Hello - I would like some advice/ideas about columnar shade trees to be planted in my yard in Smithers, British Columbia (halfway between Prince George and Prince Rupert). We just removed three large cottonwood trees which had been poorly topped more than 15 years ago, leading to progressive rot. The trees were well-suited (columnar form) to the relatively narrow space (~20 feet) between the front of our house and the hedge/sidewalk/street to the west. Their height (~75 feet) provided summer afternoon shade to our tall house, but the lack of branches lower than 12 feet from the ground still allowed lots of light into the ground level of our house. Also, the deciduous nature of these trees meant that in winter (when shade is undesirable here), lots of light could pass through to the entire house. Now that our beautiful cottonwoods are gone, we are looking for a (zone 2 hardy) columnar deciduous tree which will grow or can be shaped to a similar form, but which will be more robust and longer-lived. Appreciate any/all suggestions. JoeD
Populus tremula 'Erecta' is quite a narrow variety which flourishes in exposed NW suburbs of Calgary and should have no trouble at Smithers. But Smithers seems to be a lot milder than Zone 2. Some say it's Zone 4 or even higher (at least one specimen of Metasequoia glyptostroboides -- rated to Zone 5 -- has been established in town), so it may not be out of line to try Quercus robur 'Fastigata' or Acer platanoides 'Columnare.' Acer saccharum 'Newton Sentry' is a strikingly narrow Sugar Maple cultivar. -Tony
Paul - Lombardy poplar is short-lived from what I understand. Hornbeam is an interesting idea, though I gather that the crown can get pretty wide when it grows tall and I'm not sure about the hardiness for this zone. Tony, you are likely correct that parts of the Smithers area are milder than Zone 2. The most recent zonal mapping seems to show the town as being on the edge of 3A. I think that 4 could be pushing it pretty hard, however. Though the winter here is definitely cloudier and warmer than the past (on average), we still get a significant block of nights with temperatures in the -30C range (and even to -38C) every few years. The Newton Senty tree is a very intriguing idea, supposedly Zone 3 hardy. One possibility would be to intersperse (in a row) the Populus tremula 'Erecta' with the Newton Sentry. Hedging our bets, so to speak. That way if the Newton Sentries don't thrive, we wouldn't be back at square one. Many thanks to both of you for these ideas. JoeD
