Plant Finder

User Guidelines

The Plant Finder is a multi-faceted tool to assist designers, contractors, maintenance personnel, community groups and the general public in selecting plants that perform well within the public right-of-way. It expands on the lists included in previous versions of the Manual and should be used in conjunction with the guidance provided in the Landscape Chapter.

The Plant Finder database is not comprehensive and there is no guarantee that these plants will survive at a specific site. All plants within the public right-of-way must be selected based on site-specific conditions and approved by the appropriate agency or agencies with jurisdiction. Download the Plant Finder User Guide for instructions on how to use the tool.

The information in this database was generated by DOT, Parks, other agency staff, and local horticulture professionals based on their first-hand knowledge as well as from existing resources. Download the Plant Finder References page for a full list of sources.

Plant Basics

Characteristics

Tolerances

An image of a young, flowering Crataegus crusgalli var. inermis, with its clusters of white blossoms and silver bark.

Collections:

Common:

Cockspur Hawthorn

Scientific:

Crataegus crusgalli var. inermis

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

20-30 ft

Spread:

20-35 ft

Shape:

Rounded Spreading

Bloom:

White flowers (in corymbs to 3") bloom in May for a period of 7-10 days. Flowers emit an unpleasant fragrance

Blooming period:

May

Fruit:

Rounded fruits (3/8" diameter) that ripen to deep red in fall (September-October) and typically persist to late fall. Fruits are technically edible, but are usually best left for the birds. The fruit is sometimes called a haw

Foliage:

Obovate to oblong-obovate dark green leaves (to 3" long) have wedge-shaped bases

Fall:

Foliage turns orange to scarlet to purple-red in fall

Bark:

Slender, grayish-brown bark

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Medium

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

3a - 7a

Susceptible to rust.

Care must be taken when selecting this plant for the right-of-way to ensure proper site conditions are met.

English Hawthorn

Common:

English Hawthorn

Scientific:

Crataegus laevigata

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

15-20 ft

Spread:

15-20 ft

Shape:

Rounded Spreading

Bloom:

White 5-petaled flowers in clusters (corymbs) bloom in mid spring. Many cultivars of English hawthorn, some featuring double flowers, are available in commerce today with flower colors including pink, rose, red and white

Blooming period:

Apr - May

Fruit:

Red fruits (pomes to 0.5" long) which show in fall. The fruit is sometimes called a haw and is edible

Foliage:

3 to 5-lobed, dark green leaves (to 2.5" long)

Fall:

No fall color

Bark:

Apple-like, grayish-brown bark with a zigzag stem pattern. 1" long thorns are present along branches. Peeling bark exposes orange inner bark

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

4a - 7a

Not tolerant of heat or humidity. Can be thorny. Very susceptible to rust.

Washington Hawthorn

Common:

Washington Hawthorn

Scientific:

Crataegus phaenopyrum

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

25-30 ft

Spread:

25-30 ft

Shape:

Rounded

Bloom:

Fragrant, 5-petaled, white flowers in clusters (corymbs) bloom in late spring

Blooming period:

Jun

Fruit:

Bright red 0.25" diameter globose fruits (pomes) that persist throughout the winter. The fruit is sometimes called a haw

Foliage:

Shallowly lobed, serrate, glossy dark green leaves (to 2.5" long)

Fall:

Leaves turn attractive shades of orange and red in fall

Bark:

Mature bark is "apple-like"

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

3a - 8a

Can be thorny. Tolerates air pollution. Susceptible to rust.

Green Hawthorn

Common:

Green Hawthorn

Scientific:

Crataegus viridis

'Winter King'

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

25-35 ft

Spread:

25-35 ft

Shape:

Rounded Spreading

Bloom:

Fragrant, 5-petaled, white flowers in 2-inch clusters (corymbs) bloom in May. This cultivar is noted for its profuse bloom of flowers

Blooming period:

May

Fruit:

Small red fruits (pomes) that ripen in September and usually persist on the tree well into winter. Fruits are technically edible, but are usually best left for the birds. The fruit is sometimes called a haw and may be harvested to make jelly

Foliage:

Serrate, ovate to elliptic, glossy dark green leaves (to 3.5" long) that are shallowly lobed in the upper half

Fall:

Leaves turn purple to red in the fall

Bark:

Apple-like, grayish-brown bark with a zigzag stem pattern. 1.5" long thorns are present along branches. Peeling bark exposes orange inner bark

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Low

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Dry to Med

Hardiness:

4a - 7a

'Winter King' is a largely thornless cultivar that is more disease-resistant and noted for its profuse bloom of flowers, larger fruits, silvery-barked stems, and more attractive fall color.

Tolerates drought.

Attracts birds and butterflies.

