Choosing a Tree for a Small Florida Yard

Almost every problem tree we remove from a small lot was planted by somebody who did not know how big it would get. It is worth getting right once.

Start with mature size, not nursery size

A live oak is a magnificent tree and it wants sixty to eighty feet of spread. On a quarter-acre lot with a house on it, that tree will eventually be over the roof, over the neighbour's roof, and into the lines.

Look up the mature height and spread of anything you are considering, and then look at the space you actually have.

Rules of thumb for placement

• Large trees (over 50 ft): at least 25 to 30 feet from a structure.
• Medium trees (30 to 50 ft): 15 to 20 feet.
• Small trees (under 30 ft): 8 to 12 feet.
• Nothing large under power lines. Utilities will prune it into a shape nobody wants, repeatedly.
• Consider the foundation, the septic drain field and the driveway, all of which trees find.

Good small and medium trees for this region

• Crape myrtle — reliable, flowers for months, and please do not top it.
• Southern magnolia, including the smaller cultivars, for an evergreen at moderate size.
• Dahoon holly — native, evergreen, tolerates wet ground.
• Redbud, for early colour at a manageable size.
• Yaupon holly, native and genuinely tough.
• Ligustrum as a small tree form, with the caveat that it seeds itself.
• Cabbage palm, where a vertical element suits — and the state tree for good reason.

Planting properly matters as much as species

1. Dig wide, not deep. Two to three times the root ball width, no deeper than the root ball.
2. The root flare must be at or slightly above grade. Planting too deep is the most common installation error and it causes problems for the tree's whole life.
3. Remove all wire, burlap and container material from the root ball.
4. Tease out circling roots or cut them. A circling root becomes a girdling root.
5. Mulch two to four inches, pulled back from the trunk.
6. Water regularly through the first year or two while it establishes, then leave it alone.
7. Stake only if genuinely needed, and remove the stakes after a year.

Then prune it while it is young

Structural pruning between about five and twenty years is what determines whether you have an asset or a liability at forty. It is the cheapest and most valuable thing you will ever do for that tree.