Thuja Emerald green, Columnar English oak.

Thuja occidentalis De Groots Spire

the one in the pic is about 10 feet tall.. and barely 2 feet wide.. for sight blocking.. but not for shade..

so tight.. no snow load issues ...

grows about a foot per year in my zone ... probably more in your zone ...

if you buy large.. insure single leader trees to insure slimness ... yikes.. mine has a second.. never saw that before ....

ken

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I think columnar deciduous would meet your needs best, because I think you need your bulk up top and only in summer? In addition to oaks, I think there are maples, beeches, and hornbeams, among others, that come in columnar form. And they take even less space at bottom than DeGroot's. See what your local nurseries can get for you or have in stock.

Karin L

but .. for insight..

an oak can get 50 feet + wide ..

a columnar version.. maybe only 20 ...

so dont get caught up in thinking you are going to get a column tree that will stay a couple feet wide.. over the decades ... without some level of proactive pruning ....

check out the link below ....

do your research .. we are giving you options.. but dont think that some guy who noticed some tree 1/3 smaller than momma and called it columnar ... knows your situation ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Explain to me just what you mean about not 'crowding' and what it is that's to be crowded (I think a word got cut off your post). Is it a large trunk you wish to avoid, or a bushy tree near ground (think Colorado Spruce with a fat, bushy base), or is it the overhead canopy (the 'leafy ball) part of the tree?

This could have a bearing on whether you get shade from it. Deciduous won't give you privacy in winter so much.

For mid-size trees that ought to handle zone 7 (at least in some areas), for deciduous I'd take a quick look at Shantung Maple, Paperbark Maple and Bloodgood Japanese Maple. Maybe even dwarf chinquapin (not regular chinquapin) oak, since it's an oak that stays fairly small. I assume you don't have a septic tank or leach field.

Richard.

Thanks for all the recommendations. In reference to "not crowding", we like to play bacce ball and ladder ball. We would like to save as much playing area as possible. We wouldn't like anything with a bushy base that takes up a large portion of the yard. Looking more for an overhead canopy that would offer privacy from 5-6 feet and above. Thanks.

Eastern Redbud would be a good choice. Does not get to big and are very pretty in the spring with their pinkish flowers.

Ironically, now that I consider the use of the yard, it may be the owner will want a tree tall enough so that the bottom of the canopy doesn't get in the way, and thus a fairly 'big' tree.

Any idea what the maximum height you'd want this tree to get would be? That might help to know.

Richard.

That is exactly what we are looking for, a tree tall enough to block neighbors view when they exit their house. Yet not have any low branches to interfere with yard games. Lot is small and houses are closes together, so maybe a 30 foot tree at maturity.

It looks like you have pretty much the right kind of tree planted in the right spot already - what is it that you have planted? Are you looking for more in that area? Or do you also want to block their view from their window?

While you will be wise to not buy a tree that plans to get massive, all trees grow forever so occasional replacement is necessary. Personally I'd plan to cycle through a tree every 10-12 years, buying something that will be fairly fast growing and sacrificing it when it gets too big. Too big will involve, for example, the branches you rely on for screening getting too big and the leafy growth getting sparse in the middle.

The eventual shape is determined by pruning. This means that you could, for example, get a conifer and just prune off the lower branches. I am currently taking all the branches off a Chamaecyparis 'Boulevard' as I plan to remove it, but it looks kind of cute with just a few branches left at the top so I might leave it for another year... Even if you buy a deciduous tree, you decide where up the trunk the branches start and how long they get. A huge variety of trees would meet your needs as long as you prune them to shape. Very few trees will meet your needs of their own accord.

Best place to start looking is at the local nurseries, unless you plan to mail order.

Karin L