There's more to trees than just pretty leaves!

If you’re struggling with year-round interest in your landscape, colorful barks, stems and trunks can make a world of difference.  Bold and unique, they are valuable as an ornamental asset to any flower or leaf.  Adding these elements into your home’s landscape can elevate it from a simple, backyard planting to a work of art.  Here are some fantastic options for adding bark to your landscape:

Paperbark Maple:

Known for it's beautiful, peeling cinnamon bark, this specimen is a handsome tree with a rounded crown and open habit.  Its soft green leaves turn scarlet in fall.  With age, it becomes distinctive, as its papery sheets of bark peel to reveal cinnamon-brown new bark.  It's excellent for a small landscape.

Height: 20-30 feet

Spread: 15-25 feet

White Himalayan Birch:
Originally discovered in the Himalayan Mountains, the Himalayan birch has very white bark...the brightest of any birch, in fact!  Large, dark green leaves turn yellow in Fall.  It has a round, open habit.

Height: 35 feet

Spread: 15-20 feet

River Birch:

As its name suggests, the river birch naturally grows along river banks.  As a landscape tree, it can be planted almost anywhere in the US.  It's unique, curling bark and spreading limbs make this a truly unique specimen.

Height: 40 feet

Spread: 40 feet

Japanese Stewartia:

A multi-stemmed, deciduous tree with a rounded columnar form, stewartia features stunning bark that exfoliates in strips of gray, orange, and reddish brown.  

Height: 15 feet

Spread: 10-15 feet

'Midwinter Fire' Dogwood:

Noted for its colorful stems and twigs in winter, Bloodtwig Dogwood 'Midwinter Fire' is a hard plant to beat for a colorful show in the winter garden.  It enjoys spectacular decorative features: a golden fall foliage followed by branches and stems that start out yellow in color at the base of the plant and gradually turn bright orange to crimson towards the top.

Height: 5-8 feet

Spread: 5-8 feet

Kousa Dogwood:

Dogwood trees are widely know for their delicate beauty.  The tree makes a visual contribution year-round.  In spring, it produces a heavenly array of star-like blooms.  In summer, its intriguing canopy of layered branches provides shade and beauty. In autumn, it offers spectacular bright red color.  Even in winter, this tree has an appeal of its own with bark that resembles a jigsaw puzzle.

Height: 15 feet
Spread: 25 feet

American Beech:

The formal and stately American beech holds a special place in many hearts.  The wide-spreading canopy provides great shade in the summer and beautiful bronze coloring in the fall.  It is a versatile tree, and offers beautiful, smooth, silver gray trunks.

Height: 30 feet

Spread: 25 feet

Crape Myrtle:

The crape myrtle is often referred to as the "lilac of the South."  With its striking flowers, handsome bark and attractive foliage, this species is a favorite for landscapes.  It features gorgeous, peeling, cinnamon colored bark.

Height: 15 feet

Spread: 6-15 feet