Are there any short gnarled and twisted trees that will grow great in a garden?

I'm starting a garden of plants with bright colors and cool shapes and I kind of got inspiration from reading about the garden at the Burrow as described in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. What's a really cool (and kind of spooky) gnarled up and twisted tree that would add a unique twist to a garden?

Are there any short gnarled and twisted trees that will grow great in a garden?
(1) Harry Lauder's Walking Stick (Corylus Avellana 'Contorta')





Also known as a Contorted Filbert or Hazelnut. This thing grows what are allegedly flowers -- the catkins which hang all over it all winter look like dead chicken feet with no bones. Then in the summer it sprouts smallish crinkly crepe paper leaves that sort of shiver and look cranky. It simply refuses to be upstaged by anything else in the garden.





Pics: http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/potd/2...


http://www.ars-grin.gov/ars/PacWest/Corv...


http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/im...








(2) Cork Screw Willow (Salix Matsudana 'Tortuosa')





Another tree which has beautiful twining curly branches and TRUNKS is the corkscrew willow. This fast growing tree has a slightly more vertical habit than the Walking Stick; though it bushes out somewhat, it can grow as tall as 50-feet with a width of 20-feet. This is not a short tree. It is deciduous, and its delicately contorted branches are beautiful against backdrops like the sky or water. Like the Walking Stick, its branches are useful in arrangements, though they tend to be longer and more vertical.





Pics: http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/im...








Twisted, gnarled trunks (like this willow - http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/im... ) take many years to develope! The corkscrew willow may be your best bet then, but select a specimen at the nursery that exhibits the twisting trunk in youth.





Contorted Mulberry: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consu...





Robina pseudoacacia 'Tortuosa' and 'Lace Lady' (Twisty Baby™) - These selections form small trees with twisted, contorted branches and stems. They are often grafted and usually do not exceed 10' in height. Flowering is sparse or non-existent. Their artistic stems may lend interest to the winter garden.





Contorted Quince





Fagus sylvatica ‘Tortuosa’ - Contorted European Beech - Extremely rare, this unusual tree has been difficult to locate for many years because of widely circulated pictures and publicity. The tree is very small growing with twisted and contorted branches that droop slightly at the tips. Unusual character is accentuated in winter when there are no leaves, and is especially noticeable when a dusting of snow covers the branches. Usually grows about twice as wide as tall, creating a wide spreading, flat-topped profile. http://ag.udel.edu/udbg/trees/trees/Fagu... Mature European Beech always have gnarly, interesting trunks, but esp. with 'Tortuosa'.
Reply:Try the corkscrew willow. You can find them at your local


nursery.
Reply:If you're after something short, do NOT choose the willow. The thing will end up huge, and they grow pretty fast. Could even pull your house down if it's too close.





Get the corkscrew hazel instead.