Evergreens

Highland Hill Farm
Po. Box 517
Fountainville, PA 18923
Call in an order at 215-651-8329
Email Us Your Order

Evergreens We Offer!!

Evergreens are very important to any landscape. Not having evergreens in a landscape can make for an empty cold look. Placing evergreens in a landscape provides greenery and fullness in the winter. In addition, evergreens are the only choice for a visual block of neighbors, roadways, and eyesores such as air conditioning units. Not only that, evergreens are important to many animals such as little birds and rabbits. Little birds are constantly being harrassed by hawks and evergreens provide great hiding places from such firce preditors. Not only that, evergreens shelter birds from freezing winds. They accumulated in evergreens in the winter and they sing in happiness of their new shelter to anyone who wishes to hear them.

Hollies at Highland Hill Farm

There are many different types of hollies and many have traits that are great for use in landscapes. Some hollies such as the Ilex Skypencil Holly do not have spines on them. Others have mean spines such as the >Ilex 'Dragon Lady' Holly....Noted for deer resistance!!!!

We have available 20 different types of hollies at Highland Hill Farm. See How We Dig and Our Efforts in Producing Many of Our Trees and Shrubs. Although most often associated with Christmas, hollies are used to good advantage in gardens as specimen trees or foundation plantings providing attractive decoration the year round. This feature of year round interest is complimented by fresh wreaths that can be made from trimmings at Christmas.

Do you need help in planning or selecting a Plant? Why not email us a picture of the site and let us give you choices for your landscape? We can also have Jamie Hirst our in house designer give you a free landscape plan based on the photo. Just let us know
what kind of plants you prefer...Evergreen...Natives...Flowering and he will do the rest.

See more of our evergreens here

Hollies of Highlandhill Farm

We stock at least 100 or more varieties of Evergreens at any one time. There are many more varieties available which we sometimes have in stock. If we don't stock the variety you want we will find it for you if possible. We can deliver and plant most our stock anywhere on the East Coast. See How We Dig Many of Our Arborvitae. Some varieties that we usually have on hand are listed below. If you don't see what you want, call us at 215 651 8329 or if you have any comments, please E-Mail Us

Other Great Evergreen Selections!!

See our photo gallery of Arborvitae at our farms

My son Michael with our 'Bakeri' Blue Spruce

This is one of the deepest Blue Spruces we have. This ornamental spruce is 4-5' tall and is a very slow grower.

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This is a top grafted Montgomery Blue Spruce on a standard. It is slow growing and mounded in shape. Pricing: 1-9 $130ea., 10+ $90 ea.
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Junipers at Highland Hill Farm

About our Arborvitae Shrubs

Hollies of Highland Hill Farm

False Cypress of Highland Hill Farm

White Pine Trees

Viburnums of Highland Hill Farm-We raise some evergreen viburnums

Boxwoods at Highland Hill Farm

Blue Spruce Trees at Highland Hill Farm

Canadian Hemlock Trees We Grow

Cryptomeria at Highland Hill Farm

Fir Tree Seedlings and Transplants at Highland Hill Farm

Evergreens for Screens and Buffers

Spruce Trees

Hemlock Trees

Pieris at Highland Hill Farm

Rhododendrons at Highland Hill Farm

Dawn Redwoods Our Tree of the Month

Okay campers: This tree proves that scientists don't know when a tree is extinct. Fossil records showed that this tree was extinct for 35 million years, yet this deciduous conifer fooled them all until 1945 when it was rediscovered in a remote valley of Central China in 1945. Dawn Redwood or The Dinosaur Tree, is officially called, "Metasequoia glyptostroboides". The Dawn Redwood first came to America in 1945 in seeds and has shown to be viable in zones 6 to 8. This tree grows fast and can reach 75 to 100 feet by 25 feet in diameter. It likes full sun to partial shade and is tolerant of moist to dry soils with ph ranges of 3.7 to 7.0. Go ahead and plant it in clay soils, loam or sand. Its bright green, feathery, needle-like foliage will turn brown and will drop quickly in the fall. Thus this plant will be suitable for a great summer screen or a specimen plant.
This plant is great for a Hort 101 beginner. It is easy to grow, pest free, adaptable, grows fast, and has soft bright green needles, and of course we have hundreds of 3-4' plants ready for your landscape.
Did you know that the Black Hills Spruce tree may have been named for the Black Hills of South Dakota, but no, the Ponderosa Pine was not named after the Cartwright's ranch along the eastern shore of Lake Tahoe in the popular TV series, "Bonanza." The Bonanza series originally ran from 1959-1971, and now we Hirsts, me, Marjorie, my dad, and my sons, all occasionally watch the reruns. Westerns, TV and movies both, never seem old or out-dated because they're set 100-plus years ago to begin with.

