I think you'd be fighting suckers constantly.

Thanks for the response. Does ninebark sucker along the length of its roots? My other option would be to plant a small crabapple. These also sucker, some at the base of the trunk and some along the length of their roots. I was considering the ninebark because it's more attractive and crabapples seem to have problems with disease, even the ones that are supposed to be resistant to them.

How small a tree are you looking for? A crab would get much taller than 8-10 feet, but if you're looking for something in the 20-25 foot range, you'd have a lot of choices. A tree I often recommend for a patio is the Sweetbay Magnolia, M. virginiana--open, airy, and with a fabulous, soft fragrance when in bloom. I prefer multi-stemmed ones to the single. It's also possible to prune some Viburnums into somewhat tree-like shapes. V. lantana 'Mohican' and V. 'Allegheny' would be multi-stemmed, and could be 'limbed up' to make a 10-12 foot small tree. Some of the V. dilatatums might work this way too--'Erie' and 'Michael Dodge' for example.

I bought a standard diablo ninebark this spring. Really happy with it so far because its colour really stands out...like a shubert chokecherry without the large size, also more interesting shaped leaves and nice flowers and berries. There is no sign of suckering yet but maybe I'll find that to be a problem in a year or two. I think I'll just diligently snip them off at ground level if they do appear. I'm hoping that it will make it through the winter well. My ninebark shrubs always do so I assume this will as well.
Nelda