Woody Ornamentals

Fragrant Abelia has very fragrant pink tubular flowers with white centers that bloom in May and June. The glossy green foliage turns orangey red in fall. Abelia mosanensis is very hardy and easy to grow.  It is prized for its fragrance and may be used as a hedge.  This species is more winter hardy than other Abelias and that's a good thing because it blooms on old wood. This plant was introduced from Latvia. (New name is Zabelia tyaihyonii).

Abelia x grandiflora 'Rose Creek' provides a wonderful presence in the landscape with its plentiful fragrant white flowers and red-tinged stems on new growth. 'Rose Creek' Abelia will bloom beginning in May and last through the summer into September.  Blooms on new wood.  Named ‘Rose Creek’ in reference to a creek of the same name located in Oconee County, Georgia.  An introduction by Dr Michael Dirr. (New name is Linnaea × grandiflora 'Rose Creek'.)

A spreading, rounded shrub, 'Little Richard' Abelia has glossy dark green leaves that sometimes will be tinged bronze. Provides wonderful white, fragrant flowers through the summer until frost.  The blooms attract numerous butterflies (New name is Zabelia dielsii 'Little Richard'). 

Few trees are as showy as the Paperbark Maple, with its cinnamon colored exfoliating bark. The fine-textured leaves have 3 leaflets and change from dark green with silvery undersides in summer to shades of red and bronze in fall. Acer griseum makes a neat oval-shaped small tree which fits into both small and large scale landscapes well.  Originating from Central China, Paperbark Maple prefers full sun to partial shade in moist, well-drained soil. It will grow in a variety of soil types, including sand, loam, or clay and is adaptable to a variety of pH levels. One of the last Maples to develop fall color and the leaves persist into winter. 

Armstrong Gold® ('JFS-KW78') Columnar Red Maple comes from the extensive selection work done at J Frank Schmidt's nursery in Oregon.  Acer rubrum Armstrong Gold® has bright golden orange fall foliage on a very tight upright form.  The branches grow at a steep, upward angle.  Besides having good tolerance for a wide range of environmental conditions (as do Red Maples in general), Armstrong Gold® makes an excellent street tree because of the dense columnar form.  The tiny red flowers appear in April and are followed by red winged samaras (seeds).

October Glory® Red Maple has green leaves following the attractive red flowers which are one of the earliest signs of spring for us in the Northeast. The fall color of October Glory® is a deep rich red and occurs 2 weeks later than other cultivars. The glossy dark green leaves with red stems have 3-5 lobes and are 3-6” across.  This plant species plays larval host to the coral hairstreak butterfly.  October Glory® is an oval-shaped, wet site tolerant tree that was found by our father, William Flemer III and has proved to be one of the best cultivars for southern hot summers.

Redpointe® ('Frank Jr') Red Maple is an attractive introduction of this very adaptable native tree, developed by J Frank Schmidt and Son Nursery in Oregon.  They chose this selection because of its broad but upswept branching pyramidal habit.  Acer rubrum Redpointe® has a strong central leader and leathery dark green foliage.  The crowning glory is the vivid red early fall color, followed by a regular tidy silhouette in winter.  One of the fastest growing Red Maples in the marketplace.

‘Green Mountain’ Sugar Maple comes from William Flemer III of Princeton Nurseries, from an original outstanding tree found by him in Vermont. Acer saccharum ‘Green Mountain’ is probably a hybrid between the Northern and Southern (nigrum) Sugar Maples, exhibiting both good heat and drought tolerance. ‘Green Mountain’ has a very regular oval silhouette and very showy orange to yellow fall color. With its superior heat tolerance and hybrid vigor, ‘Green Mountain’ can be used in urban situations as long as there is a good amount of soil for the roots.

Acer saccharum Legacy® is a large, oval shade tree prized for the fiery red and orange autumn colors that adorn its dense crown of foliage. This sugar maple is tolerant of drought conditions, and its thick, glossy leaves are resistant to tattering caused by wind, as well as leafhopper damage. Utilized both for its ornamental value in the landscape as well as for the syrup produced by its sap, this particular cultivar of sugar maple is a fast grower and great for use as a specimen tree, shade tree, or street tree where it will not interfere with electrical wires or be heavily impacted by salt spray.

Creamy white flowers on Aesculus parviflora appear in summer on long panicles. Bottlebrush Buckeye offers golden yellow fall color. A dense, mounded, suckering, deciduous, multi-stemmed shrub which produces pear-shaped nuts (buckeyes) after flowering.  Aesculus parviflora is a wonderful addition to the landscape to attract hummingbirds. Our neighbor nurseryman Dick Karkalits says it is an absolutely foolproof plant for just about any location, and we agree.

PRN Preferred: This shrub has everything - tolerant of sun, shade, dry or wet soil, showy flowers and native!

