Winter 2026 Brings New Trees!
Thank you to the City of Portland for planting five new trees along the northern edge of Alberta Park! They were chosen because they are species known to do well in our Pacific Northwest climate. In this location the nearby Douglas firs will give them some protection from full summer sun.
What are the trees?
The Victoria southern magnolia has year-round foliage (evergreen) and beautiful white fragrant flowers. It may grow as tall as 90 feet in wetter climates at maturity. It has lovely, smooth, rust colored bark in the winter. It can also live to 200 years!
The Goldenrain tree has long hanging chains of golden flowers in late summer. It is an interesting shaped tree, because its branches tend to grow out and hang down and have this deeply furrowed bark with orangish-colored furrows as it matures. It will grow to 25 to 30 feet.
Another short, very showy tree for later in the summer, the Pink dawn chitalpa is a really interesting tree. It is a cross between a desert willow and a Catalpa which are in different genuses. The majority of crosses are between species which are more closely related than genuses. It has beautiful pink catalpa-shaped flowers and long, slender willow-shaped leaves. It blooms mid June through the end of August.
The Cascara buckhorn is an Oregon native. It will grow to 35-40 feet tall. Notable for its beautiful yellow to red foliage in the fall, it supports a variety of wildlife with deep purple berries. It is often found growing in the understory in coastal forests from California to British Colombia.
The American Hophornbeam is a very hardy tree native to the southeastern United States, hence the name Ostrya virginiana. As you can see, it's got lots of teeny, tiny little branches, and very dense, small leaves. It is rather slow-growing, likely topping out at 30-40 feet. They are a great street tree as they have a strong single trunk and narrow canopy.
We will celebrate these new trees with signage and acknowledgement at the April 25th event (mark your calendars).
