nice 20 ft. native trees?

I'd like to plant some native trees for screening along back of our fairly shallow back yard. I'm looking for fairly open at the bottom (no conical evergreens), with main action about 5-25 feet above the ground. The area floods sometimes in spring, but I can plant on low mounds to help.
Current candidates are: cotinus obovata, amelanchier, carpinus caroliniana, cornus alternifolia.
Anyone have pictures or experience with any of these or suggestions about others? I'm especially interested in growth rates (at least one fast one would be nice).
Thanks,
Limnaia

Cornus Alternifolia will sleep and grow slowly. But I do love it here in Montana. I like the idea with Cotinus obovata. I planted 2 last year and am awaiting results.
Think about Parrotia 'Vanessa'. Lots of interest with bark, shape, leaf colors summer through fall. Etc.

I'm voting for Amelanchier. You can put the fruit in muffins. Won't mind the wet feet either.

I second that. Love Amelanchier.

I have several Amelanchier natives in my yard and they grow like a weed. I love the floral variety of smell for such a long time. We get fair to good color in the fall. Right now I have several early starts in my house.

I have two in my yard. Last summer I picked the berries and made a cobbler. Yum! It took forever to pick enough, but worth it.

Thanks for the nice pix, Soferdig, and thanks others for all the good amelanchier endorsements. Sounds like a very good place to start!

You wouldn't go wrong with a couple viburnum varieties...

•Blackhaw (Viburnum prunifolium)

•Nannyberry (Viburnum lentago)

I like smoke tree also, but I doubt that it will tolerate wet feet. Silverbell (Halesia spp.) and possumhaw (Ilex decidua) come to mind as off-the-beaten-path options.

Silky dogwood Cornus amomum would give pleasure in a hurry, too.

How about seven son flower ? Heptacodium miconioides , they have one growing at tower hill botanical garden in boylston ma that is just spectacular it is covered in white flowers and about the size you are looking for.
laura

Nice plant, but doesn't fit the 'native' specification!

Resin

I have a cornus alternafolia, an amelanchier, a viburnum prunifolium, and a Cotinus 'Grace'. I can talk about my experiences. I've had them all for at least 8 years.

They are all wonderful, and easy, but (at least in my yard) somewhat different. The cornus alternafolia will "tier" and become wide. If you want to grow one, you may want to give it enough space to let its gorgeous structure shine. I have clay alkaline soil, but I ironite it once a year and it does beautifully. Beautiful structure, handsome leaves, dark blue berries the birds love, and great fall color. I do think it prefers a somewhat sheltered site.

The amalanchier is a piece of cake. You can't go wrong. There are a ton of cultivars and the names get confused, but it isn't important. Beautiful flowers, edible fruit (delicious!), nice fall color. Some are more linear, some more wide. The flowers bloom very early in the spring, before just about anything else in my zone. You can pretty much fit one anywhere. I acidify this with ironite too, because although they will grow just about anywhere they produce more fruit if the soil is not too alkaline.

The viburnum prunifolium is a workhorse. It is perhaps a bit more sturdy than handsome (it's bit stiffly branched) but it can take terrible neglect and still flower and fruit extravagantly. The fruit is charming - pinkish rose turning bluish black. It's even drought tolerant. It does, however, tend to sucker, and I have to stay on top of it because its suckers are difficult to remove. Mine is 15 feet tall.

Cotinus'Grace' . Well, here is info from the 'Great Plant Picks' site:

"Cotinus ‘Grace’ is a hybrid between American smoke tree, (Cotinus obovatus) and Cotinus coggygria. It is grown for its enormous clusters of flowers; frothy, pink panicles reach fourteen inches high and twelve inches wide. In spring, leaves emerge light red, darkening through the summer to dark red. In autumn, foliage turns a mosaic of red, orange, and gold. Cotinus ‘Grace’ is an large excellent shrub, offering multiple seasons of interest in mixed plantings. It combines well with Hydrangea paniculata ‘Tardiva’, Clematis ‘Madam Julia Correvon’, Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’, Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ and Iris foetidissima ‘Variegata’.

Culture Like all smoke trees, Cotinus ‘Grace’ is disease free and drought tolerant. It requires full sun and will not grow well in shade. In low light conditions it has a lax habit and will not flower or develop foliage color. Cotinus ‘Grace’ will grow in a wide range of soils with average fertility. Cotinus ‘Grace’ can be cut to the ground in late winter to maximise its potential as a foliage plant. It will not flower when treated in this manner, but the growth habit will be extremely vertical, making an excellent accent plant.

Growing Habit: Cotinus ‘Grace’ grows ten to fifteen feet high with an equal spread. It has an open, mounding habit, making it look like a pink cloud when in full flower. It can be limbed up but looks best when allowed to branch to the ground.

Hardiness USDA zones 5 to 9 "

I have two of them. My older is 15 feet tall. It's exquisite, but a bit hard to find. Drought tolerant, disease free and spectacular.

Alll of your choices are great.

Donna

This message was edited Apr 9, 2008 11:45 AM

This message was edited Apr 9, 2008 11:45 AM