You'll want to contact a few reputable tree companies out to talk about your situation and compare their answers. Look up crown thinning (not topping) so you have an idea of what needs to be done, but don't tell that information to the tree companies. When done properly you can hardly tell a properly thinned tree has been pruned at all. It also will depend on the kind of tree you own being that some trees are poor 'compartmentalizers' and may begin a slow decline caused from the large cuts and start rotting and dropping additional branches. In that case theres not much you can do short of removal or planting new trees in different areas.

My mother had several plant collections, she collected rare alpine plants, most of which were 2 to six inches tall, and I never did appreciate them, but I loved her Primula collection, odd gilded Victorian primroses, hose in garter prims, Japanese primroses, drumsticks and species. My first love in my own garden was the Lily, I loved the trumpet and oriental lilies for their rich deep scent. I lived with more than 200 different modern rosebushes for five years and only one was fragrant Double Delight, and I could not stand the gawky bare limbed growth habit of those H.T.s and Florries. THEN LUanne changed my life with one suggestion "since your'e looking for fragrance why don't you try growing Old Garden Roses ? I did and never looked back. I was enchanted to know that I could and would grow the white 'Rose of York' and the Lancaster Red Rose, cloned from descendants from the same plants that bloomed in medieval Europe. The white Musk rose that Shakespeare wrote so sweetly of, is in my garden now about to bloom. The history and mystery of Old Roses endears me to them, I love knowing that I see roses blooming that I grow the white rose of York, known since the 1400's in England, and that white rose and the red rose of Lancaster was likely to have been seen by both Shakespeare and the Tudor family back when knights fought in tournaments, and some people truly believed that unicorns might exist, the wild eglantine one sees in Queen Elizabeth 1's portraits, painted in the 1500's, are a symbol of virginity and I have held the wild eglantine in my hand, so small and frail and perfect, and smelled the welcome scent of its leaves on a moist breeze. - the rare and only yellow garden rose, brought from the middle east, seen in the paintings of the dutch masters was so rare in the 17th century that one painter had to wait months for a yellow rose bloom to appear in the marketplace, so he could fulfill his patrons request for a yellow rose in a still life. The many Tea roses blooming in my California garden, and the Banksiae have ancestors in China, and I would love to see them all in their native habitat. I love roses best with companions, the photo posted recently with hollyhocks and red Valerian in profusion with one Le Vesuve in the center is my idea of high beauty; lush colorful companions with a queen in the middle. O, Splendor, O, Joy!!! The leaves,up to 15 leaflets upon one stem, fern shaped leaves of Scotch Burnets, pleated rugosa folaige, the scent of the Incense Rose leaves, more strongly scented than many a flower of a modern rose, the flagon shaped hips of Alba Semi Plena, and millions of R. moyessi hips, hips as large as cherry tomatos on Magnifica rugosa, tiny sprays of black hips an ornament many Spinosissima roses, the lush grow of de la Grifferaie' blue-green leaves of the Alba roses, pretty arching growth of a pegged Hybrid Perpetual Ulrich Brunner fils' , and many scents of the different rose classes, , classic Damask, to the sexy scent of Tea roses has opened a world to me that I could not dream to comprehend before I knew of any rose other than 'Peace'. -and best of all, the people I meet at Old Rose events, and here on gardenweb that share their love of roses with me. Thank you all for sharing your beautiful writing, Lux

Interesting photos/tree, and very tropical looking too. For scent, almost everyone loves lilac but when I think of scent I think more of summer blooming plants which I can enjoy on warm summer nights sitting outside. For that I love Flowering Tabacco (nicotiana syvestris) easy to grow from seed though quite huge (3 to 5 feet high). I also love madagascar jasmine (Stephanotis floribunda) which I have as a vine growing on the deck and take indoors as a houseplant for winter. I just realized this year that Petunias also have a nice fragrance, if grown in quantity. This year I bought a gardenia which seems a bit difficult to grow (loses leaves, drops flower buds) the blossoms are very fragrant though I have to say it's nice but not my favorite fragrance (under the heading to each his own).

mla20fus, my favorite flowers are perennials, so I don't have to plant them every year. I also love Holihocks, (sorry, every plant needs loved by someone :),especially by an old outhouse or shed. I plant very few annuals, but I truely love breadseed poppy, especially the bright red ones. They bloom with the Shasta Daisy and really make a show. The daisies were all volunteer, but now that I know how they look with my poppies, they can stay. I also plant gypsoia (sp?) and moss rose every year, they too are worth the effort. Are your fall Asters the deep purple ones?