We grow our own selection of Red Buckeye, selected by us from a field of mature trees at Princeton Nurseries.  The characteristics that guided our choices were clean, disease-free foliage, very dark showy 5" upright panicles in May, and a strong tree-form habit.  We propagate our selection 'Splendens' from the seed of the five trees we moved to Pleasant Run Nursery.  The resulting plants have the outstanding qualities of their parents, and we grow them as tree-form.  Aesculus pavia 'Splendens' makes a tough beautiful small tree. Besides the flower display and the attractive dark green summer foliage, the fall color is a clean yellow and the brown chestnuts feed the wildlife.

Amelanchier laevis has white flowers in early April. The reddish purple fruit of Allegheny Serviceberry is loved by birds. Good reddish orange fall color of Amelanchier laevis makes it a wonderful landscape choice to provide interest for each season. A wet site tolerant plant, A. laevis has an added attribute of retaining its leaves throughout the summer unlike A. canadensis, and it also has heavier and fewer stems forming the clump.

Small white flowers of Amelanchier x grandiflora Autumn Brilliance® emerge from pink buds in April. Apple Serviceberry has berries in June that will turn magenta to purple and are prized by many birds, including Mocking birds. Autumn Brilliance® has brilliant orange-red fall color (hence the cultivar name).  A wet site tolerant plant introduced by nurseryman Bill Wandell of Illinois.  This Amelanchier has an added attribute of retaining its leaves throughout the summer unlike A. canadensis.

‘Robin Hill’ Apple Serviceberry blooms in early spring, producing pink flower buds that open to soft pinkish white. The flower clusters mature to bluish purple fruit in early to mid summer, which is rapidly consumed by birds. The berries were an appreciated source of fruit for early settlers. The green summer leaves take on orange and red shades in fall. Amelanchier x grandiflora ‘Robin Hill’ is compact and resilient, both as a multi-stem and a single-stem tree. It is a cross between Amelanchier canadensis and Amelanchier laevis and supposed to be more resistance to mildew.  We just started growing this cultivar in 2022 and have been very impressed with it.  This is a good choice for urban and tight locations.

'Massachusetts' Bearberry has small shiny evergreen leaves with small pinkish white bell-like flowers in April and May, often followed by red fruits. The berries provide winter forage for many mammals, including bears.  Arctostaphylos  is a prostrate, flat-growing plant best grown in acid soil and sandy, well drained sites.  Grows well in poor infertile soils.  There are large colonies of Bearberry in the NJ Pinelands.  'Massachusetts' produces abundant flowers and fruits; it has smaller leaves than the species.  The leaves feed several species of caterpillar,  such as the Hoary Elfin.  Selected by Bob Tichnor of Oregon from seed collected in Massachusetts.  It is also salt tolerant.

Aronia arbutifolia 'Brilliantissima' is a deciduous shrub with white flowers in May. The bright red fruit of this Red Chokeberry ripens in late summer and persists into winter. The glossy foliage turns brilliant red in fall. This cultivar differs from the species; it is more compact, produces larger and more numerous fruit plus has superior red fall color.  It forms a suckering colony and is wet site and salt tolerant.

Ground Hug™ Black Chokeberry ('UCONNAM012') was developed in Connecticut by Dr Mark Brand, to answer the need for tough native groundcover shrubs.  Aronia melanocarpa Proven Winners® Color Choice® Ground Hug™ stays low while suckering to a wide, densely branched groundcover thicket.  The delicate white spring flowers are followed by glossy black fruit in late summer (an important food source for wildlife).  Then the crowning glory is the vivid orange and red fall foliage.  Because of Ground Hug's™ vigorous spreading habit it would work well as a slope stabilizer. (used to be Ground Hog)

Low Scape Hedger® Black Chokeberry ('UCONNAM166') is a selection of our native Aronia, chosen for its compact upright habit. In mid spring Low Scape Hedger® produces a quantity of showy white racemes held above the lustrous green foliage. During the summer the dense habit makes a good choice for short hedges. In the fall the leaves turn striking shades of orange and red, brightening up the landscape for a prolonged period before dropping. Fruit production is limited, but native pollinators benefit. Developed by Dr. Mark Brand and Dr. Bryan Connolly of U. Conn.

Low Scape Mound® Black Chokeberry ('UCONNAM165') is an unusual Aronia melanocarpa form produced by Drs. Mark Brand and Bryan Connolly of U. Conn. Low Scape Mound® performs as a groundcover instead of an upright shrub, so it works well as an erosion control plant as well as an edger. The green spring foliage is topped by lots of attractive white racemes. The showy flowers are followed by shiny black fruit in late summer, providing important food for wildlife. The fall color is a deep red, persisting for several weeks.  A good native sub for Deutzia.

PRN Preferred: The habit of this versatile native is both low and broad, and the foliage is beautiful throughout hot summers and cool falls.

