Festuca glauca - Blue Fescue
A Zone 5 grass, success rates in the landscape are not good

Fraxinus sp. - Green and White Ash
We are no longer going to stock Ash Trees (We have a few available for 2006 but it is the last of our remaing stock from 2005). There are several problems in the State of Iowa concerning Ash and we feel that we can not sell them any longer. See a salesperson for details.

Cornus florida - Flowering Dogwood
Zone 5b, too cold in the winters for this plant to survive successfully

Euonymus fortunei - Wintercreeper Euonymus - excludes var. coloratus
From Michael Dirr "not happy in Zone 4 unless provided snow cover or winter shade"
Major disease problems include powdery mildew, aphids, scales, and leaf spot
Do not like heavy clay soil

Hibiscus syriacus - Althea or Rose-of-Sharon
Zone 5, will live in parts of Des Moines but very unreliable, can become very frustrating - in a group of 3, the middle plant can die for no apparent reason

Ilex - Except Winterberry Varieties
Hardy for -20F, severe winter burn seen even in mild winters

Lonicera - Honeysuckle
Major problems with aphids, heavy suckering
Michael Dirr - "With wonderful viburnums to fill almost every nook and cranny of a garden this plant is headed for the recycling factory."

Pinus nigra - Austrian Pine
Succeptible to pine nematode transported by a beetle, can kill an entire tree in a matter of weeks, also susceptible to diplodia tip blight.

Pinus sylvestris - Scotch Pine
Succeptible to pine nematode transported by a beetle, can kill an entire tree in a matter of weeks, also susceptible to diplodia tip blight.

Platanus occidentalis - Sycamore, Planetree
Just gets too big, can easily grow in excess of 100' tall, also will constantly drop leaves and twigs, suffers from anthracnose, a disease spread by excessive moisture that often prevents the tree from fully leafing until June

Populus tremuloides - Quaking Aspen
Shallow root system making it very susceptible to storm damage, short lifespan, disease and insect problems

Prunus - Cherry
We carry Prunus cistena but do not recommend it, the entire group suckers heavily, can get black rot fungus, can easily attract bores and other insect problems, they have a short life span, their only good characteristic is the red/purple foliage, many Cherry trees are not hardy in Des Moines

Pyrus calleryana 'Bradford' - Bradford Pear
Bradford often develop tight crotches that can cause the entire tree to split during a heavy snowstorm or thunderstorm, however, there is a wonderful substitute available with the good characteristics of Bradford without the problems, Cleveland Select Pear

Quercus alba - White Oak
Very difficult to propagate and transplant, massive size makes in unrealistic for most residential landscaping. Use Quercus bicolor (Bicolor Oak) as a substitute.

Quercus palustris - Pin Oak
Iron chlorosis, a deficiency in iron, is a serious problem. Leaves yellow because iron is a major component in chlorophyll (the green energy making compound in leaves). Iron chlorosis reduces the energy production of the tree and causes it to slowly decline. This problem can be corrected but can become tiresome and costly