they are perfect! mine (arbutus unedo) is about 10-12 years old, 18 feet high and about as wide. i have kept it a shrub, not trimmed up like a tree. it is on a slight slope so has very well drained soil, is in the sun most of the day and i spray water on it only once or twice in the very late summer (in early morning) mostly because i feel like i should clean off its dusty leaves- and that's all it needs! it has lovely clusters of white bell-shaped flowers and red berries - birds love it.

it makes very dense shade and in early summer usually has some yellow leaves but i think it is just dropping old ones then. i have never seen any sign of pest damage.
i am in an inland valley 30 minutes from the ocean, 15 miles south of san jose. it gets very hot here. if you decide on one or two, i think you will be pleased as long as you are patient with slow growers. min

If you mean Arbutus unedo, it's a beautiful tree, but best planted where its litter won't be a problem. The small fruits dropped on pavement are rather messy.

We planted it in the previous house and have a number of them around my place of work, so I've seen them growing and developig over the last 10+ years ..

It's a beautiful and fool-proof tree, which always look clean and gorgeous!

Having said this, it's a great ornamental tree (for a certain type of a garden), but not great shade or screening tree..

Depending on what role the tree will play in your garden, it can look striking or out of place..

I would not plant it in my garden which is Mediterrian/French perenial garden as it would look foreign here..

Tanya

Growing it as a shrub with multiple trunks I think is a good idea. This will eliminate walking underneath and stepping on the dropped fruit which is a MESS. Al

Thanks for all the replies. The area where we are thinking of putting it is up near the top of the slope in our backyard, so there isn't much (if any) foot traffic. It would basically be a tree for show up on the hill. It sounds like this may be a good show tree for up there. Now I just need to figure out what to do around it. I would like to use drought tolerant (at least semi native) plants. We're not too far from San Francisco, so I am thinking of going to the botanical gardens to get some ideas.

We have a Strawberry Tree on a slope with Ceonothus "Yankee Point" around it. I think it is a nice quiet "look". Believe it or not, the Ceonothus needs more water then the deep-rooted Shrub.... which also likes a deep drink every now and then in the heat of summer.

If you want an even showier Arbutus tree, and don't mind it getting bigger, perhaps 40 foot tall, I'd suggest Arbutus 'Marina' as a showier alternative; more attractive smooth bark, larger fruits, larger foliage. Nothing wrong with Arbutus unedo, but it is slow to get tree sized, and doesn't really have showy bark.

Thanks bahia. I am not sure if a tree that big will work, but since it is a slow grower, it might be ok. I will definitely look into it.