Landscaping With Trees: 14 Stunning Ways to Upgrade Your Yard

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Landscaping with trees is perhaps the easiest way to set up a beautiful front or backyard. At the same time, there are infinite combinations you can make between trees, shrubs, flowers, etc. Today we are going to have a look at some useful ideas for your backyard design. The first part of the article contains a list of tips for when you are selecting the trees for your backyard, while the second one includes ideas for landscaping with trees.

How Can I Incorporate Trees into my Front Porch Landscaping?

When planning landscaping ideas for front porch, incorporating trees can add a striking visual appeal. Consider planting small to medium-sized trees that complement the porch and the overall aesthetic of your home. Choose trees with attractive foliage and flowers that enhance the curb appeal. Their shade will provide a cozy environment, while their height and structure will add vertical interest to the porch area.

Landscaping with Trees – What Trees to Choose?

Naturally, every type of tree has its benefits and disadvantages, depending on what you want to do with it in the garden. Some are hardier, others are more flexible, etc. Of course, you must take into account all their characteristics before planting or transplanting, which means you can’t choose just any tree you want. Let’s have a look at various types of trees and some of their requirements:

Ornamental Trees

1. Citrus

  • Zones: 8 – 11.
  • Flowers: white and fragrant.
  • Need proper spraying, otherwise they can easily deteriorate.

2. Weeping Cherry

  • Height: 15-20 feet; almost equal width.
  • Flowers: pink or white single or double flowers.
  • Zones: 5 – 8.

3. Serviceberry

  • Large shrub or small tree (6 – 20 feet tall).
  • White flowers, dark edible fruits in June.
  • Suitable for a woodland setting or next to a patio.
  • Tough and adaptable.
  • Zones: 2 – 9.
Waterfall design for the backyard with stones and grass
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4. Saucer Magnolia

  • Deciduous tree, grows up to 30 feet tall.
  • 6-inch long flowers in a pale pink shade.
  • Blooms early in spring.
  • Zones: 5 – 9.

5. Redbud

  • Pink-purple flowers, bare branches.
  • Heart-shaped leaves.
  • Height: 25-30 feet tall.
  • Zones: 5 – 9.

6. Chinese Dogwood

  • White flowers in spring, with pointed petals.
  • Red, fleshy, dangling fruits in fall.
  • Zones 3 – 8.

7. Crabapple

  • 15-25 feet tall.
  • Deep pink flower buds that turn into white blossoms.
  • Red/ yellow apples, good for birds.
  • Irregular shape.
  • Zones 3 – 8.

8. Callery Pear

  • Grows fast.
  • Small, white flowers and colorful foliage.
  • Pyramidal canopy.
  • 30-45 feet height.
  • Bradford species is not recommended – it tends to split in storms.
  • Zones 5 – 8.
Garden pond design with luxurious shrubs and green trees
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9. Japanese Maples

  • Height: 3 – 20 feet tall.
  • Fine-textured foliage, brightly colored.
  • Tolerance for shade.
  • Interesting shape.
  • Suitable for lawns, pools, or beds.
  • Zones: 5 – 8.

Shade Trees

10. Honey Locust

  • Height: 30 – 50 feet tall.
  • Tough, adaptable.
  • Drops pods.
  • Yellow foliage during fall.
  • A thornless variety is recommended.
  • Zones: 3 – 9.

11. Tulip Tree

  • Height: 25 feet.
  • Orange centers of the tulip flowers.
  • Zones: 5 – 9.

12. Willow Oak

  • Pointed, narrow foliage.
  • Fine-texture, dense canopy in the shape of a cone.
  • Height: 50 feet when mature.
  • Suitable for a street and shade tree.
  • Easy to transplant.
  • Zones: 6 – 9.

13. Sorrel

  • Also called sourwood.
  • Height: 75 feet tall.
  • Multiseason tree.
  • White flowers, glossy leaves.
  • Zones: 5 – 9.

Conifers

14. Arborvitae

  • Narrow, conical shape.
  • Height: 40 – 50 feet tall.
  • Various heights and widths available.
  • Zones: 2 – 7.

15. Pine

  • Evergreen.
  • Soft, long needles.
  • Used for privacy screening or wind.
  • Hardy in some areas, depending on the variety.
Stone decorations for landscaping with trees
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Landscaping with Trees – Tips and Tricks

Now that you know what kind of trees you can use and for what purposes, it’s time to get to some tips and tricks about them. You can use all these ideas at once, or vary them according to the area. Make sure that the plants involved are suitable for your area. After all, nobody wants to have their plants dry out just after they designed a beautiful landscape.