So, can you guess how the name was created for the Ponderosa Pine tree? We'll give you a hint, it's right there in the name Ponderosa... The Eastern White Pines which covered Pennsylvania, including our Bucks county, could grow incredibly tall, up to 150 feet. The Ponderosa Pine could reach over 200 feet. That's more than huge, that's immense, no, gargantuan, why that's ponderous! It was actually the English Botanist of the early 1800's who helped explore and catalog America's trees, David Douglas who named the Ponderosa Pine.

Douglas, hmmm, what tree could have been named after him...? Douglas Fir is a visually striking evergreen tree that can grow to over 200 feet tall "out west," ranging from the Rocky Mountains of New Mexico all the way north towards the Arctic Circle of Canada and out to the Pacific coast. Douglas Fir has such a vast range, that's why it is the single most important timber tree of all. When we buy lumber, it's mostly Douglas Fir.

Douglas Fir grows especially well in snowy wet high altitude climates which are actually warmer than here in Bucks county. Although Eastern White Pine trees are native to Bucks County, and will grow more readily, the unique three-fingered forked branches, or "bracts," of the Douglas Fir can add aesthetic interest to your landscaping design. Here in the northeast, 130 feet is the tallest Douglas Fir trees can grow.

How'd the Douglas Fir get its name? For David Douglas, a Scotsman who came to search the botany of then exciting and new western America in the early 1800's. Alexis de Tocqueville came from France to search for democracy. It seems there were Europeans who came just as Americans did, to search the "new" west, from Lewis and Clark's famous excursion Thomas Jefferson commissioned, to John Wesley Powell's search for geology in the Grand Canyon, in short, people have always been searching in America. David Douglas catalogued several hundred species of trees, shrubs, and even flowers, like the Lupin (or Lupine).

The Red Fir, which is actually not even a Fir tree, but a pseudo-Hemlock, or "Pseudotsuga," was also known as the Oregon Spruce and the Oregon Pine. (Awfully confusing don't you agree?) Finally, it was named in honor of David Douglas. Keeping on with Douglas names, maybe Douglas Fraser gave the name to the Fraser Fir. Hmmm.

The Fraser Fir is a singularly distinctive specie of evergreen tree, or "conifer," as the trees which don't drop their leaves (needles) and stay green all year 'round are properly called by tree scientists. Do you know what tree scientists, in turn, are properly called?

They're "botanists."

So, why do botanists find the Fraser Fir so singularly distinctive? Because the Fraser Fir is the only fir tree which comes from the southeast. It is endemic, or "native," to the southern Appalachian Mountains. The Fraser Fir is considered to be the best-looking Christmas tree with its silvery green foliage and often perfectly conical shape with a pointed crown .

Douglas Fir trees are named after David Douglas, but Douglas Fraser did not get the Fraser Fir named after him, although this Scot was a great labor leader (Chrysler, 1960's and 70's, then, president of the United Auto Workers, 1977 to 83). Simon Fraser was a Scottish lad whose family moved to Canada from Vermont. He explored and mapped British Columbia's wide and wild river which meets the Pacific at Vancouver and so the Fraser River was named after him. The Rocky Mountains of our Pacific northwest and Canada have so many Pines, Spruces, Redwoods, Firs, etc., but where did the one fir specie of the southeast get its name you want to know already? It was named after yet another Scotsman! An explorer named John Fraser, following the Revolutionary War's end, introduced the Fir tree he found in the mountains of the Carolinas to the countries of Europe.

The Balsamic Vinagrette salad dressing we get actually does come from this tree, the northern equivalent of its very similar "southern cousin," the Fraser Fir of the southeast's Appalachian mountains. How is it that the tree is used? Probably the needle leaves are pressed and the squeezed out juice becomes Balsamic Vinegar, right? Wrong. Squeezed Balsam Fir needle juice is just Balsam Fur needle juice. Darn. We're sorry.

Vinegar comes from the souring, rotting, decomposition, or "fermentation" of fruits like apples and grape. Fermentation turns sugars into ethanol alcohol, the first stage being vinegar. Ohhh.

