This note from the garden, was prompted by a conversation with the Senior Arboricultural Officer for Westminster Council who felt that too many Amelanchier lamarckii have been planted in the borough of Westminster in recent years and that they would like to see a broader range of tree species being used.

On a recent trip to the nursery Bruns, in Bad Zwischenahn, Germany I was selecting multi-stemmed alternatives for a project and thought I would share some of the stand out options. A multi-stem form is termed ‘umbrella form’ and all of the mentioned have a spreading habit.

Create more interest at stem level with these multi-stemmed varieties

Viburnum x burkwoodii:

A semi-evergreen shrub 1.5 – 3.5 metres in height. Highly fragrant white flowers in late spring are followed by black berries that turn red in late summer contrasting with the dark glossy foliage.

Cornus mas:

A compact deciduous shrub or tree, ranging in height from 3-6 metres, providing a long period of interest. Yellow flowers appear on bare stems in early spring followed by green foliage in summer and autumnal colour of yellow, oranges and red. It responds well to pruning and has a rough scaly bark.

Gleditsia triacanthos ‘Elegantissima’:

A relatively slow-growing deciduous tree maturing to 4-6 metres in height. Discreet light green flowers appear in June/July followed by large spiral pendent pods that remain through autumn and winter. Fantastic yellow autumn colour. Popular with bees.

Malus ‘Evereste’:

A crab apple maturing to 5-7 metres in height. Pink buds open white in late Spring and clusters of small apples turn orange-red in Autumn and last into the winter. It’s got attractive green leaves in the summer which turn orange-yellow in the Autumn. Popular with wildlife, especially bees.

Crataegus carrierei x lavalleei :

Although deciduous, this is one of the last trees to lose its leaves in autumn which makes it very useful for screening purposes. When mature it reaches 7-9 metres in height and provides year round interest. White petalled flowers appear in late spring followed by orange-red haws in autumn. The leaves are dark and glossy and the stem is silvery and twisted which is very attractive in Winter.

Acer ginnala:

A small slow growing acer maturing to 7-10 metres in height. Deciduous but offers lots of interest. Large glossy green leaves appear early followed by yellow-white fragrant flowers in May and brilliant red and orange colours in Autumn.

Koelreuteria paniculata:

A deciduous tree maturing up to 10 metres in height. Very tolerant of urban conditions. Profuse small yellow flowers develop in July-August forming lantern shaped fruits that turn red in autumn. Its attractive pinnate mid-green leaves turn a rich yellow in autumn.

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