LandscapExperts Tip of the Week, August 13

Understanding Plant Sizes

American Standard for Nursery Stock

This is a set of guidelines for growers and wholesale nurseries that helps them to standardize the sizing and description of trees, shrubs, roses, bulbs and plant material. Using these measurements ensures that a 3-gallon or a 3-inch caliper plant will be similar in size across nurseries. As well, they can assign different grades to indicate the quality of plants. Crabapple LandscapExperts choose large, robust plants for your installations.  .

Trees

Trees are graded by height, pot size, or if field-grown, larger sizes are graded in caliper inches (diameter of the trunk at breast height or DBH)

Shrubs

Shrubs are graded by height or pot size. Each type of shrub has standard measurements (low spreading, tall upright) 

Roses

Roses are graded by the number of canes

Bulbs

Bulbs are graded by circumference