1. Use Lavender

If you know how to grow lavender correctly, then you just got yourself a winning ticket to landscaping with trees. Practically, it’s an indestructible plant and it has some beautiful colors. Moreover, it’s deer-resistant and it doesn’t require a lot of maintenance. A good idea is to use it to line your paths. They will match the surrounding trees and offer a well-maintained look.

2. Climbing Vines

A star jasmine makes the perfect choice for a climbing vine. Especially if you include in your backyard a garden gate, you can combine these two plants. A Star jasmine plant doesn’t cost too much, so it’s not an expensive investment.

3. Build a Potting Shed

Trees make a great background for a colorful potting shed. If you already have one, you can repaint it. A blue color would be appropriate, for example. Another good idea is to paint it in the color of the tree flowers or fruits found next to him. It would make a nice contrast when they bloom or ripe. Moreover, you should use glass to encase the shed for a magic look and feel.
Stone waterfall placed in a trees landscape in a backyard
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4. Fragrant Trellis

No, we don’t mean you should apply some fragrance to a trellis in your garden. Instead, you should choose plants that are very fragrant. Use a bamboo trellis and set it up somewhere between your trees. Next, use some roses or lilies to bring that extremely pleasant smell right in your garden. Moreover, when the trees will bloom, you will have plenty of exciting smells in your own backyard.

5. Edible Garden

Even if you want some ideas on landscaping with trees, this doesn’t mean you need to exclude edible plants. Choose some vegetable plants that grow well in the shade of the trees, for instance. Otherwise, you can create an oasis of shadow with your tree in the middle of a patch planted with vegetables. The cherry red color of tomatoes is a nice contrast to the green leaves around.

6. Gravel Landscape

Another great suggestion for landscaping with trees is to create a lounge area amid them. You can use it to relax and hide from the scorching sun in July and August. Pour some gravel and line it up with stones. Set a table and some chairs, or even a hammock. You will have your own place to get away from the world and read or have a drink.

7. Pot Hangers

Use some polypropylene supports to fix some small pots on a fence or a wall. If you have a pallet you don’t use, you can set it up vertically and decorate it with these pots. In them, you can plant whatever flowers or herbs you have. You can combine the idea above with the edible garden and obtain some useful herbs for cooking.

8. Patio Pavers and Thyme

A good filler for the space between your backyard or front yard trees is a patio with pavers and thyme. Choose some big pavers both for practical and aesthetic reasons. Plant thyme in between them and you will have a beautiful green ground that matches the tree leaves around.
Wooden on a wooden bench placed in a garden with a trees landscape
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9. Add Steps

This is an idea that works better when you’re landscaping with trees in your front yard, though you can adapt it for the backyard as well. You can use stones to create some elevated steps. Tall trees or shrubs can make for a nice frame for white steps, for instance. Alternatively, you can also plant some small, colorful flowers on the lawn, if they can resist the tree shade.

10. Winding Path

When designing your garden path, a good alternative is to make it wind. You have an advantage if you know more about landscaping with boxwoods since they are perfect as borders for the path. Test your creativity and round, square or snake them through other borders. The result will be charming! Pro tip: A winding path can also make a small garden appear larger since it seems to be more complex.

11. A Fountain

Tall, old trees have a certain romantic look, we must admit. In this case, why not take advantage of them and add another romantic element? A fountain can be very classy and stylish, so you can go for that look. Alternatively, you can make it all rather modern, if you choose a futuristic look for your fountain.
Winding paths with flowers, placed next to green lawn in a tree garden landscape
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12. Archways

Using archways might seem a little old-fashioned, but, in fact, it’s a great idea for landscaping with trees. A garden rich in green leaves is the perfect space for running away from the city and reconnecting with nature, for instance. As such, you could go for an archway if you have a garden large enough to support it. For the plants, you can choose some porcelain berry vines, catmint, black-eyed Susan, or some bee balm.

13. Floral Walkways

In a tree landscape, you can bring some color by lining the walkways with big, colored flowers. A white chrysanthemum is an option, for instance. However, you can also use crimson roses or other flowers in bright colors.

14. Lawn and Stones

An original idea for landscaping with trees is to have a lawn that you maintain all the time, and place some huge stones on it. It will offer a touch of wildness to your place, and even more so if you plant some shrubs around. Big stones are perfect for this, but it’s rather hard to bring them to your garden and place them there.

Conclusion

Landscaping with trees is a choice that offers you plenty of flexibility and freedom. You can play around with various types of trees, from conifers to shade trees or ornamental ones. Moreover, the design can be completed with stones, large flowers or small bushes. Image source: 1
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