Best Trees To Plant Next To A Road – 8 Lovely Varieties To Line Streets

Streets and highways are essential parts of modern life, but they lack the natural allure of open fields and woodlands. Fortunately, it’s possible to add life and color to the road in front of your property by adding a few trees. Not every species will be good street trees, so it’s important to choose carefully. You’ll want to avoid trees with big, powerful root systems, trees that litter excessively, and trees with canopies that block the sun from the pavement. Your space and climate will further guide which trees to buy and grow.

Here are eight types of trees that vie for the title of “best tree to plant on a street.”

1. Honey locust ‘Street Keeper’

(Gleditsia triacanthos var. inermis)

Here’s a tree cultivar specially formulated for street placement. ‘Street Keeper’ has the deep green foliage of the species tree, but matures into a tight, narrow tree. It is an upright tree, topping out at 45 feet (15m) but only 20 feet (7m) wide. This fast-growing honey locust tree thrives in USDA hardiness zones 4-9, and its compound leaves turn yellow in autumn.

2. Ginkgo ‘Princeton Sentry’

(Ginkgo biloba 'Princeton Sentry’)

From the moment I read the story of the “extinct” ginkgo tree species that was later discovered alive and well in a monastery in China, I was entranced. This “living fossil” with its one-of-a-kind fan-shaped leaves is now readily available in garden stores. But the majestic trees top out at 100 feet (33m) tall - too tall for a street tree. Instead, consider a 'Princeton Sentry' gingko tree, an all-male cultivar maturing at less than half that height with a narrow, upright habit. The leaves turn canary yellow in fall, and form ponds of gold around the tree when they fall.

3. Emerald Sunshine elm

(Ulmus davidiana var. japonica Emerald Sunshine® 'JFS-Bieberich')

Emerald Sunshine elm is an ideal street tree, growing to 30 or 40 feet (10-13m) tall. It has strong wood - not likely to break in high winds, plus an upright shape. This elm tree foliage is particularly lovely, growing in coppery bronze but turning a shiny forest green. In addition, lots of protections were built into this variety: it resists insects - even the elm leaf beetle - and diseases - including Dutch elm disease. And it tolerates heat, drought, and wind.

4. Red maple ‘Armstrong’

(Acer rubrum, ‘Armstrong Maple’)

‘Armstrong Maple’ is tall and slender, a highly desirable columnar tree with lovely gray bark. These cultivars of the red maple grow fast, even in clay or wet soils, topping out at 45 - 60 feet (15-20m) tall, but less than half that wide. These well-mannered trees work very well in narrow planting strips between the street and the walkway. A line of these trees offers an elegant architectural design.

5. Amur maple

(Acer tataricum subsp. ginnala 'Flame')

Are you looking for a smaller street tree? Consider the lovely little Amur maple ‘Flame,’ a small, upright tree that tops out at about 20 feet (6.5m). The tree’s lobed leaves create a compact, rounded canopy, then put on a show, turning yellow as they mature, and then a brilliant, fiery red, before falling in autumn. The yellow flowers are fragrant. Plant in USDA hardiness zones 2 - 8.

6. Eastern Redbud ‘Forest Pansy’

(Cercis canadensis 'Forest Pansy')

The Eastern redbud is a native understory tree with a rounded crown that tops out at 30 feet (10m) in USDA zones 5-9. It is a popular landscape tree because of its gorgeous, pea-like purple blossoms that appear and flower on the tree’s bare branches in early spring, providing an early source of nectar for pollinators. The leaves are blue-green and papery. 'Forest Pansy' is a cultivar with purple leaves that turn reddish-orange in autumn.

7. Columnar Siberian Crabapple

(Malus baccata)

You may think a crabapple tree is too wide a tree to be among the best street trees, but take a look at Siberian crabapple. This small tree - some 30 feet (10m) tall - is unusually narrow for a crabapple. It stays under 10 feet (3.5m) wide. Like other crabapples, it offers extremely showy, fragrant flowers followed by long-lasting, bright fruits that attract wild birds.

8. American smoke tree

(Cotinus obovatus)

If you want a small native for a street tree, but one with amazing color, consider the American smoke tree. This small, deciduous tree tops out at 30 feet (10m). It doesn’t get its “smoky” common name from the spring flower clusters, but from the billowy hairs from the flower stalks. They turn a silvery pink in summer, “surrounding” the tree with hazy, smoke-like puffs. You can also enjoy some of the top fall colors of any native tree as the blue-green leaves turn yellow, red, orange, and purple.

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