What Are the Best Trees to Plant in Your Front Yard?

When you’re thinking about planting new trees in your front yard, you’ll have to take a number of factors into consideration. Are you adding trees to your landscaping strictly for curb appeal? Do you need more shade on your property? How close will the trees be to your home? Below, the team at Rick’s Certified Arborists shares our picks for some of the best trees to plant in your front yard, along with what they’re best used for.

Best Trees to Plant in Your Front Yard

Bloodgood Japanese Maple

Acer Palmatum Atropurpureum Bloodgood is a stunning Japanese Maple with year-round appeal. The leaves are a deep, purple-tinged red in spring and summer, then turn to a brilliant scarlet in the fall. These trees grow slowly and won’t get any larger than 20 feet, so they can be planted relatively close to your home to provide both visual interest in your landscaping and a bit of shade for your front porch.

White Oak

White oaks are large, strong trees with short trunks and impressive horizontal limbs. They can adapt to a wide range of soil types, although they prefer deep, moist, and well-drained locations in a front yard. White oaks are an excellent choice if you’re looking for a tree that provides beautiful fall colors, and because they’re slow growing, they need little pruning (why hire an arborist for pruning).

Paper Birch

There’s something a bit magical about the Paper Birch, with its elegant white bark and yellow fall colors. If you have soil that tends to be damp, a Paper Birch will thrive in your yard, and its peeling, papery bark gives the tree visual interest year-round. The only downside is that Birches have relatively short lives, but because they can grow up to two feet a year, they’re a good choice when you want to fill in a space quickly.

Sun Valley Maple

Maple trees are always a classic for a front yard, and this variety is a stunner. It’s also a multitasker—in addition to adding curb appeal, Sun Valley is fast-growing, provides good shade, produces no seeds, and is resistant to Leafhoppers. If you don’t want to add a huge tree to your yard, Sun Valley is a good choice because it only grows to a height of 20 to 25 feet.

White Fir

White firs are hardy evergreen trees with fragrant blue-green needles. These slow growers are easygoing and tolerate a wide range of conditions, which makes them a favorite for urban landscaping. Planted in a grouping, white firs can be used as a windbreak, for a border, or to create more privacy.

Beech Trees

Looking for a tree that offers spectacular fall colors? Consider a Beech tree. Fagus Sylvatica Var. Purpurea, also known as the Purple Beech or Copper Beech, is one of our favorites. To make even more of a statement, choose the weeping branched Fagus Sylvatica Pendula or Fagus Sylvatica Purple Fountain, which has a cascading form and purple leaves.

Eastern Redbud (Cercis Canadensis)

With bright pink flowers on bare branches, the Eastern Redbud is a sight to behold in the spring. This tree is a complement to any landscaping, and its size makes it a great centerpiece for a front yard garden. You might be surprised to learn that the Eastern Redbud is related to the Pea plant, and both its flowers and its young legumes are edible.

Schedule a Consultation With Our Certified Arborist

Contact Rick’s Plant Health Care today to schedule a consultation and learn more about the best trees to plant in your front yard and the difference between an arborist and tree service.