What's poor about the soil conditions?

How close to your house or other buildings will this tree be?

Do you want an evergreen for year round view blocking, or a deciduous tree? For shade I tend to think deciduous trees, especially up north, with a big crown.

Will the tree be planted on one of those long narrow 'islands' between sidewalk & street? If so, how wide?

You'd prefer 30 feet wide, not over 40 feet tall; a lot of trees will fall a bit short, or get a bit large. Just to compare 2 such potential examples, what about a red maple & a shantung maple? The red might eventually get a bit large, and the shantung might be a tad small, and take awhile to get the size you want?

Richard.

@ framboise
I presume you mean European Linden rather than Leyland.
You have a tough set of conditions to work with but Miyabe Maple sounds like a good match for you. Look for "State Street" miyabe maple.

Speed of growth is my major concern.
iforgotitsonevermind, yes sorry meant linden.
The miyabe is lovely looking... but growth rate is medium (would really like something to block the street view as quickly as possible)...do you know if the Linden is a fast grower ?
dricch, since it's on "city soil", I don't want to worry about maintenance...the soil seems poorly drained & ideally I would like something adaptable to a "worst case" situation, just in case. I prefer evergreens but am concerned with slow growth rates .

House proximity not an issue. The tree(s) would be planted along the side of the street (adjacent to the far end of my yard) landing area (20ft +). Shantung also lovely but a zone 6. I'm zone 5 to 4.
Any thoughts on the Regal elm?

Lindens have a moderate growth rate as well.

The elm does not meet two of your criteria, the part sun location and the 40' height preference. Elms need full sun and can easily grow to 60-90 feet.

Another one that might work for you is OCtober Glory red maple. Specifically October Glory. Ask for it by name. The reason being it is one of the fastest growing red maples and holds its leaves longer than most. Do not accept substitutes.

Fast growing in your zone - Tulip Tree (Liriodendron Tulipifera), Sycamore, and Sassafras (I think it will grow in your zone).

Honestly, I'd go with the Sycamore in your case. I don't understand why you would want such a short tree (wires overhead?) They are gorgeous, fast growing, and THRIVE all along the street here. You definitely have enough space for the Sycamore, since here they grow practically next to the road and are not maintained by anyone.

These are the three from which I am choosing to replace my Red Maples along the street - I do NOT reccomend Maples if you have poor drainage - they will rot from the roots up the trunk - I have had to cut down numerous Sugar Maples do to this, and the Red Maples along the street are totally stunted - they never grew properly (planted in 1997). The October Glory is pretty, but mine in the back yard is scraggley (fast growing, yes, wide - no).

As for Lindens, whatever you do, DO NOT get a Littleleaf Linden!!! They have HORRIBLE girdling roots. Make sure you get either a native American Linden or the European Linden. However, I'm not sure that they will grow fast enough (I love Lindens, but I need faster trees, and they do make a lot of sticky litter, so it is not great for people walking by).

Oh, you don't want bees? FORGET the Linden!!! The best honey is European Linden honey.

I'm personally going to plant a Tulip tree, but it is on my property, not the Village's. This is only because there are already so many Sycamores, and the Tulip Tree is native here, but nobody plants them. I'm trying to plant all native trees and shrubs now, since everything else has caused me major problems.

BTW: Watch out for Arborvitae Leafminers on those Thujas you just planted - they just decimated $1000 worth of my hedges. Now it will cost $250 to get them sprayed and MAYBE they will survive.

BTW: I feel your pain about privacy. 10 years ago the Village put a stop sign in front of my driveway and I've been trying to plant my way to privacy ever since.

@ natschultz

If by European Linden you mean Tilia cordata, It's the same tree as Littleleaf Linden.
Tuliptree doesn't make a good street tree. It's not hardy where the OP is located and if it was it would exceed their height requirement if it survived. Even down here where they are native and pop up in the flowerbeds, they don't do well as street trees or in parking lots.

Sassafras isn't hardy there either. But if the OP wanted a high maintenance crazy suckering tree I would have suggested any number of the cold climate birches and poplars.

And you mustn't lump the growing requirements for sugar maple along with red maple. Red maple grows in standing water, compacted clay, it's a tough proven tree for steet plantings or difficult sites.

