Recommended Trees
Afghan Pine
Pinus eldarica (30 – 80 ft.) Evergreen, rapid growing tree. Dense needles. Tolerates drought, alkaline soil.
Aristocrat Pear
Pyrus calleryana ‘Aristocrat’ (to 40 ft.) Deciduous ornamental pear, pyramidal, with well-spaced branches that are more horizontal than those of ‘Bradford’ and less prone to storm damage. Fall color ranges from yellow to red. Somewhat subject to fireblight.
Bald Cypress
Taxodium distichum (50 – 70 ft.) Native Deciduous moderate growth during early years, slowing with age. Round-topped tree with bold foliage. Dark glossy green leaves with course saw-edged margins, are silvery beneath. Fall color varies from yellow brown to rust brown. Grows in a wide range of soils, including clay and dry, rocky limestone.  Tolerates wet conditions as well as dry.  Requires only corrective pruning to remove deadwood and unwanted branches.

Big Tooth Maple
Acer grandidentatum (20 – 30 ft.) Deciduous, grows as shrub or small tree. Brilliant fall color in tones of yellow, orange, rose red. In gardens requires well-drained soil on the dry side.
Bur Oak
Quercus macrocarpa (60 – 80 ft.) Deciduous slow growing tree with deep furrowed dark gray bark. Bold Foliage – leaves are glossy green above, whitish beneath. Yellowish fall color, tolerant of adverse conditions. Needs lots of room , huge acorns, and likes acid or alkaline soil.
Cedar Elm
Ulmus crassifolia (50 – 70 ft.) Native Deciduous moderately fast growing tree. Upright growth habit, excellent street tree. Small shiny, dark green leaves that are stiff to the touch. Twigs and branches have corky wings. Turns burnt yellow or gold in fall. Flowers in late summer.  Well adapted to alkaline soils, very drought tolerant.

Chinese Pistache
Pistacia chinensis (30 – 60 ft.) Deciduous slow to moderate growth. Good fall color, foliage turns luminous orange to red. Tolerant of many soils, including alkaline. Very drought tolerant. Stake young tree and prune for the first few years to develop a head high enough to walk under.  Good for street, lawn or courtyard.
Chinquapin Oak
Quercus muhlenbergii (80 ft.) Native Deciduous moderate growth during early years, slowing with age. Round-topped tree with bold foliage. Dark glossy green leaves with course saw-edged margins, are silvery beneath. Fall color varies from yellow brown to rust brown. Grows in a wide range of soils, including clay and dry rocky limestone.
Cleveland Pear
Pyrus calleryana ‘Cleveland Select’ (40 ft.) Deciduous ornamental pear, narrow but not columnar. Fall color varies from orange to reddish purple. Resistant to fireblight.

Deciduous Holly/Possumhaw Holly
Ilex decidua (6 – 20 ft.) Deciduous shrub, late to come into leaf in spring. Oval, bright green leaves with pale gray stems. Orange to red berries last into winter or spring. Need male pollinator for fruit production.
Desert Willow
Chilopsis linearis (25 ft.) Native Deciduous shrub or small tree grows open and airy. At first grows fast (3ft. in a season), then slows down. With age develops shaggy bark and twisting trunks. Drops leaves early, holds a heavy crop of catalpa-like fruit through winter, and can look messy; but pruning can make it very handsome.  Trumpet-shaped flowers with crimped lobes – pink, white, rose or lavender.  ’Burgundy Lace’ has deep purplish red flowers.  Blooms in spring and often through fall.  Likes dry soil.
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis ‘Forest Pansy’ (25 – 35 ft.) Deciduous fast growing tree with round-headed growth habit but with horizontal tiered branches in age. Leaves are rich green, heart shaped. Flowers are small, rosy pink or lavender born on bare twigs. Needs some winter chill to flower profusely. Fall color.

