First, all trees have litter. Evergreen trees (like Sumac, Ficus, pine, etc.,) produce litter nearly every day, all year long. Deciduous trees lose their leaves during a two to three week period in the fall/winter and are done 'till the next year. So, your choices will depend on whether you can tolerate leaves (and/or seed pods) all year or for a brief period.

One tree that does well in a lawn situation as long as it is deep watered occasionally is the Chinese Pistache. This grows into a stately tree about 30 feet tall and wide, perhaps a bit bigger. It's big draw, besides the shade, is its brilliant fall color. It is one of the few trees that gives you the reds and oranges.

Another choice could be the Sissoo (Dalbergia sissoo), or Indian Rosewood. It has a more vertical growth habit than the Pistache and is considered semi-evergreen, losing some of its leaves in January only to leaf out again in March.

A tree I especially like is the Chitalpa (Chitalpa tashkentensis) which produces clusters of slightly fragrant, tubular, light pink flowers all during the warm months that hummingbirds love. It is sterile and therefore does not produce seeds. It is deciduous in the winter and would allow the sun's rays to warm your home when its chilly outside.

Evergreen Elm (Ulmus parvifolia) is a good shade tree with small dark green leaves. It produces small papery seeds that do not blow in the wind and do not need to be raked in a lawn situation. It is semi-evergreen and has interesting jigsaw-puzzle bark.

I would not recommend ash, cottonwood, or pecan due to their excessive water needs.

I hope this helps. Others may have more suggestions.

i second the sissoo tree! i planted three of them two years ago and they have doubled in size if not more in that time. they are low litter and i have had no problems with them yet. i really enjoy them and wished i would have planted them sooner instead of the some of the other trees in my yard.

sissoo tree is a good choice. My neighbour planted them next to my wall and they have grown 6 foot taller in a year. They grow fast and our yards have bad clay/caliche soil.

My neighbors have two ficus trees in their lawn on a Western exposure. They are slower growing but they seem to tolerate being in a lawn well and have very low litter and an attractive growth habit and refreshingly bright green leaves.

Note: Most desert natives do not do well in lawns because they need deeper, less frequent water to develop roots strong enough to sustain them through monsoon storms.

Thanks for all of the suggestions. I think I have narrowed it down some but I still need help. A deciduous tree would be great since it is western exposure and we could get sun in the house windows in the winter so that leaves out the ficus. Since it is in the lawn it needs to be able to handle lots of water. We water our lawn every other day in the summer and every third day in the fall/winter/spring except for the short period of time that we overseed. I like how the Evergreen Elm is both tall and wide more of an umbrella shape but I had heard that it can be iffy if planted in grass. Does anyone have any experience.

I also like the Sissoo and the Chinese Pistache. I like the fact that the Sissoo is more fast growing than the Pistache but I like the color of the Pistache. Is one of these more of an umbrella shape than an upright.

I have not been able to find our much about the Chitalpa but it still could be an option. I would love to do a drive and find some of these trees to see what they look like mature. I live in North Phoenix/Scottsdale.

Thanks for your help.
Allison

I do not recommend a Sisoo...they are pretty but as they grow older they become very messy. Shed great amounts of leaves especially if subject cold.Nice when young but not when older.