We need some ideas for what kind of trees will be suitable for what we are trying to accomplish.

Our requirements are:

1) The tree must mature relatively quickly so that once we plant the new trees they will provided ample amount of shade to the deck in roughly 4-5 years.

2) We are not looking for a tree that will produce nuts like an oak will (acorns etc) that will fall onto the deck and surrounding areas.

3) We want a deep root not a shallow root that will show.

4) No evergreens.

here are some pictures, thanks ahead of time for any response.

showing the amount of shade the pears give

Also, do you want all three trees the same again, or are you open to planting three different kinds?

Karin L

Thanks for the followup. Our concerns for leaving the trees as they are is the risk of damage if the tree falls on the deck and worst on the house. They have fractures where on the trunk and from what I have read that once the black fractures start to show its only a matter of time before they start to split.

We are open to planting different kinds of trees, what do you have in mind?

thanks,

Sam

The problem is availability, with brings up the question of how you plan to approach tree acquisition. Approach A is to go to your local nurseries (skip the big box stores, please!), look at the trees they have in stock, and pick some. Approach B is to do some research (as you're starting to do here), identify trees you want, and then hunt them down, either by special order at your nursery, or by mail order if you have to. Mail order will often get you smaller trees to start with.

If you are going with approach A, there is no point in anyone recommending anything special since you will be buying from existing stock anyway. So you're best off to just research what the nurseries have.

If you are going with approach B, you could ask on the tree forum - that's what they live to talk about over there.

Another strategy issue is the idea of getting one fast growing tree, and two slow-growing ones, or vice-versa, and thus ensuring that replacement in the future will always be on a staggered basis, no bare stage to get through.

Karin L

Karin L

Yardviser, dogwoods are in the top 10 trees in this area. I didn't know that there were different colored ones. Will have to look into that.

inkognito, the multitrunk tree is a different tree. great optical illusion though.

That shrub is on the corner of the pool area which is about 60 fee from the back of the deck. In the second picture you can see the separation between the two trees. The triangle multi-trunk shrub is a shaped holly.

In the second picture you can see the crape murtles there. I wonder how big they would get if the pears were taken down and they could be in full sun?

The flowers are actually quite subtle in real life both in looks and fragrance, but the leaves make up for it (I'm a foliage person anyway, so at least I think so). The branch structure is lovely, very straight branches and consistent angles. It's also very tidy. The leaves stay on quite late into fall, don't do much colour changing, and then they're gone quite quickly. Granted, it's not above a deck so I might be missing something.

I don't know how big crepes get but I have to agree with Ink that from the perspective you've shown, a variety of canopy shape would look more appealing than three all the same. And incidentally, what would allow them to grow bigger is the relief from root competition of the pears, probably not sun alone.

I could also recommend Heptacodium, except it may be a problem with respect to bees. For me the fact that it attracts bees is a good thing, but might not be ideal on a deck. Mind you, in my yard the tree is close to the front porch and I can't say we have a bee problem. But again, this might be a smaller tree.

I have a bunch of young trees so in terms of long term experience I am not very useful. But I also enjoy my Parrotia.

Karin L

Super-fast growing trees frequently have weak branching structure--see "Bradford Pear". But,if you don't need a tree for the ages,think about a purple-leafed plum. There was one in the yard of this house when we moved in, and by the time it got black-knot fungus and we had to take it down, it was giving us a fair amount of shade. Say...four years? Same with the winter-blooming apricot.

Which leads me to echo what others have suggested...mono-culture may NOT be your friend if you are looking to avoid this situation again. Both the winter-blooming apricot and the purple-leafed plum got black-knot and had to come down. They are cousins, botanically. Mix it up!

I did think of one more possibility and it's another old flowering standard: Redbud. Beautiful...so many good qualities and not many bad ones. Some cultivars available.