'Viking' Black Chokeberry has glossy dark green leaves which turn a striking red in fall. The white, spring flowers are followed by large purplish black fruit, which birds love (and they are full of anti-oxidants). The site adaptability (Aronia melanocarpa 'Viking' likes both wet and dry conditions) and the suckering habit make it an excellent shrub for reclamation use, as well as an attractive landscape plant. Dr. Mark Brand of Connecticut found this native beauty.  2020 PHS Gold Medal Plant!

PRN Preferred:  A good shrub for wetland reclamation plantings, a more compact variety with very large glossy foliage.

'Mango' Pawpaw is a slow growing tropical looking tree which bears delicious yellow fruit in October.  The fruit is large and smooth skinned, with delicious soft flesh surrounding a few brown seeds.  All Pawpaws are significant hosts for butterflies and moths, and are still commonly found in patches in old farmyards because settlers depended on Asimina triloba for the delicious fruit.

'Pennsylvania Golden' Pawpaw is an early ripening form of our largest native fruit. The flesh is yellow and the taste is reminiscent of mango, banana and pineapple. Pawpaw ice cream is one of the greatest desserts we have ever eaten. Asiminas are important hosts for the larvae of the Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly, as well as the Pawpaw Sphinx Moth. Pawpaws are often found colonizing shady riverbanks along the Mid Atlantic and Southern plains.

'Prolific' Pawpaw has large delicious early ripening fruit in early fall.  The flavor is complex, with hints of banana and mango, resulting in the old common name of 'Poor Man's Banana'.  The 3 lobed hanging flowers in early spring are among the more interesting bloom forms, with 3 fleshy brown petals and a somewhat unpleasant odor (since they need flies and beetles to pollinate them).  The leaves are large and tropical looking.

'Sunflower' Pawpaw, a somewhat self-fertile variety of a wonderful but under utilized native fruit tree. Asimina triloba 'Sunflower' Pawpaw's yellow fruit is ready in October.

'Sweet Alice' Pawpaw was found by Homer Jacobs in West Virginia in 1934, and became a common farmyard fruit tree because of its large sweet orange yellow fruit produced in September and early October. The habit is somewhat more compact than some other selections and the fruit set is plentiful. All Pawpaws fruit best when planted near 1 or more other cultivars, because cross pollination between different clones is important for a good fruit set. The interesting purple brown flowers appear in April and May.

'Wilson' Pawpaw was found in the wild in Kentucky.  The fruit is medium to large sized and has golden yellow flesh when ripe in the fall.  The interesting purple brown flowers are produced in early spring and are set all along the branches.  Since all Pawpaws except 'Sunflower' are "self-incompatible", it is best to plant 2 or more cultivars for good fruit set.  The harvest period is fairly long for Pawpaws, as the fruit ripens over a month.

We grow a broad selection of these wonderful but underutilized native Pawpaws. They are all ultimately 25' and perform best in full sun. Their delicious yellow fruits ripen in September or October and taste like a combination of mango and banana custard. The fruit production is the most prolific when they have a pollinator. The interesting tri-lobed purple brown flowers appear along the stems in mid spring. The beautiful Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly and the Pawpaw Sphinx Moth depend on Asiminas in order to reproduce. Contact us for our cultivar list.

'Emily Rose' Aucuba is a dark green female selection with superior cold tolerance.  The slender lustrous leaves are evergreen , and make a great setting for the large shiny red fruit.  The berries color up in mid to late winter, and are retained well into the summer, providing a log lasting show.  Any male form planted nearby will provide adequate pollination.  Aucuba 'Emily Rose' was an introduction from Hines Nursery of California.

'Hosoba Hoshifu' Aucuba is a showy evergreen for shady locations, with long narrow shiny green leaves speckled liberally with bright yellow spots.  'Hosoba Hoshifu' is a female Aucuba, which produces shiny red long lasting fruit when planted near a male form (most green and yellow Aucubas are male).  The fruit is large and very showy as it persists throughout the winter.  Plant in a sheltered spot protected from winter winds and afternoon sun. 

'Rozannie' Aucuba is a compact evergreen form which has large, very lustrous green leaves.  They look almost artificial because they are so shiny and perfect.  Even more amazing are the enormous bright red berries which remain on 'Rozannie' for several months.  Since birds (and deer) do not eat the fruit, the show goes on for a long time.  A compact female form, tolerant of a wide range of soils.  Per landscape designer Lisa Fernandez, the plant looks lush and gorgeous, even planted in the dreaded super shady corner of Collins Park in Philadelphia.  Nothing had survived there in the past and Aucuba 'Rozannie' has flourished.  

Aucuba japonica 'Variegata' has shiny green leaves sprinkled with gold spots, and is evergreen. Variegated Japanese Aucuba is often called 'Gold Dust' Aucuba.  Best foliage colors generally occur in part shade locations; the gold spots on the may fade in too much shade.