Can you swing out the bed a bit to create a bit more space around the tree? Not the whole bed, just so that there are several feet around the tree and it is far enough from the house so as to not need any pruning. A photo of the space might help.

A large shrub pruned and maintained in tree form is one idea. One of the smaller crabapples is another idea.

Viburnum lentago? I don't have one yet, but I will plant one this spring, for a partly shaded area.

Thank you for your replies. We have been leaning towards a serviceberry tree but a little apprehensive with it's multi trunk.

What makes you apprehensive about the multitrunk? It's part of its charm imo.

I have 5 serviceberries, in tree form. They sucker a bit, but nothing unmanageable. You could probably find some in your area, if that’s what you want.

There are a number of serviceberry species with varying degrees of bushiness

https://wimastergardener.org/article/serviceberry-amalanchier-spp/

What do you happen to mean about them being a sucker?

Hi, here’s a link to a picture showing a tree with suckers (shoots growing at the base of the tree):

https://www.hgtv.com/outdoors/gardens/planting-and-maintenance/tree-pruning-removing-water-shoots-and-suckers

Can you be more specific about where you live? Is the area exposed to harsh winds?

If a shrub suckers, it is sending up more shoots at the base. If you let them grow, there will be additional stems, but you can cut them off on an annual basis to keep it to just a few main trunks.

As MensT mentioned, it is helpful to have a general location such as the nearest large city as well as the zone which only tells us average lowest winter temperature. Things like soil pH and texture, amount of precipitation, wind, frequency of ice and amount of sun in that spot are just some of the factors that can influence how well a tree can do, and having you tell us that is really helpful. We can sometimes infer that from your location.

Another large shrub that can often be found pruned to tree form are the panicled hydrangeas (H. paniculata) such as Limelight, and they would be happy over much of the country, unlike some of the other possible choices.

a pic of the spot would sure help ...

z5 is about half the US ... and very divergent .... give us a big city name .. plz ...

does the whole tree have to fit in the bed ... or might the canopy extend beyond???

trees .. especially in this size.. rarely CAUSE damage to an intact modern foundation ... trees might take advantage ... of an already damaged structure ... is your foundation or basement already compromised???

ken

I am located in Northern PA (about 3 hours north of Philly)...not really harsh winds but winters vary from large amounts of snow to some below zero days with windchill. Our home is over 100 years old (helped in the underground railroad). The foundation is pretty solid (just put on an addition and foundation was considered) but I don't want to have to worry about a new tree causing issues. Will attach a photo soon. Yes, it can canopy out into the side lawn if necessary.

Here's a newer dogwood variety that would probably never outgrow the space:

Red Beauty Dogwood

Good looking area. does either dogwood, Cornus kousa or the native Cornus florida grow well there? I ghink zone 5 is their northern limit so I can't see them getting too big on you. Perhaps pick one of the fancy leafed cultivars if they do commonly grow to 30 foot in your area.

Acer palmatum is another popular choice around here. Same thing with zone 5 though. There are a billion cultivars to choose from though.

Both Acer palmatum/Japanese maple and Cornus kousa/Kousa dogwood are right at the edge of their hardiness here. IME if it ever gets below -20 F, they will suffer enough damage to kill chunks, leaving permanent damage as far as overall shape. If you are in a warmer part of zone 5, that might not be an issue.

Not much room there. How about a weeping redbud?

Agree, I'd go at least twice a far away from the house as what I think is the feeder post.

is there a retaining wall behind the birdfood hanger ...

i agree.. i would go out to the edge of the bed to the left of the feeder .. so the canopy might stretch almost to where the feeder is ... giving it space to spread its wings ... lol ... much closer.. and then you will be pruning off the right half the tree to keep it off the house ... ruining its natural form ...

personally based on the size of the plants we are talking about .. i wouldnt worry about the foundation or my poured basement ... i cant opine on your old farmhouse foundation with any certainty ...

ken

I'm curious about the motivation for the tree. Do you just want some height in a perennial bed, or are you looking for some shade, or ???

Yes, there is a field stone retaining wall behind the bird feeder. Last summer, we thought we would want to put in a fish pond/waterfall but didn't. I'm leaning towards a cleaner flowerbed and thought a medium size tree would be good height since the other plants are bushes. As you can see by pictures, it's a bare slate and any insight you might have is much appreciated. I just thought a flowering tree would break up the yard a little.

What about a fringe tree (chionanthus virginicus or retusus)? It blooms mid spring, and unlike other trees there's no mess because there's no fruit (unless you have a male AND female as these trees are dioecious) It seems like it could POTENTIALLY get a little bit taller than what you want (Davesgarden says they get somewhere between 15-20 feet at MAX height), but that will probably take many years. They're also fragrant. Unless you have alkaline soil they should do well for you.

Supposedly Chionanthus is susceptible to emerald ash borer, and though I like the one I have had for several years, I won't be adding more unless there is suceesful control developed. There are EAB on the other side of my town courtesy of folks moving contaminated firewood, so for me it's just a matter of time before they arrive here. So while I like perennialfan's suggestion for its aesthetics, it may not be a wise choice. Since it is grown for its flowers, using a systemic insecticide like the Bayer product for EAB control will kill the pollinators as well.

Chinese fringetree appears to have good resistance to EAB. Have been observing a couple of them here, and haven't seen any damage. They don't seem to mind our higher pH soils, either. But as perennialfan indicated it would probably eventually outgrow the location.

NHBabs I had no idea about the emerald ash borers. As soon as I read your comment I had to google it. Apparently the Chicago Botanic Garden has been monitoring them very closely over the last few years. They have a collection of about 40 fringe trees, and so far there's been no borer activity on any of the trees except for one of them. The study shows they will occasionally use other tree species related to Ash, but they are definitely not the preferred host.

http://my.chicagobotanic.org/news/emerald-ash-borer-has-a-new-host-white-fringetree-update/

Thanks for the link perennialfan. Nice to know that they aren't a preference.

That Chicago Botanic Garden link probably paints a picture that's a little too rosy in regards to native fringetree and EAB. This article notes that nearly half of the native fringetrees examined at the Morton Arboretum were infested with EAB (while none of the Chinese fringetrees were infested).

EAB also has the potential to infest olive trees.

RE: the olive trees. That was a done as a test and the eggs of the borer were inoculated into a branch of an olive tree. All that was confirmed is that the insect can complete its life cycle within an olive.......not that it would necessarily choose an olive tree as a host. I wouldn't panic yet but it does present something to think about.

I'm smiling at the 'not much room there comment' above. The area from the retaining wall to the photographers feet is about the same size as my entire plot. I have a weeping birch, holly and a medlar. There used also to be a crab apple and a Sorbus. There's enough space there for several small trees if desired.

Agree. Would not plant a huge tree, but a small tree there would be great