Shade-Giving & Fast-Growing Trees for Small Yards

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If you have a small yard but still want to enjoy the benefits of shade, you’ll need a fast-growing tree with a dense canopy that inherently matures to a small size.

I’ve sat in plenty of small shady yards and remembered the most popular used trees for the purpose.

Japanese maples, Eastern redbuds, Crape Myrtles, Amur maples, Serviceberries, Kousa dogwoods, and Willows have varieties that make the best shade in small yards. Small cascading trees make for the most pleasing and cool outdoor environments.

Typical shade trees grow up to 100 or more feet, but the options in this list are friendly to small areas growing between 6-30 feet.

And not only will these trees offer shade, but beauty!

For each choice, you’ll learn about the growth rate, mature size, canopy density, foliage characteristics, conditions preferences, stress resilience, ornamental features, and maintenance requirements.

By the end, you’ll have a few great shade trees to decide between!

For larger shade trees, read: Fast-Growing Shade Trees (Best Picks & Why)

Disclaimer: Food Forest Living or its authors are not responsible for what you choose to consume. Do your own research before consuming as an “edible” or using any herb for medicine. Before planting any of these options check with your local invasive plant council or regional extension office for guidance on plants that may be invasive in your area.

Best Japanese Maples for Giving Shade in Small Yards

Japanese Maple trees (Acer palmatum) are graceful and elegant trees that give dappled shade.

You can choose between several varieties of Japanese Maples to find the right size and aesthetic for you and its new home.

In general, they grow at a moderate pace of 1-2 feet per year, mature between 6-25 feet, can have dappled to dense canopy coverage, offer various colors, are adaptable, have interesting branch habits, and are low maintenance.

Popular shade-giving varieties include Sango Kaku (Coral Bark Maple), Emperor I, Crimson Queen, and Bloodgood. Emperor I grows in zones 6-8, and the rest of 5-8.

Plenty more Japanese maple varieties exist, but here are the popular shade-giving ones and their differences:

Type	Growth Rate	Mature size	Shade	Maintenance
Sango Kaku	Moderate	15-25ft	Dappled	Low
Emperor I	Slow-Moderate	15-20ft	Dense	Low
Crimson Queen	Slow	6-8ft	Dense	Low
Bloodgood	Moderate	15-20ft	Dense	Low

Japanese maple trees are smaller than regular maples, so a moderate growth rate could be considered fast since it takes half the time to reach its mature height.

Type	Preferences	Tolerance/sensitivity	Foliage	Features
Sango Kaku	Part/full sun, drained soil	Sensitive to heat	Green turns yellow in fall	Coral red bark
Emperor I	Part/full sun, drained soil	Sensitive to heat and wind	Glossy red/purple	Vibrant coloring
Crimson Queen	Part/full sun, drained soil	Sensitive to heat and wind	Deep red/purple	Cascading canopy
Bloodgood	Part/full sun, drained soil	Sensitive to heat and dryness	Deep burgundy turns bright red in fall	Classic maple structure

Japanese maples are all sensitive to excessive heat, but proper mulching is one easy way to prevent heat stress in many plants.

See: 3 Keys To Correctly Mulch Any Tree (What To and Not Do)

Best Eastern Redbud for Giving Shade in Small Yards

The Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) trees are native to Eastern North America and are often chosen for their gorgeous pink or lavender fragrant spring blooms.

You can choose between several varieties of Eastern Redbud to find the right size, characteristics, and aesthetic for you and its permanent planting place.

In general, they grow at a moderate pace of 1-2 feet per year, mature between 15-30 feet, can have dappled to dense canopy coverage with various shapes, offer various colors, are resilient, have beautiful flowers, and are low maintenance.

Popular shade-giving varieties include Don Egolf, Rising Sun, and Forest Pansy. Each variety has a different level of hardiness, but Eastern Redbuds generally range from growing zones 4-9.

Plenty more varieties exist, but these are the popular shade-giving ones and their differences:

Type	Growth Rate	Mature size	Shade	Maintenance
Don Egolf	Slow-Moderate	15-20ft	Dense	Low
Rising Sun	Moderate	20-25ft	Dappled	Low
Forest Pansy	Moderate	20-30ft	Filtered/dappled	Low

All are generally low maintenance. The maintenance you’ll need to stay on top of is removing dead wood and keeping it in a balanced shape if or when necessary.

See: 14 Best Chop and Drop Tools (+ When To Use What)

Type	Preferences	Tolerance/sensitivity	Foliage	Features
Don Egolf	Part/full sun, drained soil	Sensitive to hot afternoon sun	Glossy green turns yellow in fall	Pink flowers, deep green leaves
Rising Sun	Part/full sun, drained soil	Sensitive to heat and wind	Gold leaves in spring, green in summer, to yellow in fall	Pink/purple flowers, complimentary coloring in spring
Forest Pansy	Part/full sun, various soils	Sensitive to heat and drought	Deep purple to bronze green to yellow/red	Pink spring flowers

Zone 9 growers will need to protect them from excessive heat. Heat stress is less of an issue below zone 8.

