Trifoliate Orange/Hardy Orange
Citrus trifoliata
This unique shrub is native to china and usually something you’ll want to watch all year, but in the fall they produce a yellow, bitter (usually regarded as inedible) fruit about the size of a lime which creates a beautiful textural display of oranges, yellows, and greens which it get its name from. The tree is known for its persistence against cold temperatures, which allow the fruit to hang on after all the leaves have fallen, displaying a stark contrast between the fruit and the bare branches.
Location: Visitor Center parking lot and by the staircase leading down to the Visitor Center courtyard
Maple Collection
Acer
Maple trees are most notable for their fall changes as the leaves change from greens to eye-popping saturated reds, oranges, and yellows. There are about 128 species of maple trees primarily native across 4 continents and can easily be recognized by its palm-shaped leaves.
Hoyt Arboretum’s collection is part of American Public Gardens Association’s national maple collection.
Location: Maple Trail
Franklin Tree
Franklinia altamaha
Franklin trees are identified by their glossy, long, drooping leaves. In autumn, they produce white flowers with clustered yellow stamens which contrast the leave’s deep reds and purples. The flowers’ sweet scent is often compared to a honey suckle. This species is extinct in the wild and currently listed as endangered.
Location: Wildwood Trail near Vietnam Veterans Memorial
American Smoke Wood
Cotinus obovatus
Native to the Midwest, the American smoke wood gets its name from the shed flower stalks its most known for during the summer season. But in the fall, the tree’s egg-shaped leaves develop an astounding show of a watercolor-like display in greens, yellows, purples, oranges, and reds.
Location: Near the intersection of the Wildwood Trail and Hawthorn Trail