Best Small Trees for Tiny Yards

by Lisa Watters-Lain, Arizona’s Garden Gal
We don’t all have room for a mighty Maple or the outstretched branches of a native Sycamore in our backyard, but here we have the fantastic few that outshine the rest in today’s modern yard.
Whether you are looking for shade or spring’s bright colors in your yard, these trees mature below 25 feet and require minimal maintenance. Here are small trees ideal for spring landscapes in tight spaces.
Insider tip: If you have a small yard, focus on vertical space — select plants with an upright growing habit. Focus on raised beds and containers to maximize your ground space.

Alberta spruce (Picea glauca)
This is the No. 1 evergreen for you. The needles are very dense, and the Alberta retains a perfect pyramidal shape without pruning. Growing only 3 inches per year, this slow grower is ideally grown in containers and raised garden beds.

Chaste tree (Vitex)

This grows more like a giant, multitrunk shrub, but it’s super easy to grow to 15-feet. The long clusters of fragrant blue flowers make the tree enticing for people and butterflies. It is often compared to the butterfly bush but blooms later and repeats bloom if you remove spent flowers.

Crabapple (Malus)
Even the most minuscule yards have room for a crabapple tree. Crabapples typically top at maturity around 12-15 feet. They provide a month of spring flowers that attract native pollinators, including honeybees. Dangling clusters of fruit follow the flowers and are popular with birds.

Eastern redbud (Cercis)
In early spring, this tree bursts into flower. There are dozens of varieties, with most flowers in hot pink more than red. Popular with early butterflies, the Eastern redbud averages 15-20 feet.

Golden chain tree (Laburnum)
A distinctive green bark marks this tree. The clover-like leaves allow the dappled sun to break through, but the long clusters of brilliant yellow flowers make this tree a show stopper. This tree blooms in late spring and grows 15-20 feet.

Japanese maple (Acer palmatum)
This tree is beloved for its delicate leaves, to the point of being fringed. Green and red leaf varieties turn eye-catching shades of red, orange and purple in the fall. Their average mature height is 15 feet; they prefer the shady spots in the Arizona landscape.

Mimosa (Albizia)
This beauty has a tropical appearance with sweeping, fern-like leaves. Silk tassel tree is the common name to the fast grower for the fragrance and thread-like flowers. Hummingbirds and Monarch butterflies fall in love with this 20-foot tree.

Paper Bark Birch (Betula)

Like aspen, this tree grows in multitrunk clumps. The name comes from the paper white bark that flakes and peels from the trunk. Old trees reach 40 feet, but they have a narrow spread at their base. Their canopy allows dappled sunlight to pass through into small yards.