Best Crape Myrtle for Giving Shade in Small Yards

Crape Myrtle (Lagerstroemia) trees are smaller and thrive in full sun so they are great for giving shade in hot places. People choose Crape Myrtles for their long-lasting and vibrant blooms, beautiful bark, small size, and resilience.

Choose between several varieties of Crape Myrtles all with differing shapes, colors, and heights.

In general, they grow at a fast pace of 2 or more feet per year, mature between 6-30 feet, offer dappled or dense canopies, have pollinator-friendly flowers, and are low maintenance.

Popular shade-giving varieties include Don Egolf, Rising Sun, and Forest Pansy. Each variety has a different level of hardiness, but Eastern Redbuds generally range from growing zones 4-9.

Plenty more varieties exist, but these are the popular shade-giving ones and their differences:

Type	Growth Rate	Mature size	Shade	Maintenance
Natchez	Fast	20-30ft H+W	Filtered/dappled	Low
Acoma	Moderate	10-15ft H+W	Dappled	Low
Victor	Moderate	10-12ft H+W	Dense	Low
Zuni	Moderate	6-8ft H+W	Filtered/dappled	Low

Crape myrtles lean on the fast-growing side and tend to grow as tall as they do wide.

Type	Preferences	Tolerance/sensitivity	Foliage	Features
Natchez	Part/full sun, drained soil	Drought & heat tolerant	Dark green turns to orange/red	Upright canopy, white flowers
Acoma	Part/full sun, drained soil	Drought & heat tolerant	Bronze green to green to yellow/orange	Spreading canopy, white flowers
Victor	Part/full sun, drained soil	Drought & heat tolerant	Dark green turns to orange/red	Rounded canopy, deep red flowers
Zuni	Part/full sun, drained soil	Drought & heat tolerant	Dark green turns to orange/red	Upright canopy, lavender pink flowers

Hot-dry weather doesn’t bother These resilient trees, but mulching is still recommended. Smaller trees benefit from suppressed weeds and retain moisture for smaller root systems.

While native to Asia, these trees have become naturalized in the USA. USA-native birds have found this tree a reliable and tasty food source.

Best Amur Maple for Giving Shade in Small Yards

Amur Maple (Acer ginnala) trees are grown for vibrant colors, small maturity, and quick growth. They provide dense shade from rounded compact growth—perfect for small yards.

Several varieties of Amur Maples offer more or less of your desired characteristics.

In general, they grow at a moderate pace of 1-2 feet per year, mature between 8-20 feet, and have low to moderate pruning maintenance.

Popular shade-giving varieties include Flame, Compact, and Ruby Slippers. Most Amur Maples grow in zones 3-8.

These are the popular shade-giving varieties and their differences:

Type	Growth Rate	Mature size	Shade	Maintenance
Flame	Moderate	15-20ft H+W	Dense	Low/medium
Compact	Slow-Moderate	8-10ft H+W	Dense	Low/medium
Ruby Slippers	Moderate	8-10ft H+W	Dense	Low/medium

The canopies of amur maples are great for creating denser shade than Japanese Maples or Crape Myrtles. More pruning may be required to prevent rubbing branches and keep your tree free of dead limbs.

Type	Preferences	Tolerance/sensitivity	Foliage	Features
Flame	Part/full sun, various soils	Tolerates drought & urban living	Medium size, green turns to red/orange/yellow	Dark grey, & orange fissured bark
Compact	Part/full sun, various soils	Tolerates drought & urban living	Small size, green turns to red/orange/yellow	Compact
Ruby Slippers	Part/full sun, various soils	Tolerates drought & urban living	Dark green turns to orange/red	Compact

Amur maples can tolerate a wider range of soil types and dry conditions compared to Japanese Maples. Either one offers gorgeous coloring.

Best Serviceberries for Giving Shade in Small Yards

Serviceberries (Amelanchier) are often known as large fruiting shrubs, but they also come as small trees. White spring flowers turn into delicious and nutritious berries in summer, and the leaves in fall turn orange-red.

Several varieties of Serviceberry offer tasty fruit and dense shade, just choose the right height for you.

In general, they grow at a moderate pace of 1-2 feet per year, mature between 6-25 feet, and have low to moderate pruning maintenance.

Popular shade-giving varieties include:

• Regent Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia ‘Regent’),
• Princess Diana Serviceberry (Amelanchier x grandiflora ‘Princess Diana’), and
• Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry (Amelanchier x grandiflora ‘Autumn Brilliance’).

