trying to figure out a front yard tree(s) for a smallish lot

12 years ago

my house faces basically due west. in the afternoon, rooms against the front of the house get pretty warm, the glasses is physically hot to the touch. never mind the damage that the sun does to the house paint, etc.

for these reasons, and because i hope it would look good, i'd like to add a tree to the front yard. we have a smallish city lot.

you can see from the picture below that our neighbor has an old maple. it isn't looking so good and i will be surprised if it is standing in 10 or 15 years. it also offers almost no shade to us, because of the way the sun comes down. it offers lots of shade to his house, to give you an idea of the sun direction.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Our lot BEGINS where the white picket fence ENDS. so the yellow flowers are ours but the bush to the left is the neighbors. the lot line runs at an angle back and to the left: the playset in the background is on our property.

{{gwi:384571}}{{gwi:384573}}{{gwi:384575}}{{gwi:384577}}

If you click the picture it will take you to an album with nice full-size versions.

Does anyone have any suggestions both on species and placement? I feel like the house is decent looking so I wouldn't want the focus to be on a monster tree.

We will be in the house a long time. The site is basically full sun with some morning shade.

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Comments (14)

treebarb Z5 Denver
12 years ago
Nice place!
Where are you, what's your soil type and ph, what attributes would you prefer? Flowering, fruiting or neither? I'd say you're looking for a small tree to be placed on the left side of the yard, halfway between the property line and the house.

Barb
civ_IV_fan
Original Author
12 years ago
Barb,

Thanks! I am in southwest ohio (fairly warm zone 6a). I don't know the soil PH, i will test it later. I'd like something that shades the house and looks good. Flowering would be nice. I can't get my wife on board with the idea of a fruit tree. Especially if it flowered in the spring because all my native stuff doesn't flower until later. I don't necessarily need the tree to be "small" but I don't want it to look disproportionate and dwarf the house. My wife LOVES magnolia trees but I feel like it would just uproot the sidewalk and cause trouble.
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Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
12 years ago
My young Cornus controversa, Hymalian dogwood, is winning me over. Flowers, grows fast, seems to have some fall color. If not regular native Cornus florida dogwoods if they grow well around you.

In Ohio recently I saw soo many buckeye. Do you like? It is a tree I know little about.

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civ_IV_fan
Original Author
12 years ago
the black gum tree is beautiful. i'll have to look a little more into that one.
treebarb Z5 Denver
12 years ago
civ,
Here's a link to an Ohio State extension service fact sheet. I thought it'd be a good place for you to start. I haven't learned how to imbed the link, so you'll need to cut and paste.

http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1082.html

Come back and let us know what you like!

Barb
mustard_seeds
12 years ago
Nyssa sylvatica is beautiful, but the horizontal branching habit would not be good for your spot - there is not enough space. I think you want something with branches that are more upright habit. Also, the nyssa is pretty slow growing so it would be a very long time before it granted you any shade.
civ_IV_fan
Original Author
12 years ago
thanks everyone for your comments. i looked at the fact sheet you sent me Barb, thanks!

those most interesting to me:
Loebner Magnolia
Goldenraintree (Koelreuteria paniculata)
American Hophornbeam

Anyone have any thoughts on these species? Particularly the Magnolia, I love the idea of some early spring color out front when my native beds are still blah.
civ_IV_fan
Original Author
12 years ago
i just did a PH test on the soil. it is neutral to slightly alkaline. hard to tell from the colors exactly where it was but definitely not very acid.
Embothrium
12 years ago
Often a disease-resistant selection of flowering crabapple is a good choice for a modern smaller-scale site.
civ_IV_fan
Original Author
12 years ago
after extensive and still ongoing research, i think a crab apple will be the best bet. we haven't figured a variety yet, we'll have to visit some of the local nurseries and see what is available.

now what i am obsessing about is WHERE. I want to frame the house appropriately and tie the tree into a front yard that will eventually have no grass whatsoever. should the tree be closer to the street, the house, halfway? closer to the walkway to the front or the property line?

i'd be happy if the tree provided some shade and privacy to the front porch, but not at the expense of ruining the look of the house from the street

also notice the dogwood crowded up against the house. i am really wondering if it is going to be a problem in the next few years.

any thoughts are much appreciated, there are so many great eyes that post on this board.
whaas_5a
12 years ago
If you want fruit, Firebird is the one.
If you don't want fruit, Coralburst is the one.
treebarb Z5 Denver
12 years ago
How many feet is it from the house to the front flower bed? How many feet from the sidewalk that leads from the house to the neighbors property line to the left?

I'm not sure how you'd get the shading to the porch you want without blocking the view of the house from the street.

How does the sun travel over your house? What side of the house does the sun rise and set?

Do you want shading to the 2nd floor windows eventually?

Are their any underground utilities on the left side of the front yard?

I'm asking a lot of questions, aren't I!

I do like the three trees you chose, but don't have any of them, so I can't help you with their growing habits. I think a non-fruiting crab would be great too.

I guess I'm asking how large a height and spread would you like and what dimensions would be too big?

Is the dogwood at the back of the house on the left side?
scotjute Z8
12 years ago
Eastern Redbud would be another possibility.
Here's a link to a write-up at Arbor Day on it : http://www.arborday.org/treeguide/TreeDetail.cfm?id=6
whaas_5a
12 years ago
I'd didn't realize 'Leonard Messel' was also on your list.

One of my favorite mags. You can either limb them up over time or keep them looking more like a bush. They offer great texture season long.

This one is about 6 years old. That was my neighbors lilac that was in too wet of soil...I wanted to cut that thing down everyday I looked at it!

{{gwi:384579}}

trying to figure out a front yard tree(s) for a smallish lot

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treebarb Z5 Denver

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