North Dakota State University
NDSU Extension Service

TREES and SHRUBS of North Dakota (continued)

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Deciduous Shrubs

COMMON BUCKTHORN -- Rhamnus cathartica

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Leaves: Subopposite, simple, dark green, oval, serrate, arcuate venation.

Buds: 1/4-inch long, slender, sharp pointed, appressed to twigs, reddish brown.

Twigs: Tan on current years growth, but dark gray on old twigs; ends of twigs modified into thorns.

Fruit: 1/4-inch in diameter, a blackish juicy drupe-like fruit containing one to four seeds.

Bark: Dark gray, fairly smooth.

The Shrub: This introduction from Europe is the alternate host to the crown rust of oats. Birds have widely distributed the seed, however, and the plant is very common in old groves. A highly invasive, weedy species. The similar Dahurian buckthorn has leaves of the same width, but about three times as long and usually lighter green in color. A closely related tree of the West Coast furnishes the bark from which most of our organic laxative is extracted.

Wildlife Value: Fair, food (fruit, stems, foliage, twigs) source for upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

SILVER BUFFALOBERRY -- Shepherdia argentea

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Leaves: Simple, opposite, densely silvery-scurfy on both sides.

Buds: Small, silvery.

Twigs: Slender, stiff, silvery-scurfy or brown, quite thorny.

Fruit: Red drupe when ripe; fruit is found on older branches. Male and female flowers occur on separate plants.

Bark: Gray.

The Shrub: Native to many of the drier areas of the state but usually found in ravines and coulees, this shrub is only of minor importance in shelterbelt plantings because of its susceptibility to heart rot and wind breakage. Occasionally growing up to 15 feet high, it forms impenetrable low thorny wildlife cover. The fruit is used for jelly.

Wildlife Value: Good, food (fruit) source the year round. Used by upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals and small mammals.

PIN CHERRY -- Prunus pensylvanica

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Leaves: Simple, alternate, finely and sharply serrate.

Buds: Small, blunt, brownish, smooth.

Twigs: Slender, reddish brown to gray.

Fruit: Light red drupe ripening in August.

Bark: Reddish brown, thin, peeling horizontally in broad papery plates.

The Shrub: Usually a shrub with a tree-like habit of growth. Native to the northern and eastern part of the state. Under favorable circumstances it may reach the height of 25 feet and a stem diameter of 8 inches. The open pyramidal crown makes it easily recognizable from a considerable distance. The fruit makes the finest of jelly.

Wildlife Value: Excellent, summer food (fruit, buds, bark, wood, foliage) source to over 80 wildlife species including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

CHOKECHERRY -- Prunus virginiana

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Leaves: Simple, alternate, finely and sharply serrate with prominent glands on the petiole.

Buds: Quite large, pointed.

Twigs: Stout, light brown to dark reddish brown, somewhat mottled. Inner bark with strong disagreeable odor.

Fruit: Drupe borne in racemes; black when ripe.

Bark: Dark gray.

The Shrub: Although found in all parts of the state along streams, ravines, and native woodlands, this shrub is also widely planted in shelterbelts. The fruit is a favorite for jelly making. Many enemies, including "X disease," "black knot," "shot hole disease" and several insects have discouraged the planting of this species, but its popularity remains. It is recommended that it be planted at least 500 feet from other stone fruits as a precaution against the transmittal of "X disease." Red-purple leaved forms are sold as `Schubert' (Canada Red Cherry).

Wildlife Value: Excellent, cover and summer food (fruit, buds, bark, wood, foliage) source to over 80 species of wildlife including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

SHRUBBY CINQUEFOIL -- Potentilla fruticosa

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Leaves: Alternate, pinnately compound with usually five dull green, hairy leaflets.

Buds: 1/8-inch long, reddish brown.

Twigs: Reddish brown with somewhat shreddy bark.

Fruit: Globose, achenes persisting into winter.

Flowers: Yellow, about 1 inch across; like single roses, blooming throughout the summer into October.