Most Serviceberries grow in zones 4-8.

The tables below show different sizes and shapes of the best shade-giving varieties:

Type	Growth Rate	Mature size	Shade	Maintenance
Regent	Moderate	6-10ft H+W	Dense	Low/medium
Princess Diana	Moderate	10-15ft H+W	Dense	Low/medium
Autumn Brilliance	Moderate	15-25ft H+W	Dense	Low/medium

Note the differences in height.

Type	Preferences	Tolerance/sensitivity	Foliage	Features
Regent	Part/full sun, various soils	Tolerates drought, shade	Blue-green turns to orange-red, upright canopy	Flowers, dark purple berries, birds
Princess Diana	Part/full sun, various soils	Tolerates drought, shade	Green turns to orange-red, upright rounded canopy	Flowers, dark purple berries, birds
Autumn Brilliance	Part/full sun, various soils	Tolerates drought, shade	Green turns to orange-red, rounded canopy	Flowers, dark purple berries, birds

Note the differences in foliage coloring and canopy shape.

Best Kousa Dogwood for Giving Shade in Small Yards

Kousa Dogwood (Cornus kousa) trees are known for their beauty from bark, flowers, to foliage and they offer a pleasant outdoor space with dappled shade.

Dogwoods mature to the perfect size for small yards. In general, however, they grow on the slower side of around 1 foot per year, so you’ll wait a while for your desired height compared to maples or willows.

The best shade-giving varieties mature between 10-20 feet in height and spread. They grow best in zones 5-8.

Popular shade-giving varieties include:

• Satomi
• Milky Way
• Wolf Eyes
• Summer Gold

Most Serviceberries grow in zones 4-8.

The tables below show different sizes and shapes of the best shade-giving varieties:

Type	Growth Rate	Mature size	Shade	Maintenance
Satomi	Moderate	15-20ft H+W	Dappled	Low/medium
Milky Way	Moderate	15-20ft H+W	Dappled-dense	Low/medium
Wolf Eyes	Moderate	10-15ft H+W	Dappled-dense	Low/medium
Summer Gold	Moderate	10-15ft H+W	Dappled-dense	Low/medium

These dogwoods are faster growing than most. They offer varying degrees of shade density and typically grow as high as they do wide.

Type	Preferences	Tolerance/sensitivity	Foliage	Features
Satomi	Part/full sun, drainage	Tolerates drought, shade, urban living	Dark green turns red-purple	Rounded spreading canopy, large pink flowers
Milky Way	Part/full sun, drainage	Tolerates drought, shade, urban living	Dark green turns red-purple	Rounded dense canopy, white flowers
Wolf Eyes	Part/full sun, drainage	Tolerates drought, shade, urban living	Variegated green and white turns red-purple	Rounded compact canopy, Pink flowers
Summer Gold	Part/full sun, drainage	Tolerates drought, shade, urban living	Gold-yellow turns orange-red	Rounded canopy, yellow-white flowers

All dogwoods have attractive bark and beautiful coloring in autumn. While known for loving moisture they tolerate dryness, perfect for a place that needs a bit of shade.

Best Willows for Giving Shade in Small Yards

Willow trees are the fastest-growing cascading shade-giver on this list, but the struggle is finding a happy-medium size for small yards.

If you select a tree with a larger maturity size than suitable for your space, you’ll be in for overcrowding and more than otherwise necessary maintenance.

These willows grow at a fast rate between 1-8 feet per year. They grow best in zones 4-10

See the rate for each in the detailed breakdown:

Type	Growth Rate	Mature size	Shade	Maintenance
Dwarf Willow	Moderate	6-10ft H+W	Moderate	Low
Niobe Willow	Moderate	15-20ft H, 10-15ft W	Moderate	Low
Arctic Willow	Fast	3-6ft H+W	Dappled	Low

These shorter willows are most suitable for small yards. The classic weeping willow grows up to 30-40 feet high and wide—too much for a “small yard.”

Type	Preferences	Tolerance/sensitivity	Foliage	Features
Dwarf Willow	Full/part sun, adaptable	Tolerates water logging	Small & narrow	Compact growth
Niobe Willow	Part/full sun, adaptable	Tolerates waterlogging	Broad green silver	Upright growth
Arctic Willow	Full sun, adaptable	Tolerates cold and dryness	Silver green turns yellow	Attractive branches in winter

Conclusion

The best tree for your yard is a combination of your preferences and the trees’ preferences or tolerances.

For an easy shade-giving tree, make your choice based on the preferences of the tree first, and your aesthetic preferences secondary.

Care for your new tree with proper mulching and watering to establish them quickly. Once established, consider adding edibles to your cool-shaded outdoor sitting area.

Up next: 24 Best Edible Ground Covers for Shade