The best trees to plant in small gardens for privacy, flowering and colour

Most “garden trees” reach 30ft (10m) or taller at maturity, but there are many examples that stay smaller, and come in all shapes and sizes, evergreen and deciduous.

Besides height, trees for small spaces should offer other attractive attributes to earn their place all year round. You'll probably want colourful flowers, scent, fruit and seasonal interest, eg spring blossom, autumn leaves, winter bark and so on. You may not find all of these in one tree, but there's no reason why it shouldn't tick most of these boxes.

Containerised trees can be bought all year round from garden centres but, when buying, check the roots: grasp the main stem and carefully ease the rootball out of the pot a little way. If thick roots are spiralling around inside the pot, this is a sign that the plant is "rootbound" (ie has been in the pot a long time). It may not establish well in your garden, so is best avoided.

Autumn is traditionally the best time for tree planting, while they are dormant, and at this time of year you can buy bare-rooted, field-grown trees from specialist nurseries. The choice may also be wider, although the window for planting ends in early March.

Here's a complete guide to the best trees for small gardens, so hopefully you can find one perfect for you.

Best trees under 30ft

Most gardens can find space for the smallest trees, under 30ft high at maturity. Here are three excellent examples that are great for proportion and decorative value.

• Cercis canadensis 'Forest Pansy’ AGM, with large heart-shaped purple leaves, offers rich autumn colour.

• Cornus kousa 'Miss Satomi’ AGM, with wondrous white early summer flowers followed by red dimpled fruits, reaches 18ft (6m) height and spread.

• Sorbus vilmorinii AGM, 15ft (5m) height and spread, has delicate foliage with cream flowers followed by clusters of red berries that fade to white.

Trees with a small footprint

A valuable subsection of small trees are fastigiate (upright or columnar in form). They cast little shade and have a small “footprint”. Three good examples:

• Sorbus 'Autumn Spire’ AGM, 24ft x 12ft (8m x 4m), has white flowers, yellow berries and fiery autumn foliage.

• Prunus 'Amanogawa’ AGM is deservedly popular being reliably narrow at 26ft x 13ft (8m x 4m) and carrying masses of semi-double pale pink flowers.

• Malus 'Adirondack’ AGM, 26ft x 13ft (8m x 4m), has white spring flowers and little red crab apples in autumn.

Small trees with ornamental value

For good ornamental value, trees with spring flowers and autumn colour are often the best choices:

• Crataegus x lavalleei 'Carrierei’ AGM has white spring flowers, red autumn leaves and large long-lasting orange-red fruits.

• Prunus 'Pandora’ AGM, 25ft (8m) height and spread, has pink spring flowers and bronzed young foliage that turns orange in autumn.

• Arguably the finest flowering garden tree, Prunus 'Ukon’ AGM, 25ft (8m) height and spread, has yellow-white double flowers with a hint of pink. The bronzed young foliage turns red-brown in autumn.

Best large shrubs

In tight spots, a large shrub can fulfil many functions – shelter, privacy, wildlife benefit and some height – although it may not be possible to walk under their canopy.

• One commonly used is Buddleja alternifolia AGM, with abundant summer flowers, which can be trained with a single stem into a 9ft (3m) “tree”.

• Japanese maples are the best all-round performers of the large shrubs, the upright Acer palmatum 'Katsura’ AGM, for instance, can reach 13ft (4m).

Trees for year-round interest

These trees each offer different forms and seasons of interest, so would make a useful partnership in a small space.

1. Paperbark maple (Acer griseum AGM) has rich peeling chestnut bark in winter, with a spreading habit (height and spread 30ft x 18ft, 10m x 6m), but casts light shade. Autumn leaf tints of orange and red are likely given warm days and crisp nights.

2. Amelanchier x grandiflora 'Robin Hill’ AGM is particularly upright (25ft x 12ft, 8m x 4m) with prolific pink spring flowers followed by bronze-tinted young leaves, dark purple berries in summer and fiery autumn colour.

3. Summer-flowering trees are few, but Koelreuteria paniculata 'Coral Sun’ AGM (18ft x 13ft, 6m x 4m) not only has yellow midsummer flowers, but also bright red young twigs, with yellow and orange leaves in autumn, and casts only light shade.

Gardens with great trees

The Sir Harold Hillier Gardens in Hampshire are rich in interest, but its trees are outstanding. Japanese maples have their own, small valley, magnolias have a dedicated avenue, and there are many mature ornamental trees that allow growers to assess habit and size.

Bluebell Nursery in Leicestershire sells trees, mostly unusual ones, not least at RHS flower shows, and also grows its trees in an arboretum on heavy Midland clay. Visitors can see a huge range of trees growing and get a first-hand idea of habits and space requirements.

As well as being a remarkable coastal garden, Howick Hall in Northumberland has an extensive arboretum, just 10 years old, with an amazingly rich collection of over 11,000 trees from all over the world, grown from legally harvested wild seeds planted in geographic groups. The trees are a little young to show full growth habit and many might not be readily available, but for the tree lover this is an inspiring collection.

Six more trees for small gardens

1. Malus 'Laura’ Upright habit, red and white spring flowers, purple-tinted deciduous young leaves and dark red fruits that can be used for jelly (30ft x 12ft, 10m x 4m).

2. Acer campestre (field maple) A common deciduous native tree with delicate foliage. Yellow in autumn, with some red. Height and spread 18ft (6m)

3. Betula utilis var. jacquemontii 'Doorenbos’ Birches are large deciduous trees (24ft x 15ft, 12m x 5m), but they cast light shade, grow in any well-drained soil and take 20 years to exceed 24ft. 'Doorenbos’ has clear white bark and yellow foliage.

4. Crataegus persimilis 'Prunifolia’ is a compact hawthorn with rounded deciduous leaves that turn red and orange in autumn. It bears numerous if short-lived red fruits and masses of white spring flowers (18ft x 12ft, 6m x 4m).

5. Eucalyptus pauciflora subsp. niphophila (snow gum) Evergreen with cream, grey and green flaky bark, narrow grey-green leaves and white flowers (24ft x 12ft, 8m x 4m).

6. Magnolia x loebneri 'Merrill’ Abundant white spring flowers. This deciduous tree lends itself to underplanting with spring bulbs and shade lovers (18ft x 18ft, 6m x 6m).

This article is kept updated with the latest information.