Category Archives: Small Trees and Large Shrubs

Bitter Cherry

Bitter Cherry (Prunus emarginata) is an attractive deciduous shrub to small tree, varying in height from 6 to 45 feet tall. These trees typically live about 30-40 years.

The bark of bitter cherry is smooth reddish brown to grey. Small white flowers bloom in clusters from mid spring to early summer. The fruit ripens from bright red when young to almost black when fully ripe in late summer, and the leaves turn golden in fall.

The bitter fruit is a favorite food for small mammals and birds, and the leaves provide forage for deer. Many pollinators are attracted to the flowers, including the admiral, azure, orange-tip, and elfin butterflies. This tree also provides food for the young of pale swallowtail, spring azure, Lorquin’s admiral butterflies.

Light Requirements: Part shade to sun
Water Requirements: Moist
Ease of Growing: Easy to grow
Growth Rate: Medium-fast
Spreads: Yes
Wildlife Support: Pollinators, Pest-eating insects, Hummingbirds, Birds or Mammals
Mature Height: 30 feet
Mature Width: 20 feet

Serviceberry

Amelanchier alnifolia

Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia) is a large shrub or small tree, growing 6-18′ tall and up to 10′ wide. Leaves are round to oval, 1-2 inches long, and pale green in color. Once it is several years old, serviceberry starts blooming with fragrant white flowers from mid-spring to early summer followed by small, dark blue, edible fruit. Leaves turn a delicate yellow in fall.

This attractive shrub is also great for wildlife. Birds and small mammals eat the tasty fruit. Pale swallowtail and Lorquin’s admiral butterflies lay their eggs on serviceberry, and in winter many species browse the twigs and bark.

Serviceberry is a common and widespread species, growing native from Alaska to California, and across Great Plains into eastern Canada. It grows in full sun to partial shade, and tolerates dry, moist, or wet soil. Shrubs in sunnier sites tend to have the most vibrant fall color.


  • Light Requirements: Full Sun, Part Shade
  • Water Requirements: Dry, Moist, Seasonally Wet
  • Ease of Growing: Easy to grow
  • Growth Rate: Moderate
  • Spreads: No
  • Wildlife Support: Pollinators, Pest-eating Insects, Birds or Mammals
  • Fire-resistant: Yes
  • Edible: Yes
  • Mature Height: 15-30ft
  • Mature Width:10-20ft

Red elderberry

Sambucus racemosa

Red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa) is a large shrub or small tree, growing up to 20’ tall by 20’ wide. It grows in full sun to full shade, and prefers moist to wet soil. It is deciduous with large, compound leaves. White flowers bloom from early-spring to mid summer in 1.5”-3” upright, pyramid-shaped clusters.

This shrub provides food and shelter for many wildlife species. Birds, mammals, and insects eat all parts of the plant including the leaves, bark, roots, and bright red fruit. The spring azure butterfly lays its eggs on red elderberry and the hollow stems provide nest space and overwintering shelter for solitary bees. This plant also supports beneficial insects that eat garden pests.


  • Light Requirements: Full Sun, Part Shade, Full Shade
  • Water Requirements: Moist, Wet
  • Ease of Growing: Easy to grow
  • Growth Rate: Fast
  • Spreads:
  • Wildlife Support: Pollinators, Hummingbirds, Pest-eating Insects
  • Fire-resistant: Yes
  • Edible: Toxic if eaten raw - must be properly cooked
  • Mature Height: 10-20ft
  • Mature Width:6-10ft

Chokecherry

Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana)
Prunus virginiana

Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) is a deciduous, thicket-forming shrub or small tree commonly found across much of the United States. Varieties native to Oregon include black (var. melanocarpa) and western (var. demissa) chokecherries.

This small, elegant tree can grow anywhere from 12-40 feet tall. It has dangling clusters of small, fragrant flowers in spring to mid summer. The leaves are oval, serrated, 2-4 inches long and pointed at the tip. The fruit is a ¼-½ inch cherry that starts red and becomes purple or black when ripe. Fall foliage is yellow.

Chokecherry is a very valuable tree for wildlife. Many butterflies rely on it for nectar, such as the pale swallowtail, silvery blue, spring azure, and painted lady. Lorquin’s admiral and spring azure butterflies lay their eggs on chokecherries.


  • Light Requirements: Full Sun, Part Shade
  • Water Requirements: Dry, Moist, Seasonally Wet
  • Ease of Growing: Moderate
  • Growth Rate: Moderate
  • Spreads: Yes
  • Wildlife Support: Birds or Mammals
  • Fire-resistant: Yes
  • Edible: Yes
  • Mature Height: 12-40ft
  • Mature Width:10-20ft

Black hawthorn

Black hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii)
Crataegus douglasii

Black Hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii) is a deciduous, thicket-forming shrub or small tree that grows anywhere from 20-40 feet tall. It is a common plant in Oregon and Washington on both sides of the Cascades, growing in moist, well-drained soils. The black hawthorn is an important species for wildlife, attracting pollinators and providing protected nesting and edible fruits for birds and other small wildlife.

Leaves are 1.5-3 inches long and up to 1.5 inches wide, doubly serrate, ovate, and sometimes lobed. Small white flowers bloom in clusters from late spring to early summer. The small, oval fruits are purple-black when ripe, one quarter to a half inch in size. This attractive tree turns yellow, orange, and red in fall.