The Shrub: This is a compact, fine-textured shrub 1 to 4 feet high, widely used in landscape plantings. Susceptible to red spider mite in dry weather. Many excellent cultivars.

Wildlife Value: Fair, food (seeds, foliage) and nectar source for insects, upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

HEDGE COTONEASTER -- Cotoneaster lucidus

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Leaves: Alternate, simple, entire, with very short white hairs on the margin. Brilliant autumn colors develop.

Buds: Small, brown, stipulate, irregularly short.

Twigs: Slender, reddish brown, irregularly scurfy.

Fruit: Berrylike pomes, mealy, red to black, about 3/8inch in diameter.

Bark: Reddish brown.

The Shrub: The dark green glossy foliage, resistance to blister beetles and grasshoppers, and retention of leaves late into the fall are characteristics contributing to the popularity of this shrub as a landscape plant. It is susceptible to oyster shell scale, a small sucking insect that spends most of its life beneath a protective scale. It is also susceptible to fire blight so the popularity for hedges and shelterbelt use is waning. It is best to use individual plants in the landscape.

Wildlife Value: Good, cover and fall food (fruit) source to over 30 wildlife species.

AMERICAN CRANBERRYBUSH VIBURNUM -- Viburnum trilobum

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Leaves: Simple, opposite, acuminately three-lobed, variable in size.

Buds: Reddish brown, stalked, blunt with caplike scales; buds appressed to twig.

Twigs: Moderately stout, light brown.

Fruit: Drupe occurring in large clusters, red when ripe; seed flattened.

The Shrub: Abundant in wooded areas of the Turtle and Pembina Mountains, it is native to moist sites of the state. The highly colored and edible fruit commends it for use as an ornamental in moist shady locations. The bark has medicine value and in past years was widely collected for that purpose. It displays brilliant leaf colors in autumn.

Wildlife Value: Excellent, food (fruit, wood, twigs, foliage) source to over 30 wildlife species including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

REDOSIER DOGWOOD -- Cornus stolonifera

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Leaves: Opposite, simple, with smooth margins; the veins tend to parallel the leaf margin.

Buds: Long, pointed, reddish.

Twigs: Slender, flexible, red.

Fruit: A white drupe ripening throughout the summer.

The Shrub: This large spreading shrub, usually 6 to 9 feet in height, is native to the wooded areas of the state. The white inedible fruits, red stems, and nicely colored leaves are attractive, so it has found favor as an ornamental. It will flourish in shady moist areas. Superior dogwood species and cultivars are available for landscapes.

Wildlife Value: Good to excellent, food (fruit, wood, foliage, twigs) source to over 40 wildlife species year round, including waterfowl, upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

ROUND-LEAVED HAWTHORN -- Crataegus rotundifolia

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Leaves: Alternate, simple, doubly serrate, glossy upper surface.

Buds: Round, small, reddish brown, glossy.

Twigs: Reddish brown to gray, stiff, moderately stout.

Fruit: A red pome ripening in the fall.

Bark: Gray.

The Shrub: Native throughout the state in ravines and wooded areas, it is usually a shrub 10 feet or less in height. The fruit is not consumed by humans but is sought out by birds who find that the numerous slender thorns, up to 2 inches long, form an effective barrier to predators.

Wildlife Value: Excellent, cover and food (fruit, buds, wood, twigs, foliage) source to many wildlife species. Flowers provide nectar for hummingbirds. Used by upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals, small and hoofed browsers.

BEAKED HAZELNUT -- Corylus cornuta
AMERICAN HAZELNUT -- C. americana

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Leaves: Simple, alternate, double serrate.

Buds: Small, reddish brown.

Twigs: Slender, reddish brown.

Bark: Reddish brown.

The Shrub: The beaked hazelnut or filbert is a small shrub rarely more than 6 feet tall and is found throughout the state in naturally timbered areas. The similar, but usually smaller, American hazelnut pictured on the right is probably more common and differs from the beaked hazelnut in that the fruit does not have the long beak and the current year's twig is densely covered with short red hairs. The American hazelnut fruit is often roasted and eaten but the beaked hazelnut has bristly hairs on the fruit and is usually left alone.

