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Woody Ornamentals

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Horticulture: Plants for People and Places, Volume 2

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Abstract

Woody ornamental plants are the backbone of massive horticultural industries. They provide the basis for the retail selling of plants through nurseries, garden centres and increasingly supermarkets and multiple retailers. Equally they provide the foundation for all urban, peri-urban and rural landscape designs. These are the horticultural products which bring pleasure, leisure and relaxation to populations worldwide. Here is a sector where impulse buying results in considerable price elasticity. Purchasing plants in the retail sector is a pleasurable event and not governed by cost. This chapter provides a major review of the science and technology which supports this sector of horticulture. It has developed very substantially over the last 50 years. Applied science and technology has provided whole new avenues for propagation, husbandry, nutrition, pest and pathogen control and vastly expanded the range of plants available. Realisation is now developing that some plants despite their attractiveness can become invasive, even noxious weeds. As a result, researchers have devised ways to create seedless woody ornamentals from plants that are weedy, invasive or produce toxic fruits, as was the case with the recently publicized fruitless ‘Anna Bela’ tung tree (Aleurites fordii) (Rinehart et al., Hort Sci 48:123–125, 2013). The future for woody ornamentals looks bright. Although there are challenges to providing plant materials that will meet the needs of customers, the woody ornamental industry will continue to grow and flourish into the foreseeable future, enriching the lives of future generations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, University of Nebraska, 68583-0724, Lincoln, NE, USA

    Paul E. Read & Christina M. Bavougian

Authors
  1. Paul E. Read
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  2. Christina M. Bavougian
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Correspondence to Paul E. Read .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. GreenGene International Hill Rising, Sherborne, Dorset, United Kingdom

    Geoffrey R. Dixon

  2. School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, The University of Queensland, Lawes, Queensland, Australia

    David E. Aldous

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Read, P., Bavougian, C. (2014). Woody Ornamentals. In: Dixon, G., Aldous, D. (eds) Horticulture: Plants for People and Places, Volume 2. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8581-5_2

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