Black hawthorn is an important species for wildlife, providing protected nesting and edible fruits for birds and other small wildlife. The young of gray hairstreak and mourning cloak butterflies feed on black hawthorn, and the flowers attract many native bees.


  • Light Requirements: Full Sun, Part Shade
  • Water Requirements: Moist (well-drained)
  • Ease of Growing: Easy to grow
  • Growth Rate: Moderate
  • Spreads: No
  • Wildlife Support: Pollinators, Hummingbirds, Birds or Mammals
  • Fire-resistant: Yes
  • Edible: No
  • Mature Height: 20-40ft
  • Mature Width:6-10ft

Oval Leaved Viburnum

Oval-leaved Viburnum (Viburnum ellipticum)
Viburnum ellipticum

Oval-leaved viburnum (Viburnum ellipticum) is a deciduous shrub that brings three-season interest to any native garden. Clusters of small white flowers bloom in late spring and early summer. The berry-like fruit is red at first, becoming black when ripe. The simple oval leaves are 1-3″ long, coarsely toothed, and turn red in the autumn before dropping to reveal straight, upright central stems and widely spaced, horizontal branches.

This shrub supports pollinators and beneficial insects. Many birds and small mammals eat the berries, and birds nest and shelter in its branches.

Oval-leaved viburnum is native west of the Cascades in Oregon and Washington, where it is found mainly in dry open woods and lowland thickets. This shrub tolerates both seasonal flooding and drought, making it a hardy addition to the landscape. It does well as a border plant, such as at the edge of a wooded area. Pair it with snowberry, salal, and low Oregon grape for year-round beauty!


  • Light Requirements: Full Sun, Part Shade, Full Shade
  • Water Requirements: Dry, Moist
  • Ease of Growing: Easy to grow
  • Growth Rate: Moderate
  • Spreads: No
  • Wildlife Support: Pollinators, Pest-eating Insects, Birds or Mammals
  • Fire-resistant: No
  • Edible: No
  • Mature Height: 5-15ft
  • Mature Width:6-10ft

Pacific Crabapple

Pacific crabapple (Malus fusca)
Malus fusca

Pacific crabapple (Malus fusca) is found in Western Oregon and north through Washington State into Canada and Alaska. It prefers moist woods and is often found at the edges of wetlands. It’s the perfect tree for a wet corner of the garden.

In spring, crabapples bloom with fragrant clusters of pinkish-white blossoms. By mid-summer, 3/4″ long fruits appear. The crabapples turn yellow to reddish in the fall, and often hang on the tree all winter, providing both visual interest and food for wildlife. The leaves of this showy tree also turn orange and bright red in autumn, binging lovely fall color to any garden.

The flowers attract large numbers of native bees including mason bees and bumblebees, and butterflies lay their eggs on the leaves. The fruits are a favorite of birds and small mammals, and the dense foliage provides both food and cover for wildlife.

Pacific crabapple grows best in full sun and moist to wet soils. Plant it with other wet-loving natives such as serviceberry, red osier dogwood, and Pacific ninebark for year-round color and wildlife habitat!

  • Light Requirements: Full Sun, Part Shade
  • Water Requirements: Moist, Seasonally Wet
  • Ease of Growing: Moderate
  • Growth Rate: Moderate
  • Spreads: No
  • Wildlife Support: Pollinators, Hummingbirds, Pest-eating Insects, Birds or Mammals
  • Fire-resistant: Yes
  • Edible: Yes
  • Mature Height: 30ft
  • Mature Width:25ft

Vine Maple

Vine maple (Acer circinatum)
Acer circinatum

Vine maple (Acer circinatum) commonly grows as a large open shrub or small tree reaching 10-25 feet tall. It typically grows in the shady forest understory but is sometimes found out in the open. Like many plants, it typically gets taller in the shade and stays more compact in the sun.

Like all maples, the branches and leaves grow in pairs off the stem, known as “opposite branching.” Leaves are 3-14 cm long and broad, and thinly hairy on the underside. They are palmately lobed with 7-11 lobes, which are pointed with coarsely toothed margins. The flowers make a small but dramatic show in spring, blooming a bright red and whitish-green from May – June. The fruit is a two-seeded winged fruit called a samara, starting green then turning reddish-brown as they ripen. The leaves turn bright yellow to orange-red in fall and provide some of our most vivid native fall color.

Vine maples are important trees for wildlife. They provide nesting sites and cover for many birds and mammals. Vireos weave basket-like nests that hang in the forks of the branches. Birds use the seed stalks and leaves for nest building. Squirrels, chipmunks and birds eat the seeds, and the caterpillars of the brown tissue moth and Polyphemus moth forage on the leaves.

Vine maple grows best in part shade and moist soils. It can live out in the open but exposed leaves may burn and turn reddish in the afternoon sun. This is a beautiful specimen plant for a shady corner, or a tall screen to soften the side of a house. Pair it with snowberry and ferns for year-round interest.


  • Light Requirements: Full Sun, Part Shade, Full Shade
  • Water Requirements: Moist
  • Ease of Growing: Easy to grow
  • Growth Rate: Moderate
  • Spreads: No
  • Wildlife Support: Pollinators, Pest-eating Insects, Birds or Mammals
  • Fire-resistant: Yes
  • Edible: No
  • Mature Height: 20-25ft
  • Mature Width:15-20ft
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