Eve’s Necklace
Sophora affinis (15 – 20 ft.) Native Deciduous small tree with round canopy. Dark green leaves with numerous leaflets. Blooms in late spring with pink to white, lightly fragrant flowers in 4-6in. dangling clusters. Choose tree when it is in flower, because flower color varies and can be disappointing.  FLowers are followed by lovely twisted pods, like necklaces, which persist through fall and winter.  Tolerates limy, thin or dry soils.  Seeds are poisonous if ingested.
Lacebark Elm/Chinese Elm
Ulmus parvifolia (40 – 60 ft.) Deciduous (can be semievergreen) fast growing tree. The best elm for home gardens, an excellent shade tree. Extremely variable in form, generally spreading with long, arching, eventually weeping branchlets. On older trees, bark sheds in patches – creating a beautiful molting.  Leathery dark green leaves.  Mediocre display of yellow to reddish orange fall color.  For this area, species is important.
Little Gem Magnolia
Magnolia grandiflora ‘Little Gem’ (15 – 20 ft.) Evergreen, slow growing, compact and upright. Leaves are elliptic to oval, dark green with rust-hairy beneath. Flowers are small (5-6in. wide), produced continuously through the summer. Good in confined area. Branches to the ground.

Live Oak
Quercus virginiana (40 – 80 ft.) Native Evergreen, moderate growing with spreading, heavy-limbed crown up to twice as wide. Very long lived; with age, bark becomes very dark and checked. Widely used as a street tree but needs lots of space. Tolerates most soils.
Mexican Plum
Prunus mexicana (15 – 25 ft.) Native Deciduous plum with delicate, spreading form, usually single -trunked small tree. Not a suckering species. Very fragrant, white, fading to pink, flowers in early spring. Purplish-red fruit in late summer. Tolerant of drought (grows fast with regular water) and many red fruit in late summer.  Full sun or partial shade.   
Panicled Golden Rain Tree
Koelreuteria paniculata (20 – 35 ft.) Deciduous, open branching, giving light shade. New leaves are purplish, turning bright green in summer. Fall foliage usually yellow to gold. Very showy flower clusters, 8-14 inches long in early to mid summer. Fruit capsules red when young, maturing to buff and brown shades.  Tree takes cold, heat, drought and wind.  Prune to shape; can be leggy without pruning.  

Pecan
Carya illinoensis (70 ft.) Native Deciduous, graceful, shapely tree with furrowed gray bark. Pinnate, mid-green leaves that turn yellow in fall. Develop deep taproots and should be planted while young and not moved later. Need well drained soil. Produces edible nuts.
Red Oak
Quercus shumardii (60 – 80 ft.) Native Deciduous moderate growing tree. Excellent fall foliage, yellow to red color. Tolerates drought, wide range of soils, acid or alkaline.
Shantung Maple
Acer truncatum (25 ft.) Deciduous, remuiniscent or Japanese maples but has larger leaf than most. Spreading canopy with attractive foliage that turns spectacular red, red-orange in late fall. Wonderful shade tree for smaller yards. Tolerates heat and alkaline soils. Trunk of young trees susceptible to sun scald.

Southern Magnolia
Magnolia grandiflora (80 ft.) Native Bold evergreen tree, large white blooms throughout summer. Excellent street or lawn tree.
Texas Red Oak
Quercus buckleyi (50 ft.) Native A tall, relatively quick-growing tree, broadly conical when young, generally rounded at maturity. Leaves alternate, elliptical or obovate, (2.4-4.8 in) long and (2-4in) wide, deeply divided in 5-9 lobes which are usually broadest toward the tip. Fruits are acorns maturing in the second year, egg-shape.  Perhaps the fastest growing oak and the easiest to transplant.
Yaupon Holly
Ilex vomitoria (10 – 15 ft.) Evergreen, upright, irregularly branched shrub or small tree with gray branches, white or gray bark, and narrowly oval to ovate leaves. Bears abundant, red fruit. Useful as a screen or hedge. Grows in almost any soil – acid or alkaline, wet or dry, rich or poor.  ’Pride of Houston’ is a large shrub or small tree, upright, freely branching and heavy fruit bearer.