I have many of these trees, they grow in the shade, and are small in size. They freely seed all over the place. The seeds, you might know already, are poisonous. I have nothing against them, other than that free-seeding part.

Look at the Texas Persimmon and see if that would work. It's very fast growing, and lower limbs would have to be trimmed for a while anyway, like a crepe myrtle, but it doesn't branch out that much.

I mean Texas Pistachio - I always get those mixed up. The Persimmon is great, but definitely not a tree, and very slow growing.

The only one I planted died too.

You might consider a chitalpa tree. I have seen them with a paler colored bloom also. Chitalpa is a hybrid cross between Catalpa and desert willow. It has larger leaves and flowers than desert willow. The leaves are about the width of peach leaves.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Yes, chitalpa is also on my list as a possibility. The only one I could find at a nursery around here had white blooms, so wasn't interested in that. I really like those pink blooms better. Maybe I could find one around here if I pick up the phone to call around to the local nurseries. I don't think I would want a persimmon tree because coyotes will practically climb them to get at the fruit and they are a bit messy if I get a female tree. Texas pistachio sounds interesting. I'll do some research on that one too.

The pistachio I have grew quickly to 20' and I cut it down to a few feet, but it's already back up above my head. Ferny foliage.

The Texas persimmon I have is about 10' and it took a long time to get there. There are some fruits on it, but they are hard to see in the evergreen dense foliage. I haven't seen the birds eating them either, they just turn hard and black.

Did you cross desert willow off your list? I have one with plum colored flowers and it's doing good.

A friend of mine who is in the native plant society told me that desert willow should almost be neglected because too much water will kill it. Another neighbor on the next street had one and it was beautiful. They killed it with kindness - too much water and fertilizer. The area where I want to plant it has St. Augustine lawn and a rose (Belinda's Dream) that is nearby, but all the rest of the plants are native or very drought tolerant. Obviously I do not overwater, so it may do okay in my yard. Does it reseed very easily? I was reading about them and the article said that birds like to eat the seeds from the seed pods over the winter.

We have had a 5 ft Eve's Necklace for about two years now. It's a great under-canopy tree!

I think Eve's Necklace is decidious?

Another tree that is about the same size, same bloom time and probably has a bit stronger constitution would be Mexican Buckeye. They are shrubby native growers-- growing wild north of San Antonio. (Often mistaken for redbuds)

I wonder if the west Texas native orchid tree, bauhinia congesta, might do OK?

Also, I wonder if the showier Mexican orchid trees, bauhinia mexicana or bauhinia macranthera might coexist with in flower bed?

From what I read, the Mexican orchid trees are likely hardy to zone 8b. The Texas orchid tree, probably 7b/8a.

I had an Eve's Necklace for about 7 years as an understory tree in my lawn, and it died for no apparent reason. I have a Texas Buckeye now which is doing really well. My neighbor has a Chatalpa-it is incredibly messy, but really pretty. It is big!