I think we all can agree that our TREE FOR A TREE® program is an awesome idea for replacing the trees that we remove, but as I set in the office watching nature happen outside my window, I started thinking of other reasons to plant trees. Trees provide countless benefits to our environment as well as providing food and shelter for a number of living organisms. Anytime that I am walking through a property I cannot help but notice the birds enjoying all that the trees are providing for them. I decided to write about planting trees that provide shelter and food for birds throughout the year.
10 Trees with Amazing Fall Color... and One You Should Avoid!
I was recently pruning trees in a newer neighborhood on the east side of Columbus where every house had two red maple in the front yard. Although Red maple is a native tree to Ohio, this subdivision was planted with a cultivated variety of the species called ‘Red Sunset.’ ‘Red Sunset’ red maple was selected and well marketed for its compact habit, good branching structure and most notably for its showy and reliable orange to red fall color.
✅Kousa Dogwood
General Info
- Latin Name - Cornus kousa
- Native Range - Japan, Korea, China
- Growth Rate - Slow to Medium
- Mature Height - 20–30’
- Mature Spread: 20–30’
Arborist Thoughts
Kousa dogwood is a great ornamental tree for multi-seasonal interest. Beautiful white flowers (technically bracts in late Spring, attractive exfoliating bark, showy red fruit edible fruit and reliable red Fall color in the foliage.
Kousa dogwood is more sun tolerant, heat tolerant, and drought tolerant than our native dogwood and less susceptible to fungal diseases like anthracnose and powdery mildew.