Sycamore and the entire planetree group are my favorite trees. Unfortunately I couldn't recommend it for the OP because they grow to 3 times the maximum size stated by the OP and they make a mess requiring cleanup/maintenance.

This is why I said... tough set of conditions. Now if the OP is negotiable on anything that will open up more doors.

The reason I would prefer a shorter tree is that I'm trying to fill a space next to the row of hedges on city lot which is approx 30-40ft high...so I guess the intention is to ease this tree into the greenery without looking like it sticks out once it matures. Not a must though, if anything, I would compromise on height. I would also prefer a tree that's not too messy.

Sycamore looks beautiful but huge? How fast & how wide does it grow? Seems very tall too...thinking I could go 60ft tall but sycamore looks much taller.
Nat thanks for warning me about Arborvitae. Any thoughts on the thornless honeylocust?
Your input is great ...thanks everyone ....fully appreciate your suggestions.

Your climate may be different but sycamore grows 4-6' a year down here and can max out at 80-100 feet in height AND 60-80 feet in width. Although it's my favorite tree of all time and have at least 2 in my yard, it sheds bark constantly leaving you with year-round cleanup. The dinner-plate-sized leaves are easy to rake but can really be a job in the fall. If you get one that is prone to anthracnose, you will be raking all the time.

You need at least 6' wide street lawn.

Even still, it's not that great for privacy. They leaf out super late and super slow and are not that densely foliated.

As for honeylocust, it's an overplanted tree in the north, prone to a number of pests and diseases and leaves a lot of seed pods to cleanup. Aggressive surface roots can bust up sidewalk or driveways. It does not offer very good any privacy. It leafs out late, drops leaves early and the teeny-tiny leaves offer dappled shade at best. You can see right through the trees.

A picture would be worth a million gazillion words and may help to get the creative juices flowing.

Sycamore should have 8' tree lawn else the chance of sidewalk & street repair is great.

Choosing a tree is choosing tradeoffs. Fast-growing trees don't magically top out at 30 feet, and generally are messy.

Choose your tradeoff and go from there, as AFAICT the original wish list can't be met.

Dan

Dan what do you think about state street miyabe maple for this case?

iforgot:

That's a full sun tree. Dirr sez 40' (& stated Morton sez 'turbocharged growth' ) but the arb of origin sez eventually 40-50 & org of origin for that var. sez 50-60 feet.

Good tree, but not in the range of the original requirements in the OP, most importantly not an understory tree so full sun.

Dan

The sources I've seen say it's most likely going to top out in the 20-30' range but I did miss that part about it being full sun. Full sun for a maple!? Who'da thunk.

Thanks...value your input here. It's raining really bad today but I'll take pictures this week end & will try to upload...hopefully a picture will trigger a few more ideas.

OK, I just found a potential tree for you! How about a Black Alder tree? I was researching Nitrogen Fixing trees and found this, then I thought about you :)

http://advancedtree.com/tree_blackalder.htm
"The Black Alder grows vigorously and has a central leader tendency. Its leaves remain dark, glossy green late into the fall. The Alder converts nitrogen from the air into its own fertilizer, producing a growth rate of up to 6 feet per year. With a total growth of 60ft by 20 to 24ft, it can be used as a screen or shade tree. (For Screening and windbreak plant trees 6 to 10 ft. apart.) The Black Alder needs plenty of moisture to get established and will grow in heavily compacted soil if a moderate amount of water is available. Alder will grow in extremely wet conditions."

It grows in zones 4-7. I'm thinking of planting this in my side yard to replace a giant old Spruce that was uprooted during a Nor'Easter last month. I need some fast privacy and the soil is pure clay. 25 feet wide is perfect, and 60 ft. high isn't bad either. You will have a hard time finding something that fits your height requirement that doesn't require maintenance, so this seems to fit the bill best.

What part of "height no more than 40 feet" don't you understand? If the OP wanted a 60' tree, they'd have a whole list of trees to choose from.

And in addition black alders are messy and short-lived. And not partial shade unless you want leggy.

Dan

Here's a picture...

Let's try that again.

Here is a link that might be useful: Privacy needed (my yard)

The link is not working.

OK trying again

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:344957}}