Garden

[1920712]

@Marp Hi, We live in Louisiana and have clay soil too. Maybe an Indian Hawthorne tree. We love ours and have had it for over thirty years. Beautiful pink blooms in Spring, is always green, hasn't had any pest problems. Also we had a Yaupon Holly Tree in our front courtyard that was very nice...........also always green, didn't get too big and could be shaped. Recentlly we ordered a Chinesee Fringe Tree for our backyard.........haven't received it yet. If you got that one, you might have to get a male as I've read that the female ones have fruit if you fertilize them. It might not be a good one for you. Hope this helps. P.S. We also have raccoons, squirrels, opossums, etc.

[Marp]

@1920712, thank you for the Hawthorne tree suggestion.  Just doing a quick look see there are things about this tree that are off-putting but also things I like.  It is a very nicely shaped tree and matures at a size larger than ideal but something I can easily live with.  I am putting this on my secondary list.

Now I'm going to look at the holly and fringe trees.

[1920712]

@Marp The Yaupon Holly Tree does have teeny,small yellow flowers in the Spring that will drop and have to be swept up. It does not weep or drop sap. If you're worried about bees, there will be bees, but that will not last for long. It has been well worth it for us.

[Marp]

It has been a long time since I started this thread but it finally time for an update.

I gave very careful consideration to all the suggestions and did as much research as I could.  I had pretty much settled on a Dogwood or Cherry because of my somewhat unreasonable requirements but that is exactly what it would have been--settling.

A few weeks ago as I was sitting outside missing my trees I had a slap my head "shouda" had a V-8 moment!  I was insistent on small trees and no fruit but it suddenly struck me that I will be 70 in July so whatever my chosen tree is doing in 25 years is not going to make a bit of difference to me.  That opened a whole new world of possibilities.

After much additional research, speaking with landscapers and the extension service I was off to the local nursery to purchase two Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry trees (Amelanchier x grandiflora 'Autumn Brillance').  They are single trunk and about 8-10' tall and bearing fruit.

I have been assured that once the fruit starts to ripen if I want any I'll have to fight the birds because they will essentially strip the fruit as it ripens.

I'm looking forward to getting them in the ground and watching them fill out into the beauties I believe they will become.

Thank you all for your very valuable input.  It sure made it easier to research once I had an idea of what questions to ask.

https://www.pinterest.com/lizdutton/garden-tree-serviceberry/

[JustJazzmom]

Excellent choice Marp! It has 3 season interest too. It is also a great urban street tree too.