Calliandra surinamensis - Surinam Powderpuff. This tree blooms virtually every day of the year with pink powder-puff flowers, and has lovely lacy evergreen foliage with bronzy new growth. I grew this in my garden and loved it.

To find out about great trees, check out the book by the San Diego Horticultural Society called "Ornamental Trees for Mediterranean Climates."

Here is a link that might be useful: San Diego Horticultural Society

Here's some more good, smallish evergreen blooming trees:

Acacia baileyana BAILEY ACACIA
Acacia cognata/subporosa RIVER WATTLE
Acacia podalyriifolia PEARL ACACIA
Acca (Feijoa) sellowiana PINEAPPLE GUAVA
Arbutus unedo STRAWBERRY TREE
Bauhinia forficata BRAZILIAN ORCHID TREE
Callistemon citrinus (standrad) LEMON BOTTLEBRUSH
Ceanothus arboreus (standard) TREE CEANOTHUS
Escallonia x exoniensis ÂBalfouri ESCALLONIA
Escallonia laevis PINK ESCALLONIA
Eucalyptus caesia GUNGURRU
Eucalyptus torquata CORAL GUM
Eucalyptus torquata CORAL GUM
Garrya elliptica SILKTASSEL
Leptospermum scoparium (larger cultivars)
NEW ZEALAND TEA TREE
Melaleuca nesophila PINK MELALEUCA
Nerium oleander (standard) OLEANDER
Pittosporum brevicalyx CHINESE PITTOSPORUM
Psidium cattleianum STRAWBERRY GUAVA
Rhaphiolepis ÂMajestic Beauty M. B. INDIAN HAWTHORNE
Tecoma stans YELLOW BELLS

By the way, a 15-25-foot tree is a TEENY-TINY. The above includes (mostly?) large shrubs that can be pruned up to look like a tree ("standards" and otherwise).

Joe

I can't believe no one mentioned Camellias!

I have two in my yard (so far) and they bloom from around November through April and are evergreen.

Most are relatively small trees. If you head up to the Huntington Botanical Gardens they should have most of theirs in bloom right about now.

Well, I didn't mention Camellias -- which I LOVE -- because they take a bit long to become an actual "tree", even a small one. I'm thinking at least 15-20 years to get 10-15 feet tall.

And aside from Camellia sasanqua, Camellias are not for sun and my assumption is that mkfrye wants a tree in the sun.

Joe

My Ceanothus 'Ray Hartman's are in bloom right now and they are stunning! I have them trained as a standard.

Wanda, Is Ray Hartman fragrant? I am thinking about one of these but the ceanothus from my San Diego foothill childhood were fragrant and therefore necessary to any I might buy.

Thank you everyone---What do you all think of a magnolia tree???

Good point about the Camellias, although one of mine is in full sun and seems happy as can be.

I'm about to put a Hong Kong Orchid Tree in my front yard, which you might consider. They are a moderate grower to about 20' and drops some leaves in December but is not fully deciduous. Bloom time is Nov to March. Make sure it is a Hong Kong and not a Purple Orchid Tree - the Hong Kong is sterile while the Purple reseeds prolifically (or so I've read.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Monrovia description of Hong Kong Orchid Tree

mk, I assume you're thinking about Southern Magnolia, or M. grandiflora - that's the only evergreen one. They're lovely trees, but they get HUGE, unless you find the cultivar called 'Little Gem' that stays a nice size. They're also fairly thirsty, but if you're putting it in a lawn, that won't be a problem.

Here is a link that might be useful: Magnolia 'Little Gem'