Wildlife Value: Excellent, food (catkins, nuts, stems, foliage, twigs) source to over 20 wildlife species including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

TATARIAN HONEYSUCKLE -- Lonicera tatarica

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Leaves: Simple, opposite, smooth margin.

Buds: Small, tan, pointing out from twig.

Twigs: Smooth, slender, tan-colored, with hollow pith.

Fruit: Red or orange berry containing a few seeds; usually united at the base in pairs; ripens in August.

Bark: Gray, sometimes shreddy.

The Shrub: This shrub, an introduction from Siberia, was a widely planted ornamental and a popular shelterbelt species. Under shelterbelt conditions it rarely exceeds a height of 8 feet, but as a specimen plant it may exceed 12 feet in height. The beautiful flowers and colorful but inedible fruit made it a favorite around farmsteads. Damage from the Russian aphid now severely limit its usefulness and only resistant cultivars, such as `Arnold Red' and `Honey Rose,' should be planted.

Wildlife Value: Fair, source of food (fruit, foliage, branches) and nectar to many butterflies, upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals and hoofed browsers.

JUNEBERRY -- Amelanchier alnifolia

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Leaves: Simple, alternate, serrate above the middle.

Buds: Sharp, reddish brown, the scale borders often with short, white hairs.

Twigs: Reddish brown.

Fruit: Dark blue berry-like pome, containing many seeds; ripens in July.

Bark: Light brown or gray.

The Shrub: A shrub up to 10 feet tall, the Juneberry, also called saskatoon and serviceberry is native to ravines, river banks and wooded areas throughout the state. The widespread use of the fruit for preserves has caused many people to express a desire that it be used as a shelterbelt shrub but inadequate drought resistance has prevented widespread planting. Cultivars producing larger berry size are gaining recognition and u-pick orchards are in production, particularly in Manitoba.

Wildlife Value: Excellent, summer food (fruit, buds, bark, twigs, foliage) source for over 50 species of wildlife, including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

COMMON LILAC -- Syringa vulgaris

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Leaves: Simple, opposite, smooth-margined.

Buds: Large, stubby, pointed, divergent from the twig, green to reddish brown, usually two buds at the tip.

Twigs: Stout, reddish brown.

Fruit: Small, woody capsule liberating two or more seeds in the fall.

Bark: Gray.

The Shrub: Another introduced species, the lilac is also widely planted both as an ornamental and as a shelterbelt shrub. The fragrant lavendar-purple flowers lend color and essence to the North Dakota landscape in late May. Many improved nursery hybrid cultivars do not have the objectionable suckering of the common lilac. It is similar to honeysuckle in size and growth habits.

Wildlife Value: Good, source of cover and nectar for butterflies and bees.

AMUR MAPLE -- Acer tataricum ssp. ginnala

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Leaves: Opposite, simple, three lobed, remotely serrate; center lobe long.

Buds: Small, reddish brown, pointed.

Twigs: Fine, reddish brown.

Fruit: Schizocarps, similar to boxelder.

Bark: Relatively smooth, gray to reddish brown.

The Tree: It is sparsely found in shelterbelts because it is sensitive to herbicide spray drift, iron chlorosis, and is not very drought resistant. The reddish fall coloration makes it popular as a specimen plant. Several compact as well as red-seeded cultivars are now available for landscape plantings, including `Bailey Compact', `Embers' and `Red Wing'.

Wildlife Value: Good to excellent, summer cover and food (buds, twigs, seeds, flowers, bark, foliage) to wildlife including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

SIBERIAN PEASHRUB -- Caragana arborescens

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Leaves: Pinnate compound, alternate, margins of leaflets smooth.

Buds: Small, light-colored, pointed, with sharp stipules on each side.

Twigs: Slender, yellowish green, with stipular spines.

Fruit: Pod which liberates several seed in July.

Bark: Gray or green, smooth.

