Carpinus caroliniana Firespire®
Upright and tight with lovely orange-red fall color
Firespire® has excellent density and a free branching habit. After ten years, the original plant, which was transplanted twice, was 7 feet tall and 3½feet wide. At 25 years old, after transplanting for a third time, the original plant is 15’ tall by 10’ wide. Firespire® is hardy to zone 4, with testing underway to see if it is viable in zone 3. The plant is very useful as a large hedge or screening plant, as it can easily be prevented from infringing on living space with minimal pruning. It will grow in full sun to full shade, developing its best orange-red fall foliage coloration in high light situations.
The species is sensitive to quick freezing low temperatures to its root system, so mulching is highly recommended for all plantings. Single-stemmed plants may be useful as street trees under utility wires but must be in low-salt-use locations. Firespire® is not tolerant of the heavy use of roads salt.
Propagation of the plant is done by grafting onto Carpinus caroliniana seedlings. Plants grafted onto Carpinus betulus have proven to be inadequate for use in SE Wisconsin.
Who Am I?
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Common Name:Firespire musclewood
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Botanical Name:Carpinus caroliniana 'JN Select Upright' Firespire®
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Type:Tree
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U.S. Native:YES
Cultural Details
TYPE
U.S. NATIVE
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Full sun
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Average garden soil
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Moist, but well-drained.
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4-8 (possibly zone 3)
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early summer
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green to white
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Fall
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greenish-brown
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7' tall by 3.5' wide after 10 years, 15' tall by 10' wide after 25 years
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None known
What Makes Me Special?
Landscape Use
Origin
Firespire® Musclewood was selected by Michael Yanny at Johnson’s Nursery, Inc. in 1993 from an upper midwest U.S.A. provenance seedling crop. The tree was chosen for its narrow, upright form and outstanding orange-red fall color. It is pretty similar in size, scale, and form to Cornus mas ‘Golden Glory’.
