Trees for Flower Beds

Flowering Crabapple Trees

• The springtime flowers of a crabapple tree are a focal point in a flower bed where the annuals and perennials are not yet in bloom. In summer, as the colors of the bed emerge, the crabapple's deep green leaves provide contrast, and depending on its position, partial shade for the more delicate flowers. In autumn, the leaves of several crabapple tree varieties turn to shades of gold and orange. Choose from columnar, rounded or weeping types of crabapple to match the shape of your flower bed.

Japanese Maples

• Position a weeping maple at the edge of a flower bed or rock garden so that its drooping form trails over the edge of the bed. An upright Japanese maple in the middle of the garden space creates a strong central axis for the display of flowers. Select a Japanese maple variety with red leaves to enhance the visual appeal of perennials. In winter, the bare branches of a Japanese maple provide perches for wild birds, keeping the beauty of nature alive even during the cold, gray season of a garden.

Hinoki Cypress

• The unusual flattened foliage of Hinoki cypress adds exotic texture to a bed with common annuals and perennial plants. An evergreen tree, Hinoki cypress serves as a strong specimen plant year round. The variety "Fernspray Gold" has yellow tones at the tips of its branches and blends well with flowers in shades of red or blue.

Flowering Dogwood

• A classic garden tree, flowering dogwood brings a traditional element to your flower beds. Creamy white dogwood blossoms are suited to offset the bold colors of azaleas, rhododendrons and other spring-bloomers that flower at the same time. The pink-flowered variety of dogwood blends well with daffodils, crocus and hyacinths for a pastel springtime garden palette. Fully leafed out, dogwood provides dappled shade through the summer and its bare branches add vertical dimension in the wintertime garden.