Wine vinegar which is aged in barrels, or "casks," of Balsam Fir wood will come out as Balsamic vinegar. The lower slopes of northern Italy's Alps, the "subalpine climate zone," provided Balsam Fir trees for the casks which were first used centuries ago to create special flavors of vinegar from the grapes used for "sherry," the sweet desert wine.

Ahhh.

Balsam Firs don't grow especially well here in Bucks county, even though these are supposed to be a northern tree species. Our climate is just not "subalpine" enough. The Fraser Fir of the southeast will grow better here, believe it or not. Best conifer of all for Bucks county, of course, is our native Eastern White Pine. Balsam Fir trees do make a great Christmas tree. They are the traditional favorite in America, the best-seller up until 1975, with the strongest aroma of all. So if you must buy a fir, and you are from Bucks County, Make it a mink.

Economics of Growing Christmas Trees and Nursery Stock

Growing any crop involves risk of capital and time. No one can give you back your time. You can always earn money just by putting your captial in the bank and waiting. When you put your money in plants, your returns can be terrific. Where else can you invest a dollar and in afew years get 20, 50, and more dollars back in return? Yet many people fail to determine whether they really can make these huge profits and if they are real. You should review your investment opportunities before you invest. There are other uses for the land that you should consider. Only then can you make an informed decision.

The nursery market does experience numerous peroids of over production. Durring these peroids discounting is a method of selling stock durring these times. On our farms, our land cost was almost nil so when we harvested a crop we culled out stock and left trees in the field to grow to larger calipers than we planned to harvest in order to sell to large tree transplanting services. We realized premiums for these trees. Some trees were left in areas we wanted for recreational hunting. We then allowed some customers to hunt there. These customers become loyal and send us referrals. This is where going trees an hobby farming get blurred. We always treat our activities as a business but try to keep our customers as friends.
Try to monitore your costs for various species as a bank would. You will have to make assumptions as to future expenses. Many people don't do this because they are just not confident that they will have accurate projections. Organizing costs into groups helps one see where costs are and help get handle on projections.

office costs
fertilizer
insurance
labor
taxes
chemicals for weed and pest control
expected time from planting to harvest
cost of stock
estimate of tree loss
site work
equipment
cost of funds outlayed

We feel lucky if we can harvest 70% of what we plant. If your area is with a high deer count (over 10 deer per square wooded mile) you may not be able to grow trees without deer fencing. This can be quite costly. In Pennsylvania you can get help from the game commission in erecting fencing. The State buys the fence and the grower erects it to the Commissions standards.Click here for details

Did you also know that we are located near Doylestown Pa and Milan Pa.? On our farms you will find a large assortment of trees plants and shrubs. We have many from seedlings and whips that are ready to plant or line out to large 2, 3 and 4" caliber trees that are B&B. Email us with your questions and Mark will find you an answer, hmmm....

Information about our Locations

Order seedlings from us or large plants. Call us to discuss your needs. We help the beginners to find the best seedlings and we offer advice on types to buy for those who want to start to grow seedling. On our farms we raise and sell nursery stock from seedlings to large caliber trees. We also offer infomation on the web ABOUT SEEDLINGS , and how to CARE for seedlings and nursery stock. If you buy your seedling from us you will have access to the free use of our planters.We have three types available for use and have had years of experience in planting seedlings. Our PLANTING EQUIPTMENT is located in Doylestown and Milan Pa. We are dedicated to helping you with your plant needs. You will find ARTICLES we have written to help you and explain how we do what we do. We will be glad to assist you. We welcome everyone to come to our farm, if we have time we will give you a tour and show you how we built up our nursery. There are no trade secrets to our operation and we feel that in helping you we will become sharper ourselves. Our phone number is 215 345 0946.

If you have any comments, please Email Us

Planting Instructionsfor our trees.

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Arborvitae - Were Ready To Load Your Truck! We May Also Be Able To Deliver and or Plant For You!!!

Yes, we have the ability to deliver and plant most of our trees and shrubs. We can deliver to most areas and in many cases we have the staff to plant the stock for you. We can also sell and intall watering systems to help you maintain and establish your plants. Call us at 215 651 8329 ... or if you have any questions, please Email Us . My email address is admin@Zone5trees.com

You can see pictures of the foliage of some of our trees here....
Emerald Green Foliage
Green Mountain Boxwood Foliage
Leyland Cypress Boxwood Foliage