The Shrub: A rapid-growing, hardy, drought-resistant introduction from Siberia, it is probably the most widely planted shrub in the state. It is subject to defoliation by grasshoppers and blister beetles but such attacks do not kill the shrub. Under favorable conditions it may get 15 feet high but usually not over 8 to 10. Many old hedges of this species were planted and when properly trimmed will persist for over 25 years, but become very leggy.

Wildlife Value: Fair to good cover to wildlife.

AMERICAN PLUM -- Prunus americana

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Leaves: Simple, alternate, sharply serrate with prominent veins.

Buds: Small, reddish brown, often three at a node.

Twigs: Slender, reddish brown, some thornlike.

Fruit: A large red or yellow drupe when ripe.

Bark: Dark gray, scaly on old trunks.

The Tree: This large shrub or small tree is native to many parts of the state. It is also widely planted in shelterbelts because of the fruit which is extensively used for jelly, jam, and preserves. It is thorny, branchy, and forms an effective refuge for wildlife. It can sucker objectionably under cultivation.

Wildlife Value: A food (fruit) source and cover to several species of song birds, fur bearers and game animals.

Nanking cherry (P. tomentosa) has similar leaves but they are smaller and very hairy. This small unarmed shrub is sometimes planted for its tasty red fruit, but is sometimes short-lived.

Nanking cherry is used in farmstead windbreaks for aesthetics, fruit and wildlife. It provides cover and food (fruits, buds, bark, wood, foliage) for wildlife, including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

POISON IVY -- Toxicodendron radicans

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Leaves: Compound, with always three entire margined or irregularly toothed leaflets. The color may vary from light to dark green to red in the early fall.

Buds: Not evident.

Twigs: Not evident.

Fruit: Round, shiny, white or greenish white drupe 1/4- inch in diameter.

The Plant: This plant is included because it can cause so much grief to unwary individuals who make physical contact with any part of the plant at any time of the year. Usually less than 2 feet tall, it can be found in wooded or brushy areas throughout the state. It is often confused with wild sarsaparilla but the latter has finely serrate leaflets in threes or fives while the poison ivy leaflets are entire or unevenly toothed and always in threes. Thorough washing with strong soap immediately after exposure will often prevent the severe dermatitis which may send some particularly sensitive people to the hospital.

Wildlife Value: Fair, food (seeds, leaves, stems, foliage) source for some wildlife species including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

SILVERBERRY -- Elaeagnus commutata

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Leaves: Simple, alternate, undulating, densely silvery-scurfy on both sides.

Buds: Small, reddish brown, scurfy, close to twig.

Fruit: Silvery drupe with mealy flesh; ripens in August.

The Shrub: A native throughout the state on a variety of sites including open prairie, this branched unarmed shrub is usually from 3 to 6 feet high and can readily be distinguished from a distance by its silvery foliage. While occasionally planted as an ornamental, it is not used in shelterbelts because of its characteritic small size. It forms thickets due to suckering growth habit.

Wildlife Value: Good to excellent, cover and food (fruit) souce to upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals and small mammals.

VANHOUTTE SPIREA -- Spiraea x vanhouttei

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Leaves: Alternate, simple, with rounded teeth and often appearing lobed.

Buds: Small, inconspicuous, rounded.

Twigs: Fine, often arching, glabrous, reddish brown.

Fruit: Inconspicuous follicle 1/4-inch in diameter.

Bark: Reddish brown.

The Shrub: This upright spreading hybrid shrub is often used for landscaping near buildings. The clusters of small white flowers open in late May. The twigs and leaves are fine in texture. Occasionally, the plant may need rejuvenation by pruning back severely, but if soil and moisture conditions are good, recovery is rapid. Threelobe spirea (Spiraea trilobata), one of the hybrid parents, is a superior landscape plant.

Wildlife Value: Good, food and nectar source to butterflies, bees and moths; hoofed browsers.

SMOOTH SUMAC -- Rhus glabra
STAGHORN SUMAC -- Rhus typhina

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Leaves: Alternate, pinnately compound, serrate.