Lavallee Hawthorn

Common:

Lavallee Hawthorn

Scientific:

Crataegus x lavallei

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

15-25 ft

Spread:

10-18 ft

Shape:

Rounded

Bloom:

White flowers (in 3" corymbs) bloom in May. Flowers emit an unpleasant fragrance

Blooming period:

May

Fruit:

Ellipsoid fruits (3/8" diameter) that ripen to orange-red in September-October and typically persist throughout winter to spring. Fruits are technically edible, but are usually best left for the birds. The fruit is sometimes called a haw

Foliage:

Narrow elliptic, irregularly toothed, dark green leaves (to 4" long)

Fall:

Leaves turn bronze-red in fall

Bark:

Apple-like, grayish-brown bark with a zigzag stem pattern. Long thorns are present along branches

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

4a - 7a

Tolerates pollution. Requires good drainage. 

Montbretia

Common:

Montbretia

Scientific:

Crocosmia

'Lucifer'

Plant type:

Bulb

Height:

2-4 ft

Spread:

1-2 ft

Shape:

Clumping

Bloom:

Tubular, nodding, scarlet red, one-sided flowers borne along the upper portions of stiffly arching, sometimes branched, flower scapes (stems) typically rising up to 3' (infrequently to 4') tall and slightly above the leaves

Blooming period:

Jun - Aug

Foliage:

Narrow, sword-shaped, basal leaves

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Distinctive Foliage

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Summer

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Unknown

pH:

Acid to Neutral (5.0-7.4)

Soil:

Loam

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

5a - 9a

'Lucifer' is noted for its scarlet red, one-sided flowers borne along the upper portions of stiffly arching, sometimes branched, stems that rise slightly above the narrow, sword-shaped, basal leaves.

Can be found in Ft. Tryon Park Heather Garden.

An image of a mature, and evergreen Cryptomeria japonica 'Yoshino' with lime-green needles.

Common:

Japanese Cedar

Scientific:

Cryptomeria japonica

'Yoshino'

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

30-40 ft

Spread:

20-30 ft

Shape:

Pyramidal

Fruit:

Spherical fruiting cones (to 1" diameter) appear at the shoot ends

Foliage:

Sharply-pointed, awl-shaped, fragrant, blue-green needles (to 0.75" long) are spirally arranged. Foliage is soft to the touch and bronzes in winter to a purplish-brown hue

Bark:

Reddish-brown bark exfoliates in strips

Special Qualities:

Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Low

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Neutral (5.0-7.4)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

5a - 8a

'Yoshino' is a symmetrical, pyramidal form that grows faster than the species, and its needles acquire fewer bronze tones in winter.

Japanese Cedar

Common:

Japanese Cedar

Scientific:

Cryptomeria japonica

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

50-60 ft

Spread:

20-30 ft

Shape:

Pyramidal

Fruit:

Spherical fruiting cones (to 1" diameter) appear at the shoot ends

Foliage:

Sharply-pointed, awl-shaped, fragrant, green to blue-green needles (to 0.75" long) are spirally arranged. Foliage is soft to the touch and may bronze in cold winters

Bark:

Reddish-brown bark exfoliates in strips

Special Qualities:

Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Low

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Neutral (5.0-7.4)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

5a - 9a
Dove Tree

Common:

Dove Tree

Scientific:

Davidia involucrata

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

20-40 ft

Spread:

20-40 ft

Shape:

Pyramidal

Bloom:

Red-anthered flowers in rounded clusters. The showy parts of the bloom are the large oval-rounded showy white involucre bracts (one 3"-4" long and the other 6"-7" long) which subtend each flower cluster

Blooming period:

Apr - May

Fruit:

Round, greenish-brown, golf ball-sized fruits on 2"-3" stems

Foliage:

Toothed, broad oval, red-stalked, bright green leaves (3"-6" long) are heart-shaped at the base

Fall:

Variable fall color ranges from undistinguished dull pastels to bright oranges and reds

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Showy Fruit, Distinctive Foliage

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Unknown

pH:

Acid to Neutral (5.0-7.4)

Soil:

Not available

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

6a - 8a

Slow (10 years) to mature and bloom. Blooms every other year.

Care must be taken when selecting this plant for the right-of-way to ensure proper site conditions are met.

Bush Honeysuckle

Collections:

Common:

Bush Honeysuckle

Scientific:

Diervilla Lonicera

Plant type:

Shrub

Height:

2-3 ft

Spread:

2-4 ft

Shape:

Clumping

Bloom:

Tube-like flowers (each to 0.5" across), resembling the flowers of true honeysuckle, bloom in panicles (cymes)

Blooming period:

Jun - Jul

Foliage:

Ovate to oblong-lanceolate, pointed, opposite, glossy green leaves (to 2"-5" long) with fine marginal teeth

Fall:

Leaves turn interesting shades of yellow to orange, sometimes changing to red in fall

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Distinctive Foliage

Level of Maintenance:

Low

Season of Interest:

Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

None

pH:

Requires Acid (5.0-7.0)

Soil:

Urban (rubble/fill), Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Dry to Med

Hardiness:

3a - 7a

Other:

Native

Attracts hummingbirds and butterflies.

DEP Sun/Shade Plan 1.

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