Choosing The Best Fast Growing Shade Tree For Your Yard.
 (Read 500+ times)
By Glory Lennon
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Being an extremely intelligent person, you already know that planting a shade tree in your yard #1, is great for the environment, #2, increases the appeal and value of your home and #3, saves you 15-35% off the cost of cooling and heating your home annually. The only thing is, you haven’t a clue how to select this wondrous, fast growing, shade tree. Which is best for your yard?
First thing to consider before making this decision, is how much room you have. The one thing about shade trees that makes them perfect for shading your home is their large canopies, dense leafing and branching and the fact they can get huge. Can your house handle that much tree? If you live in a mini-mansion a 70-90 feet tall Tuliptree would look great next to it but if you have a tiny cottage a tree that big would swallow it up. Not a good thing when you come around to re-selling the house. Big trees next to small homes make the house appear even smaller and less appealing to potential buyers, as any good Real Estate agent could tell you. It’s simply better to avoid this. Planting a smaller Quaking Aspen or Hybrid Poplar both coming in at 40 feet high at maturity is more in keeping with the cottage.
Height isn’t the only thing to consider. Shade trees have wide canopies. Some, like the Weeping Willow stands as tall as it is wide, 50 feet. That may be enough to shade you plus your neighbors on either side of you if your allotment of land is on the small size. They might not be too thrilled about that. Why make enemies when you don’t have to? Planting a more narrow growing Catalpa at 20-30 feet wide might be better.
The following is a list of the fastest growing shade trees with their approximate dimensions at maturity to help you choose the tree with the correct size and shape for your particular yard.
Weeping Willow (Salix babylonica) - Grows to 50 feet tall with an equally wide canopy. Hardy from zone 2-9. Loves moisture.
Silver Maple ( Acer saccharinum)- Grows 50-80 feet high with a 50 foot spread. Hardy in zones 3-9. Tolerant of many soil conditions.
Hybrid Poplar ( Populus deltoides)- Grows 40-50 feet tall with a spread of 30 feet. Hardy from zone 3-9. Short-lived, only 30-35 years.
Quaking Aspen ( Populus tremuloides )- Grows 40-50 feet high with 30 foot spread. Extremely cold hardy from zone 1-7. Tolerates many kinds of soil. Short-lived, only 30-35 years.
Tuliptree ( Liriodendron tupilifera )- Grows 70-90 feet tall with a spread 40 feet wide. Hardy from zone 4-9.
Catalpa or Indian Bean (Bignonioides )- Grows to 50 feet tall with a 20-30 foot spread but it can be wider with early pruning. Hardy in zones 4-8.
Hybrid Elm- Grows to 60 feet high with a 40 foot spread in zones 3-10.
Sugar Maple (Acer Saccharum)- Grows slightly slower than the others on this list. It gets 60-75 feet tall with a 45 foot spread. Hardy in zones 4-9. Likes well drained, fertile soil on the moist side but will not tolerate salt.
These are the most common, readily available and the fastest growing shade trees. Surely now you have all the information you need to decide which one is best for your yard. So, go ahead and get one! Your yard is waiting.
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Author Bio Box: Glory Lennon
 visit http://www.helium.com/user/32782 for more amazing garden lessons, cute short stories and funny novel excerpts.
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