All about Deciduous Trees

The word deciduous comes from the Latin word 'Decadent' which means 'Fall'. Deciduous trees, shrubs, and vines have leaves and flowers during summer, and soon in Autumn, they lose them all just like a grand tower takes a fall. No wonder why Autumn season is known as 'Fall' – autumn is the season when leaves from deciduous trees fall.

What is a Deciduous Tree?

A deciduous tree loses its leaves by the end of the blooming season, mainly during Autumns. It is the opposite of Evergreen trees that never lose their leaves.

Why Do Deciduous Specimens Lose Leaves?

Deciduous trees lose all their leaves before the winter season to prepare themselves for the cold season that follows. This attribute of the deciduous tree allows us to have their stunning colorful foliage displayed in our yard. But how do Deciduous shrubs, vines, and trees even lose their leaves? This phenomenon is well explained by the cities like President of the Missouri Botanical Garden, and Peter Raven where the shedding period is accentuated more than anywhere else. Let a strong breeze of air pass through and see how the leaves begin swinging all around the air. This happens because these leaves have scissor-like cells that cut them off the tree during Autumn. The cut is then sealed and so the water is preserved inside protecting the tree against cold winter weather.

Rake the Fallen Leaves

Those crisp dried autumn leaves look stunning till they are intact with the tree, but as soon as they fall, they can litter your lawn and can become a headache for garden owners. And it's not only about the clean look of your garden why you should rake and put off those fallen leaves, but it's also important for the health of your lawn. There can be different ways of blowing, each of which has different pros and cons. In addition to fallen leaves, other plants in your garden may cause you to clean up other debris well including pins, needles, and pods. All of this may take a toll on your busy working schedule – to save yourself of the same you need to consider growing less messy trees such as the Flowering Dogwood or the Arborvitae.

Deciduous Trees that Have the Best Fall Colors

While deciduous trees are well known for their deciduous nature, they are also preferred all around the world for their stunningly beautiful fall foliage. The show begins with leaf-peeping when leaves begin to change their color and heaps of nature admirers can't hold themselves back from admiring the same. Soon after that, they shed their leaves and what remains back is only a bare tree with its uniquely patterned branches exposed. These branches bloom again only when Spring arrives. Different deciduous trees display different-colored foliage that ranges from purple to red to golden to orange, and some even have bi-colored foliage. Some excellent deciduous tree specimens include the following.

1. Red maple
2. Autumn Blaze maple
3. Sugar maple
4. Maidenhair tree
5. White ash
6. Red oaks
7. American sweetgum

However, in contrast to the foregoing, some deciduous trees do not have very vibrant fall foliage. These trees include the following.

1. Silk tree
2. Katsura
3. Lombardy poplar
4. Silver maple
5. Catalpa

What Are Some of the Best Deciduous Shrubs

With a wide range of deciduous trees, it can certainly get difficult to choose the right one. Deciduous trees are broadly divided into two categories; those that do not offer nice autumn foliage and shrubs that have stunning autumn foliage. For compact gardens, growing small bushes with outstanding autumn foliage is a nice alternative to space-occupying large tree deciduous varieties like the Sugar Maple. Other shrubs like the Gold Mound Spirea also put on a nice display during spring. Some deciduous shrubs that offer show-stopping autumn foliage are as follows.

• Diablo ninebark
• Arrowwood viburnum
• Burning bush
• Stewartstonian azalea
• Virginia sweetspire

Moving forward from foliage, the following shrubs are grown for their pretty flowers and not for their fall display. By contrast, these deciduous shrubs are grown primarily for their flowers, not for the fall colors of their leaves:

• All Hydrangea shrubs except for the Oakleaf Hydrangea is a great fall specimen
• Butterfly bush
• Flowering quince
• Rose of Sharon
• Common lilacs
• Hardy hibiscus

Avoid Invasive Vines

Other than trees and shrubs, some vine plants can also be categorized as Deciduous or Evergreen plants. However, there are very few evergreen choices for the Norther areas, falling zone 6. And as is generally understandable, the stern ones that will retain their leaves the entire or most winter in colder regions will rather be invasive. Such specimens include.

• Wintercreeper
• English ivy
• Winter jasmine

Some deciduous vines, such as the Oriental bittersweet tree can also be invasive. It is important to exercise wise judgment before you choose the type of deciduous tree or vine to grow. Some of the best choices among deciduous vines include the Arctic Kiwi, also known as the Arctic Beauty – it bears astonishing tri-colored leaves during spring that are blended in tones of Pink, Green, and white.