#needs shade

[dmalacaman-blog]

Mitchella Repens: Partridge Berry

Plant community: Red Maple Swamp

Native region: Eastern North American, as far north as parts of Massachusetts, and as far west as Minnesota.

Mature size: Herbaceous, grows to 0.25′ tall, 0.5-1′ wide.

Habitat: Grows in organically rich, medium soils. Needs shade. Slightly drought tolerant. Difficult to plant.

Eco-Indicator: Warm, dry sites

Hardiness zones: Zones 3-8

Leaf characteristics: Opposite and simple. Leaves are 1/4-1″ long and about as wide. Rounded ovular in shape. Dark green in color.

Flower and fruit characteristics: White and pink trumpet-shaped flowers. Red berry-like fruits.

Other notable characteristics: Seen as a ground cover.

Urban Uses: Difficulty in transplantation and requirement of organically rich soils make this difficult to establish within the urban environment.

More on urban intolerance

Sources: USDA Plants, Missouri Botanical Garden, Dirr

[dmalacaman-blog]

Tsuga canadensis: Canadian Hemlock

Plant community: Red Maple Swamp

Native region: Eastern North American as far west as Wisconsin, as far south as Virginia.

Mature size: Tree, usually grows 40-70′ tall and 25-35′ wide.

Habitat: Grows in medium soils. Can tolerate some shade. Requires some shade protected by hot wind and afternoon sun. Drought intolerant. Needs rich soils.

Eco-Indicator: Generalist

Hardiness zones: Zones 3-7

Leaf characteristics: Needles are 1/4-2/3″ long, 1/12-1/8″ wide. Grooved and dark green above, very light below.

Flower and fruit characteristics: Monoecious, light yellow and pale green flowers. Has slender and stalked cones.

Other notable characteristics: Bark turns from flaky in youth to deeply furrowed later. Brown in color. Pyramidial in shape.

Urban Uses: Requirements to specific conditions, especially those of drought, heat, and rich soils make it intolerant to most urban uses.

More on urban intolerance

Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden, USDA Plants, Dirr

[dmalacaman-blog]

Cornus controversa: Giant Dogwood

Plant community: NA

Native region: China, Korea, and Japan

Mature size: Tree, usually grows 35-40′ tall, 35-40′ wide.

Habitat: Grows in acidic, medium soils. Needs some shade. Does not tolerate heat very well. Needs constant moisture and rich soils.

Hardiness zones: Zones 5-8

Leaf characteristics: Alternate and simple. 3-6″ long and 2-3″ as wide. Dark green in color. Sometimes, leaves turn purple in fall.

Flower and fruit characteristics: Has small white flowers in clusters. Fruit is bluish-black fruits.

Other notable characteristics: Has horizontal branches in tiers. 

Urban Uses: Need for constant moisture and rich soils prevents much use within urban environment.

More on urban intolerance

Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden, USDA Plants, Dirr

[dmalacaman-blog]

Tsuga heterophylla: Western Hemlock

Plant community: NA

Native region: Western United States and Canada, growing from Alaska to California to Montana

Mature size: Tree, grows up to 150 feet tall, up to 250 in the wild

Habitat: Grows in medium-moisture soils. Needs sun protection in part shade. Intolerant of drought.

Hardiness zones: Zones 6-8

Leaf characteristics: Needles 1/4″ to 3/4″ long and 1/16″ wide, finely toothed, flat, and unequal in length.

Flower and fruit characteristics: Does not flower. Produces cones.

Other notable characteristics: Red-brown bark which has deep and scaly ridges. 

Urban use: No specific noted urban uses, limited by requirement of shade and drought intolerance.

More on urban intolerance

Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden, USDA Plants, Dirr