Native to New Zealand (and Australia, Asia, and Africa). Flowers are sweetly scented and seeds are coated with a sticky substance giving the plant its name, pitch-seed. All plants below can be seen growing in the New Zealand Forest in the Pacific Connections Garden. 1)   Pittosporum eugenioides               Lemonwood New Zealand’s tallest Pittosporum, P. eugenioides can reach 40 feet. Its yellow-green leaves with curly edges have a strong scent of lemon when crushed. 

1)  Clematis afoliata Native to the dry, eastern side of New Zealand. Now growing in our New Zealand Focal Forest. Eventually becomes a wiry mound with fragrant spring flowers. 2)  Hakea epiglottis Native to Tasmania and growing outside our Education Office. Hakea needs sun and dry, infertile soil. The round “stems” are true leaves despite their appearance. 3)  Phyllocladus aspleniifolius Another Tasmanian native, this tree prefers moist lowlands. 

1)  Itea ilicifolia                Holly-leaved Sweet Spire Native to western China Evergreen shrub growing up to 16 feet tall and 10 feet wide Bears fragrant racemes of greenish-white flowers in late summer and fall Located west of the Magnolia Collection near the south end of the Asiatic Maples 2)  Lomatia myricoides                Long-leaf Lomatia Native to New South Wales in southeastern Australia One of the hardier members of the Proteaceae Honey-scented white flowers are much visited by bees in summer Located across Arboretum Drive from the New Zealand Focal Forest 3)  Pterocarya stenoptera                Chinese Wingnut Native to China Deciduous tree to 70 feet or greater, with a trunk diameter as large as 8 feet Located west of Azalea Way, north of Loderi Valley 4)  Quercus vacciniifolia                Huckleberry Oak Native to western North America, mountains of the Sierra Nevada and southern Cascade Range Leaves and acorns are an important food source for birds and mammals within its native range. 

1)  Quercus gilva                    Evergreen Oak Native to China and Japan Reaches heights of 90-100 feet in its native range Located in the Oak Collection along the South Oaks Extension Trail 2)  Rhododendron calophytum           Beautiful-face Rhododendron Native to China Large species rhododendron capable of becoming a tree Located along trail between Loderi Valley and the Woodland Garden 3)  Sequoia sempervirons  ‘Cantab’                     Coast Redwood A cultivar of the coast redwood with unique needles Specimens vary in form from shrubby to tree-like Located in the north end of the Pinetum, along the Pinetum Trail 4)  Thujopsis dolobrata                    Hiba Arborvitae A Japanese native Capable of reaching 100 feet or more in Japan, yet large specimens are rare in the Seattle area Located along the south slope of the Woodland Garden 5)  Viburnum rhytidophyllum                    Leatherleaf Viburnum Native to China Large evergreen shrub recorded to heights of 30 feet Located along the trail through the Viburnum Collection 

1)  Cornus controversa           Giant Dogwood A rounded deciduous tree bearing spreading, tiered branches and alternate, elliptic leaves, C. controversa can potentially reach 40 feet in height.  White flowers are borne in large, flattened cymes in early summer.  Following the flowers, masses of deep red fruit develop, changing to blue-black. Native to China, the Himalayas and Japan, C. controversa is less cold tolerant than our native dogwoods.  

1)  Cytisus x praecox ’Luteus’           Warminster Broom This broom is a hybrid of C. multiflorus and C. purgans and is located on Arboretum Drive in the Legume Collection. Many of the brooms are blooming now or soon to bloom, including the pineapple broom, Argyrocytisus battandieri, whose fragrance earned it its common name. 2)  Erica arborea var. alpina           Tree Heath While non-alpine tree heath can reach heights in excess of 20 feet, the alpine variety is the “short” one, reaching only 10 to 15 feet. 

Opening Day crew races through the Montlake Cut, and the 1936 USA Olympic gold in rowing may never have happened without these following trees: 1)  Thuja plicata        Western Red Cedar UW’s world-renowned boat maker, George Pocock followed the lead of Native Americans and used this Pacific Northwest giant for the hulls of his Pocock Classics. The skin is made from a single plank of 3/32″ thick cedar and offers a combination of stiffness and springiness that eliminates the need for the extra weight of a hull. 

1)  Acer cissifolium        Vine-leaf Maple A three-leaf maple native to Japan. The extraordinary racemes of tiny flowers give the tree a cloud-like appearance. Located in the Asiatic Maple Collection. 2)  Acer rubrum        Red Maple This popular street tree is native to eastern North America. On this sample the petals have fallen, leaving the elongating peduncles and their tiny, immature samaras. Located in grid 3-5E on Arboretum Drive. 

Our Viburnum Collection is recognized as one of the top three national collections. Our taxonomic display currently is home to over 100 different kinds and 330 living specimens. [Description references: “Viburnums — Shrubs for Every Season” by Michael Dirr.] Here are a few samples of this diverse and ornamental shrub. 1)  Viburnum carlesii var. bitchiuense        Bitchu Viburnum Wonderfully fragrant flowers in early spring.