Buds: Small, rounded, located under the base of the petiole.

Twigs: Stout, brittle, hairy on the staghorn and glabrous on the smooth.

Fruit: A dry drupe borne in a tight, red cone-like cluster about 3 inches long.

Bark: Smooth, gray.

The Shrubs: Both have a ferny texture with coarse twigs and are usually planted in back yards where the unusual growth habits lend variety to the landscape scene. The leaves assume brilliant red colors in the fall. Both sucker. Attractive cut-leaved cultivars are available. Smooth sumac is very hardy. Staghorn sumac usually freeze back in the Northern Plains.

Wildlife Value: Excellent, winter food (fruit, bark, twigs, foliage) source to over 50 wildlife species including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

Evergreen Trees

ROCKY MOUNTAIN JUNIPER -- Juniperus scopulorum
EASTERN RED-CEDAR -- Juniperus virginiana

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Leaves: Of two types on the same tree; scale-like and awl-like, with the scale-like usually predominating.

Buds: Inconspicuous.

Twigs: Fine, usually covered with scale-like needles.

Fruit: Blue or blue-black, berry-like cone requiring one or two seasons to mature.

Bark: Dark reddish brown, shreddy.

The Tree: The Rocky Mountain juniper pictured on the left and the Eastern red-cedar on the right are similar but have the following differences:

Rocky Mountain Juniper Branches definitely ascending Fruit requires two years to mature Foliage remains bluish green in winter Point of facial needles just meeting diamond above Under bark red

Eastern Red-cedar Branches nearly horizontal Fruit matures in one year Foliage turns purplish-brown in winter Point of facial needle entering into diamond above Under bark grey

Both trees are somewhat difficult to germinate and transplant but are very drought resistant and long-lived. Both are widely planted in shelterbelts. The Rocky Mountain Juniper is native to the Badlands but the taller and more rapid growing Eastern red-cedar is not native to the state. Both yield excellent rot-resistant fence posts. Dwarf forms from other species commonly planted as ornamentals are Savin and Pfitzer junipers.

`Medora' is an excellent, popular columnar selection of Rocky Mountain Juniper used for landscaping.

Wildlife Value: Good to excellent, cover and food (fruit, twigs, foliage) source for upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

LIMBER PINE -- Pinus flexilis

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Leaves: Five needles per fascicle (bundle) persistant as long as five years.

Buds: 3/8-inches long, ovoid, sharp pointed.

Twigs: Extremely flexible, hence the common and scientific names.

Fruit: The scales are fairly thick, woody and roughened on the tip of the scale. The seeds are large with very small or lacking wings.

Bark: Thin, smooth and silvery white on young stems but dark brown and scaly on old stems.

The Tree: This native to a small area west of Amidon and next to the Montana line has distinct possibilities as an evergreen for the state. It seems out of place on the prairie because it is usually found near timber line in the western mountains. It is hardy to low temperatures, thin soils, wind, and short growing seasons. Both eastern and western white pines also have five needles per fascicle, but their needles are finer textured and usually longer. It is susceptible to white pine blister rust, limiting its usefulness in eastern North Dakota.

Wildlife Value: Fair, cover and food (seeds, needles, bark, foliage, twigs) to wildlife including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

PONDEROSA PINE -- Pinus ponderosa

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Leaves: Two or three needles per fasicle (bundle), persistant until the third year.

Buds: Large, pointed, brown.

Twigs: Stout, exhaling a turpentine odor when bruised.

Fruit: A rather large cone containing two seeds under each scale and requiring two seasons to mature.

Bark: Brown to black and furrowed on young vigorous trees; yellowish brown and broken up into scaly plates on old trees.

The Tree: Although a large timber tree in the western U.S., this tree rarely exceeds 2 feet in trunk diameter in North Dakota where it is native to a small area in the Badlands. Widely planted as a shelterbelt species because of its high drought resistance and persistance in growth, it probably will increase in popularity. A rather difficult tree to successfully plant bare root; it grows slowly the first years after planting, but then will grow at a moderate rate.

