Parks, Recreation & Leisure

Parks, Recreation & Leisure / Parks & Forestry

Landscaping Tips

Selecting the Ideal Small Tree
April and early May is the perfect time to celebrate and plant trees. When most of us think about trees, it’s typically images of large stately shade trees like oak or maple. With smaller yards however, it may not be feasible to plant and successfully grow large tree species such as this.

Always consider the site conditions where you wish to plant a new tree before selecting the tree. It is essential to plan for the mature size of any plant when considering placement. In cases where space is limited – by a nearby tree, house, fence, or sidewalk – a small tree less than 30 feet at maturity is the best choice.

There is enormous variety to be found among the categories of small, medium, and large tree species, which is fortunate for us, or the landscape would be very dull indeed.

Each tree species has a typical set of characteristics and behavior that makes it unique. To help you find the trees that meet your specific situation, the Parks & Forestry Division has recently upgraded its section of the City’s Web site to offer many informative and educational links about trees, horticulture, our parks and programs. Just click here for more details.

With help from the Upper Arlington Tree Commission, the website features details of our Street Tree Program, and offers excellent advice on site considerations and placement. Here you can view lists of recommended street trees, with each species linked to descriptions and photos on other websites.

One such list consists of excellent small street tree species, such as Crabapple, Amur Maple, and Japanese Tree Lilac. These trees are chosen for their proven ability to grow and withstand the harsh environment that exists along the street, and for their smaller, more narrow growth habit. While any of these trees will work for the small space in your yard, here are some other choices to consider when a tree can be planted further away from the street.

Carpinus caroliniana (American Hornbeam) is an underused slow growing native tree. Mature height and width is 20-30’ and it is noted for its smooth, hard gray bark, resembling American Beech. While not always consistent, when grown in the open it can have a lovely rounded form.
Carpinus caroliniana grows natively as an under-story tree, often in low-lying areas. Given enough sun, the tree has an outstanding orange-red fall color but it also makes for an ideal small tree for a shady, moist location.

Another excellent native species for shade is Halesia tetraptera (Carolina Silverbell), a shrub or small tree that usually achieves 20-30’ in the landscape. The bark is an interesting black gray streaked and scaly combination. The tree is known for its unique white bell-shaped flowers that appear in clusters in the spring.

Cornus kousa (Kousa Dogwood) is my preference in dogwood species. Kousa Dogwood grows 20-30’ tall and is more drought-tolerant than our native Cornus florida. The tree, often multi-stemmed, has outstanding exfoliating bark, showy white flowers in June, pendulous red fruit, and red fall color. Cornus kousa prefers moist well-drained soil in full sun or part shade.

Symplocos paniculata (Sapphireberry) is usually found as a shrub, reaching 10-20’ high and wide. Sapphireberry doesn’t have impressive bark or fall color, however it has creamy white fragrant flowers in late spring and showy blue berries in the fall. Sapphireberry is an under used, often hard to find plant that has the best fruit display of any of the fruiting shrubs. It’s adaptable and easy to grow in full sun or part shade.

Nurseries are in the business of selling and marketing plants similar to a fashion boutique selling clothes. The outfit may look great on the model, but that doesn’t mean it will look the same on you. Purchase a lovely blooming shrub based on the fact that your site meets the growing requirements and mature size of the plant. Both you and your plants will be much happier. Celebrate spring and April, the perfect time for planting with success.

Parks & Forestry Division
Parks & Recreation Department
City of Upper Arlington
3600 Tremont Road
Upper Arlington, OH 43221
Phone: 614-583-5340
www.ua-ohio.net