Best Accent Trees
for Landscaping in Southwest Missouri
Feel like your garden’s missing something? An accent tree could be just what you need to give your landscaping that finishing touch.
Accent trees are slow-growing evergreen trees that maintain a small size, making them very low-maintenance.
They come in all sorts of colors, textures, and interesting shapes that make them perfect for focal points in the landscape.
Myron Royce Gardens has been landscaping in Southwest Missouri for over 30 years, and we’ve collected a list of our favorite accent trees for landscaping. We’ll share them with you below, along with other landscaping inspiration pictures.
Hinoki Cypress
Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Nana Lutea’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 4′
- Spread: 3′
- Growth Rate: 0.5′ per year
Gorgeous gold new growth against dark green old growth makes this tree look like it is glowing. Interesting ruffle texture.
Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Verdoni’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 8′
- Spread: 6′
- Growth Rate: 0.5′ per year
Naturally irregular growth form combined with golden foliage and interesting texture make this tree a fascinating focal point.
Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Compacta’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 6′
- Spread: 5′
- Growth Rate: 0.5′ per year
Deep green color with bright green new growth. Grows very slowly with interesting branch and foliage patterns.
Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Nana Gracilis’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 8′
- Spread: 6′
- Growth Rate: 0.5′ per year
Pyramidal growth with dense foliage.
The Blues Colorado Spruce
Picea pungens ‘The Blues’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: Highly Variable
- Spread: Highly Variable
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Weeping form looks like a blue waterfall of branches. Can be trained along a fence or wall, allowed to grow upright, or grow along the ground.
Weeping Norway Spruce
Picea abies ‘Pendula’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: Highly Variable
- Spread: Highly Variable
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Easily-trained tree can take any shape! You can grow Weeping Norway Spruce as an interesting, upright tree, or train it along a trellis to create a fence, or use it as a cascading groundcover.
Weeping White Spruce
Picea glauca ‘Pendula’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 15′
- Spread: 4′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Tall, narrow, stately tree with layers of weeping branches.
Alaskan Cedar
Callitropsis nootkatensis (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis)
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 25-40′
- Spread: 10-15′
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Flexible branches with flat, fern-like foliage have an elegant ripple effect in the wind. The tree grows in a pyramid shape.
Callitropsis nootkatensis ‘Green Arrow’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 30-40′
- Spread: 4-5′
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Tall, narrow tree with weeping branches.
Emerald Arborvitae
Thuja occidentalis ‘Smaragd’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 15′
- Spread: 3′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Tall, upright tree with dense, soft foliage. Good for landscape accents or for hedges and privacy fences.
Chinese Juniper
Juniper chinensis ‘Trautman’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 15′
- Spread: 4′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Tall and narrow tree with upturned branches that grows into an arrow-like pyramid form.
Juniper chinensis ‘Blue Alps’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 10-12′
- Spread: 6-8′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Short blue-green needles grow on upturned branches with weeping tips. Popular for bonsai and interesting shaping techniques.
Fukuzumi Japanese White Pine
Pinus parviflora ‘Fukuzumi’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 6′
- Spread: 12′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Highly variable tree with dense needle foliage that can be trained as a tree form or spreading bush.
Gentsch White Canadian Hemlock
Tsuga canadensis ‘Gentsch White’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 10′
- Spread: 10′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
White variegations on compact globose growth with thin, dense branches.
Holly
Ilex meserveae ‘Centennial Dragon’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 15′
- Spread: 6′
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Female Holly bushes produce red berries that remain through the winter. They are great for hedges or shaping as accents.
Ilex meserveae ‘Centennial Girl’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 12-15′
- Spread: 5-8′
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Naturally pyramidal growth habit, great for accents or hedges.
Conclusion
We hope you’ve found some accent trees for your landscape. If you did find one you like, Myron Royce Gardens can bring it to you and plant it in your yard. If you’re still undecided, we can come out to your property to give a free estimate and make a recommendation. You can also check out our list of best Evergreen Shrubs or Evergreen Trees for Southwest Missouri.
If you’re interested in our services, just give us a call at 417-443-2648 or contact us here.
For more landscape inspiration, you can view our portfolios here.
View more examples of Myron Royce Gardens tree nursery and landscaping:
About the Author
Myron Royce Gardens is a professional landscaping company based in Ozark, MO. We provide landscape design, installation, and maintenance services throughout the Springfield-Branson area.
We started this blog because we want to share our knowledge and expertise with everyone in Southwest Missouri. Landscaping is our passion, and we want it to be a pleasant experience for everyone.
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