Wildlife Value: Good to excellent, used for cover and food (seeds, needles, bark, foliage, twigs) to many wildlife, including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

SCOTCH PINE -- Pinus sylvestris

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Leaves: Two needles per fascicle (bundle) persistant about three years.

Buds: 1/4-inch long, pointed; scales free at tips.

Twigs: Slender.

Fruit: The scales have raised bumps on the back. The cones stay green until late October. The seeds are winged and quite small.

Bark: The flaky orange-brown bark of the upper bole is the best recognition feature. The ridged bark of older stems is not so distinctive.

The Tree: This introduction from Eurasia has many forms and colors because of the varied conditions of its geographic range. The tree is very popular as a Christmas tree and its rapid juvenile growth encourages its use for shelter and landscape. It is not as drought resistant as Ponderosa pine but equally winter hardy. Jack pine (P. banksiana) is quite similar, but its needles are shorter and more divergent, the bark is not orange-brown or flaky and much less attractive for landscape use.

Wildlife Value: Fair, cover and food (seeds, needles, bark, foliage, twigs) to wildlife, including upland game and song brids, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals, and hoofed browsers.

BLACK HILLS WHITE SPRUCE -- Picea glauca var. densata

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Leaves: Fairly sharp, four-angled needles.

Buds: Sharp, light reddish brown.

Twigs: Fine to stout, light brown, with needles growing on peg-like projections that remain on the twig after older needles have fallen.

Fruit: Tan, scaled, flexible cone maturing in one season, with a smooth, rounded edge on the cone scale.

Bark: Scaly, brownish black.

The Tree: The least drought resistant of the commonly planted evergreens in North Dakota, this tree is very popular because of its conical shape, good color, rapid growth, and ease of establishment. Many of the large evergreens in the northern and eastern parts of the state, where it grows well in shelterbelts and as an ornamental, are of this species. Red spider, readily controlled by miticides or forceful spraying of water on the tree, and spruce budworm are enemies that occasionally damage the tree. Resistance to Rhizosphaera needle cast and Cytospora canker is far superior to Colorado spruce.

Wildlife Value: Good to excellent, cover and food (needles, bark, seeds, twigs) for wildlife including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

COLORADO SPRUCE -- Picea pungens

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Leaves: Longer, sharper, more rigid and often more blue in color than on the Black Hills white spruce.

Buds: Rougher and usually larger than on the Black Hills spruce.

Twigs: Stouter than on Black Hills spruce, tannish brown.

Fruit: Larger and lighter colored than Black Hills spruce and with erose margins to the cone scales.

Bark: Similar to Black Hills spruce.

The Tree: This tree has been the most popular ornamental evergreen in the state and plays an important role in shelterbelt plantings. Its greater drought resistance more than compensates for its slightly lower ease of establishment so it became more important than the similar Black Hills spruce. The two can be distinguished at a distance by the denser growth habit of the Colorado spruce and the fact that the upper branches come out at right angles from the trunk on the latter but at an angle pointing slightly upward on the other. Attractive blue-needled cultivars are available at nurseries and often planted as specimen trees. Unfortunately, many trees are dying due to susceptibility to Rhizosphaera needle cast and Cytospora canker. Space sufficiently to allow proper aeration between trees. Fungicide sprays are also recommended.

Wildlife Value: Excellent, used for cover and food (needles, bark, seeds, twigs) source by over 30 wildlife species including upland game and song birds, fur bearers, game animals, small mammals and hoofed browsers.

Contents | Deciduous Trees | Deciduous Shrubs | Evergreen Trees | General Identification Information

For more information on this and other topics, see: www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu

EB-38 (Revised), August 2003

NDSU Extension Service, North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Science, and U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. Sharon D. Anderson, Director, Fargo, North Dakota. Distributed in furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914. We offer our programs and facilities to all persons regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, age, Vietnam era veterans status, or sexual orientation; and are an equal opportunity employer.
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