Hi amanda_t, from a fellow Kentuckian. I currently practice here in Scott County and in Louisville. I've lived and gardened in Nicholasville, Versailles, Lexington, and Paris. Which best approximates where you are in KY? You mention you occupy a "large urban lot." Give us an idea of what that means (since in NYC that could be a 1000 square feet): 1/4 acre, 1 acre, 2.5 acres? Lexington has quite a few properties near the middle of town with 5 acre parcels. If you have a 100+ year old ginkgo, do everything you can to preserve/protect that youngster against all potential damage from new work you intend. That is a plant to treasure. All that said, here's what I'd offer based on your initial set of likes: Beeches: There simply is nothing to match the grace and beauty of an American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) in most seasons. While it is not my favorite large shade tree, I can see where it is one to invest in and love for life. Much of my career in Louisville revolves around managing the historic and wondrous landscapes of the old parks that are blessed with fabulous specimens and thick forests of American Beech. Don't "settle" for an import. Maples for fall color: There are many native species (Sugar and Red Maples already mentioned) and myriad introduced species (Acer griseum, Acer triflorum, Acer palmatum, Acer henryi among them) that offer stellar fall color. Decide which category (large, intermediate, or small) that you'd like to invest in. None will be immune to ice damage; that is easy to observe around Lexington and Louisville. Catalpa: I agree with you on this one - it is too seldom used for its bold branch architecture and impressive leaves/flowers. People focus too much on "litter". I defy anyone to identify a tree that doesn't drop something at sometime. Biases indeed... Crabapples with pretty flowers: There are numerous excellent selections in this category. Pretty flowers are a given. Consider only selecting the highly disease resistant forms, and then decide if you want white, pink, or reddish flowers. Forms can be interesting, from the standard big rounded trees to erect, pendulous, weeping, and dwarf. Finally, the best combine all the above choices with small persistent fruit. This provides winter-long interest until spring leaf-out and/or arrival of the hungry robins to strip them. If you are serious about this species, I can provide a separate (long) list for KY. Redbuds and Dogwood: These are never bad choices. There are numerous fine performers for KY. Trees with wide stretching branches or shapely branches: Hmmm. This is hardest to answer, since it is rather open-ended. I'll second the votes for Nyssa sylvatica and Picea orientalis. These are two that there can't be too many of. I'll offer some tree ideas that haven't been mentioned previously above. Cercidiphyllum japonicum, esp. 'Amazing Grace' Gymnocladus dioicus Carya cordiformis Ilex opaca Abies nordmanniana Quercus michauxii Ostrya virginiana Franklinia alatamaha Halesia diptera esp. 'Magniflora' Viburnum rufidulum Asimina triloba Chionanthus virginicus Cladrastis kentukea It is interesting that no one above asked you what the site was like that you garden on. Some of the suggestions are outstanding - provided the growing conditions are good for that plant. Depending where you are in KY, white oak may be a rather poor choice. It doesn't occur often in the inner Bluegrass region, preferring instead the somewhat more acid soils surrounding this area. The favored trees of the Bluegrass landscape include Quercus macrocarpa, Quercus muehlenbergii, Quercus shumardii, Gymnocladus dioicus, and Fraxinus quadrangulata. I do and would continue to plant any/all of these (and spit in the eye of EAB).

When would be a good time to get the trees and shrubs planted this year? I was thinking of having the plant material bought by the end of Augustor beginning of september and having it laid out in the area by the end of September to mark the spots to plant the treee/shrubs in and then have it planted by the middle of October. Does this sound like a good plan or should I wait for it to get colder before I plant the trees/shrubs?

Entling, after reading about Pagoda dogwood I was smitten. Beautiful form and nice flowers and berries. I ordered 40 native seedlings from a nursery in NH, including 10 Cornus alternifolia. But these are going to be little baby 1-2 year old seedlings! I'm impatient and want to buy something that's already 6 feet tall at least. Gcreek, height is not so much an issue, but width is (this location is about 8 feet from the driveway). Something that grew about 15-20 ft high would be great but not as wide. Red chokeberry is probably too short and shrubby (but great for the other side of the yard!) Cornus florida would be beautiful but would probably eventually get too wide. Amelanchier seems to grow more vertically than laterally. Kind of a rangy multi-stemmed habit, but maybe with good pruning it could be shaped nicely. I also read that it casts fairly light shade and has well behaved roots and perennials can be planted underneath (which is good because I already have peonies circling this burning bush).

Beyond that it's anyone's guess. It's not as simple as tree A will live to age X and tree B will live to age Y. Trees also don't just stop growing at some designated height or spread. You can find averages for these aspects, but while I'm pretty sure a parrot will outlive a dog, I don't know how old each will be with precision. I'm not sure what your goal is ... you said you plan to recommend these trees to lots of people. Are you trying to landscape a subdivision or something? Are you wanting to plant a single type of tree in every site? What is this list for? I'm not familiar with tons of varieties of evergreens, but whether something can come down without climbers or bucket trucks isn't solely dependent on size. The neighbor's last ailing tree (40'ish cherry) could have been dropped across our yard ... if we didn't mind it destroying our perennial garden and cobblestone paths; a bucket truck was brought in. Their current dead tree (50'ish hickory) is capable of hitting houses or wiping out the street, or it could kill several other trees on its way down if felled ... it will also need a bucket truck. The 35' branch that had to be removed off one of our 75'-100' white pines was removed by suspending it off of the pine itself and two nearby oaks and lowered (thankfully not just dropping on all the understory trees it was looming over). There were aerialists and a little vehicle (pulled lines and hauled log chunks) but not bucket truck on that removal. Our Eastern Red Cedar is about 35' tall and it was probably 20'ish in the early 80s, no idea how old it is, but we do know it's been hit by lightning twice (and had its top reshaped). Every mature tree on our property, except the serviceberry, requires an aerialist or bucket truck to prune. For a while the Bradford pear (no commentary on its existence, please) could be pruned with a pole, but it needs a bucket truck too now that it's probably 25'-30' tall. It was the last holdout. So I wouldn't count on any tree never requiring a bucket truck or climber. The birds love our yew shrub (we hate our yew ... though if it didn't have to be pruned multiple times a year/was in a different spot it might be more acceptable). They also love forsythias and quince, though. There's definitely nests in the cedar, and I'm pretty sure several of the oaks, maples, and cherries have nests in them. It depends on the bird what tree they'll build in. One word about hedge style planting, my grandfather planted a hedge hemlocks, and they were great and beautiful until one in the middle had an issue. It's nearly impossible to replace a tree that's 25' tall and planted tightly, and the two on the sides of the hole lacked green towards the hole because they had previously been growing into the missing tree. I don't recall whether they took down the whole hedge or moved and the next owners did it; the hedge no longer exists. Price of tree ... what's your definition of small?