nice house...and lawn! you couldn't go wrong with a good size (6-8 feet) Bloodgood Japanese Maple in your full sun location....the burgundy color would fit nicely in my opinion :)

Here is a link that might be useful: bloodgood

Blizzou, what area are ya in?

I am located in Central Iowa. Zip Code 50226 which is Zone 5.

Thanks for the reccomendation on the Japanese Maple. I'll have to run that one by the boss :)

Birches on left will grow much taller than maple, yet more prominent part of house is to the right - tree on that side should be, if anything, bigger-growing than birches. Otherwise, scene will be unbalanced.

Not necessarily. The 'Bloodgood' will create the illusion of a large mass - both by virtue of its dark coloring and its more visually heavy, spreading canopy. Visually the two areas should balance out nicely - the birches providing height to balance the opposing roof peak and the maple to offer an offsetting, grounding weight.

In landscape design, height isn't everything. Mass and visual weight play an equally important role.

btw, in zone 5, I'd opt for an Emperor I rather than the Bloodgood. Later to leaf out so less prone to late freeze damage. Otherwise pretty much indistinguishable.

What do you all think about a Princeton Elm for that location?

BTW, I have alkaline soil with a pH between 8.0 and 8.5. The soil is also about 30% sand so it drains well.

Do you have any features you want or don't want in a tree? Fall color, flowers, etc? How far is the current tree from the garage? You probably won't be able to plant in the exact spot. Even if you have the stump ground out, there will be other roots to deal with.

Without measuring, I estimate on google maps that the current tree is 15' - 18' feet from the garage. That could be increased to 20' - 22' feet if needed.

I would like a nice fall color (yellow, oranage, or a red on the brighter side of the spectrum).

I would like to avoid trees that produce large seed pods or trees that produce "helicopter" like seeds.

Thanks again!

There are some ginkgo trees that don't get too wide. Interesting leaves that turn yellow in the fall. Male trees don't smell. Very slow grower though.

On the right you could plant blue colorado spruce or Japanese maple ,on the left weeping willow :)