Ecological Employee's

@wokeplants-blog

This blog captures the woody plant species that ecologically benefit the planet, through air purification, soil modification, or increasing biodiversity. Acknowledging these factors allow for a diverse planting pallette suitable for use by Landscape Architects, Gardeners, and other design professions.

59 posts

Posts

Fraxinus Nigra

Common name: Black Ash

Family: Oleaceae

Native: New found land

Leaves: Opposite, compound pinnate

Size: 40′-50′ in height. Spread 20-25′

Growing Conditions: Peat soils and also sandy loams.

Leaf Color: Dark green glabrous . Pale yellow green fall color.

Hardiness Zone: 2 to 5

Benefits: This is one of one of many hardwood ashes which used for a wide range of wood working.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants

www.Wildflower.org.

#disease prone #INCREASE BIODIVERSITY #increase birds

Fraxinus pennsylvanica

Common Name: Green Ash

Family: Oleaceae

Native: Nova Scotia

Leaves: Oppostive, Pinnately compound

Size: 50′- 60′ with half of that in spread.

Growing Conditions: Prefers deep rich soil moist and well drained. Full sun.

Leaf Color: shiny medium to dark green. Changes to yellow in the fall.

Hardiness Zone: 3 and 4.

Flowers: green to reddish purple in fall

Benefits: Very adaptable and have been used in street planting, however can become a nuisance due to the seedling.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants

www.Wildflower.org

#street tree #park tree #golfcourse

Ulmus americana

Common Name: American Elm

Family: Ulmaceae

Native: Eastern North America

Leaves: Ovate elliptic

Size: 60-80′ in height to 40-70′ in spread

Growing Conditions: Prefers deep rich soil moist and well drained. Tolerant of light shade. .

Leaf Color: dark green leaves

Hardiness Zone: 2 to 9

Flowers: NA

Benefits: This is used as a lawn or shade, or street tree. It is susceptible to the dutch elm disease.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants

http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/

#drought tolerant #pollutant tolerant #pollution tollerant #shade tree #street tree

Morus alba

Common Name: White Mulberry

Family: Moraceae

Native: China

Leaves: Alternate, simple

Buds: Imbricate

Size: 30′-50′ in height with similar spread.

Growing Conditions: Prefers deep rich soil moist and well drained. Full sun.

Leaf Color: Dull yellow green to dark green in summer

Hardiness Zone: 4-9

Flowers: Polygamo-dioecious

Benefits: This tree increase birds population on a site and has wonderful foliage.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants

http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/

#increase birds #supreme foliage

Catalpa bignoniodes

Common Name: Trumpet Creeper

Family: Bignoniaceae

Native: U.S.

Leaves: Simple, opposite.

Size: 30 to 60′ with a spread 20′ 40′

Growing Conditions: Prefers deep rich soil moist and well drained. Full sun.

Leaf Color: bright green in summer

Hardiness Zone: 5 to 9

Flowers: White and purple

Benefits: Tree is tolerant of seasonal flooding and drought tolerance making this a great selection for a rain garden.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants

http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/

#drought tolerant #deer resistent

Catalpa speciosa

Common Name: Western Catalpa or Northern Catalpa

Family: Bignoniaceae

Leaves: Whorled or Opposite, simple, ovate-oblong 6″-12″ long.

Buds: Terminal

Native Region: Southern U.S

Size: 40′ to 60′ height with spread of 20′-40′

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Very tolerant of many soil conditions. Prefers deep moist fertile soil.

Hardiness Zone: 4 to 8

Leaf Color: Medium green. Bright green in summer. Fall color poor yellow green to brownish.

Flower: Perfect, Corolla white, 2″ long. Tube bell shaped.

Benefits: Tree is very tolerable to extremely hot and dry conditions and there. Wood had been used for railroad ties due to there rot resistance. Can be used for parks due to it’s showiness and low lying branches allow kids to enjoy. Should not be plants next to sidewalks where fruit can fall (slippery).

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants

www.arborday.org

#drought tolerant #poor soil kind of guy #park tree

Fraxinus ornus

Common Name: Flowering Ash

Family:

Leaves: Opposite, pinnately compound

Buds: pubescent, grayish brown

Native Region: Europe

Size: 40′-50′ and 35-35′ spread.

Habitat/Growing Conditions: prefers moist, deep, fertile soils for best growthHardiness

Zone: 5 to 6

Leaf Color: Dull dark green and glabrous above

Flower: Creamy white, Fragrant 5″ long panicles. Yellow, purple tinged fall color.

Benefits: This tree is very adaptable and transplants easily. Provides a great park tree due to its shade, fragrance, and tolerability.

#fragrant #street tree #shade tree #park tree #poor soil kind of guy

Gleditsia triacanthos

Common Name: Honeylucust

Family: Leguminosae

Leaves: Alternate, pinnately compound 6-8″ long

Buds: Terminal- absent.

Native Region: Pennsylvania and Texas

Size: 30-70′ in height. Spread of 30-70′

Habitat/Growing Conditions: full sun. Prefer rich moist soil.

Hardiness Zone: 4 to 9.

Leaf Color: Bright green in summer, clear yellow to yellow green in fall.

Flower: Perfect and imperfect on same tree.

