 2. Ilex glabra compacta & shamrock I love how these shrubs work well in both full sun formal situations as well as shady woodland. Zone 4 to 9 3. Ilex koehne Wirt L Winn beautiful large leaf and great berries Zone 7 to 9 4. Ilex pendunculosa Zone 5 5. Ilex meserveae all blues??, and Nellie R Steven- Zone 6-9 6. Ilex Rock Garden Zone 6 - 9 7. Spirea pink flowering - what a color work horse Zone 4-7 (8) 8. Hydrangea macrophylia Altona great depth of color vivid blue/purple, good fall color, nice leaf, consistent bloomer. *** 9. Hydrangrea macrophylia Niedersachen great color and delicate petals. *** 10. Hydrangea Lilacina nice lacecap lavender petal blue center with added interest of great fall leaf color *** 11. Hydrangea quercifolia both Queen and Snowflake Zone 5-9 12. Vaccinium corymbosum Blue Ray Zone 3 to 7 (8) 13. Vaccinium angustifolium Zone 2 to 5 (6) 14. Clerodendrum trichotomum Zone 6 (7) to 9 15. Callicarpa japonica Luxurians just when I think all of the excitement has left the garden. Zone 5 to 8 16. Viburnum nudum Wintethur great fall color 17. Viburnum burkwoodii really formal shrub and the flower scent in spring is intoxicating Zone 4 to 8 18. Viburnum setigerum Aurantiacum wow the orange peach berries in the fall next to the burgundy leaves of Hydrangea Quercifolia. Zone 5 to 7 19. Chamaecyparis obtuse Nana Zone 4 to 8 20. azeala Polly Hills Yuka 0 to minus 10 degrees 21. Rhododendron Cunninghams White re-blooms in the fall - ? Check with your local nursery This is a great thread I have already added too many selections to my spring wish list. I am particularly lusting after the swamp azalea. Katy *** I grow more varieties of hydrangea macrophylia than I want to admit to either my DH or you and considered to the best of my ability what I thought was a special macrophylia that to date has been under used in New England.

I'm too far north to imagine what the banana might look like, but I bet it would be nice. And the fan palm would be lovely. Chaste tree, Vitex angus-castus, is a pretty southern substitute for lilac, with grey-green leaves and beautiful blue flowers. Desert willow seems like it would be nice, too -- not sure how tall they get. Fothergilla is beautiful in bloom; you could prune it to a single stem I think. Sterile Rose of Sharon, trimmed to tree-form would be an unusual, tropical looking plant. (I did this with regular ROS and while I loved the look, the seedlings were killer!) Hope you find something that works for you -- looks like a lovely space!