“Can you recommend a tree that is not messy? One that will not drop fruit, or twigs, or stuff all over the place.” This is perhaps the request I run into the most when someone wants advice on what trees to plant. The first time I heard this one I had to fight the urge to smile and reply that yes, there are trees like that which also happen to be disease-free, not attacked by any pest, grow quickly (instantly, in fact) to the desired size, shape, and color you want them to be and never need to be pruned…
10 Trees with Amazing Fall Color... and One You Should Avoid!
I was recently pruning trees in a newer neighborhood on the east side of Columbus where every house had two red maple in the front yard. Although Red maple is a native tree to Ohio, this subdivision was planted with a cultivated variety of the species called ‘Red Sunset.’ ‘Red Sunset’ red maple was selected and well marketed for its compact habit, good branching structure and most notably for its showy and reliable orange to red fall color.
✅Ginkgo
General Info
- Latin Name - Ginkgo biloba
- Native Range - Eastern China
- Growth Rate - Slow to Medium
- Mature Height - 50–80’
- Mature Spread - 30–50’
Arborist Thoughts
- An excellent and incredibly hardy shade tree that has stood the test of time – Ginkgo goes as far back as the dinosaurs (270 million years ago).
- Ginkgo has no known disease problems or insect predation and can grow well in a wide range of soil types and urban conditions including confined spaces.
- Ginkgo has unique, fan shaped leaves and stunning Golden-yellow Autumn color making it one of the most distinct and beautiful of all trees during the Fall season.
- Ginkgo trees can be male or female and the fruit of the female tree is considered messy and smells unpleasant. Several male cultivated varieties of Ginkgo are available such as ‘Saratoga,’ ‘Princeton Sentry,’ and ‘Autumn Gold.’