Benefits: Provides a good highway tree with its high salt tolerance.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants

www.arborday.org

#drought tolerant #salt tolerant #shade tree #erosion control #slope stabilizer

Gleditsia caspia

Common Name: Caspian Honeylocust

Family: Fabaceae

Leaves: Pinnately compound leaflets

Native Region: Western Asia, Iran

Size: 30-40′

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Moist well drained soil. Sun.

Hardiness Zone: 6 to 8

Leaf Color: Shade of yellow in the fall

Benefits: Seeds provides food for wildlife. While this is a smaller tree it allows for grass or garden to be produced beneath.

Source: Not much information found on this tree.

http://www.cirrusimage.com/tree_locust_caspian.htm

https://plantlust.com/plants/25515/gleditsia-caspia/

#drought tolerant #deer resistent #spiny lobster

Quercus Variabilis

Common Name: Oriental Oak

Family: Fagaceae

Leaves: Alternate and Simply

Native Region: Northern China

Size: 75′-90′ with spread of 60-70′

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Full sun, and wide range of growing conditions

Hardiness Zone: Zone 5 to 7.

Leaf Color: Glossy dark green on upper surface and underside is whitish tomentum.

Flower: Pollenous flower in drooping elongated cluster.

Benefits: Fairly large tree, that provides ample shade and can be used as street tree.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual fo Woody Plants http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/

#shade tree #street tree #poisenous #deer resistent

Oxydendrum arboreum

Common Name: Sourwood or Lily of the Valley Tree

Family: Ericaceae

Leaves: Alternate, Simple, 3 to 8″ long

Buds: Small 1/16″ long, Conical globose

Native Region:

Size: 25′ to 30′ tall and 20′ in spread

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Moist well drained soil, Full sun or partial shade.

Hardiness Zone: Zone 5

Leaf Color: Rich green in spring, lustrous dark brown in fall.

Flower: White, perfect, urn shaped, 1/4″ long. fragrant

Benefits: Colonizes on highway embankments and is used by Bee’s to produce honey

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody PLants Arborday.org

#fragrant #specimen tree #colonizer #shade tree #Bee's

Acer Saccharum

Common Name: Sugar Maple, Rock Maple, Hard Maple

Family: Sapindaceaa (Maple Family)

Leaves: Opposite, simple, 3 to 6″ long and across, 3 to 5 lobed, acuminate

Buds: Terminal-imbricate.

Native Region: Moist bottomlands, rich wooded slopes.

Size: 60′ to 75′ in height. Can reach 100 to 120′. Spread is usually 2/3′s the height

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Well drained moderately moist soil. Slightly acidic soil. Sun, Part Shade, Shade.

Hardiness Zone: 4 to 8.

Leaf Color: Medium to dark green in Summer. Brilliant yellow. Burnt orange to red tones in autumn.

Flower Color: Perfect. Greenish Yellow.

Eco-Benefits: This tree provides great shade habitat for birds as well as shade, and wood resource for humans. The sap when concentrated and boiled produced maple syrup used by colonists but learned first from the indians.

Medicinal: Inner bark used to make tea to treat coughs and diarrhea. Soap made from its ashes. Sap drank as spring tonic and taking syrup for liver and kidney problems.

Source: Michael Dirr, Manual of Woody Plants Arborday.org

#large tree #park tree #golf course tree #street tree #supreme foilage #scorch prone

Gymnocladus dioicus

Common name: Kentucky Coffeetree

Family: Legume Family

Leaves: Alternate, binnateley compound to 36″ long and 34″ wide

Buds: Terminal, Absent

Native Region: New York, PA

Size: 60′ to 75′

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Moist soil for best growth

Hardiness Zone: 3 to 8

Leaf Color: New leaves pink to purpleish changing to dark green. Dark blueish green in summer.

Flower: Dioecious, Greenish White

Benefits: Very adaptable to wide range of conditions, such as chalk (limestone), drought and city conditions.

Source: Manual of Woody Plants, Michael Dirr Arborday.org

#park tree #golf course #disease resistent #adaptable #drought tolerant #pollution tollerant #tough #toughtree

Rhododendron prunifolium

Common Name: Plumleaf Azalea

Family: Ericaceae

Leaves: Alternate, simple, medium green leaves.

Native Region: Georgia

Size: Grows 8 to 10′

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Sandy rivenes along river banks.

Hardiness Zone: 5 to 8

Flower: Orange-red to red funnel shaped 3/4″-1″ flower.

Benefits: Often used as house plant. One of the most sought after azalalea’s due to its garden charm.

Source: Manual of Woody Plants, Michael Dirr

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/all/rhododendron-prunifolium/

#poisenous #toxic

Quercus Alba

Common Name: White Oak

Family: Fagaceae

Leaves: Alternate, simple

Buds: Imbricate

Native Region: Maine to Florida

Size: 50- 80′ in height. Can reach 100′ in wild.

Habitat/Growing Conditions: Prefers deep moist soil. Well Drained. Prefers acid soils. Full Sun.

Hardiness Zone: 3 to 9.

Leaf Color: Grayish and pinkish when unfolding. Dark green in summer. Fall: rich red to brown.

Flower: Monoecious, staminate catkins.

Benefits: Excellent tree for use in furniture or any type of woodworking. Provides ample shade but is very sensitive to soil compaction and grade changes.

Source: Manual of Woody Plants, Michael Dirr http://www.newenglandwild.org/ Arborday.org

#large tree #illinois state tree #furniture #flooring #increase birds #Increase biodiversity #taproot