10 Best Trees for Lakeland Lawns and Landscape

Friday June 17, 2022 comments Tags: Florida Landscaping

 

Plants and trees are more than just beautiful decorations to up the ante of your Lakeland lawn care. They are oxygen converters and are a huge help in cleaning the air around your home. Homes surrounded by healthy trees usually enjoy a refreshing breeze and protective shade, especially on those warm afternoons.

But as with any living thing, trees thrive in the appropriate climate, location, and type of soil. For Floridian home or business owners who are just starting to be interested in trees, whether for the purpose of filling the front yard or investing in a healthier and greener future, we want to help in our own way here at Pyle’s.

We have gathered information on the best trees to nurture in this sunny state, based on scientific information available and our own experience of tree-watching at the beautiful Lakeland lawns we have had the opportunity of maintaining.

 

Bald Cypress

 

The bald cypress can live an incredibly long time and can prosper in just about any condition. Native to Florida, It can grow over 100 feet tall and as much as 30 feet wide, so you need to ensure that you have the space for it. This tree flourishes in both wet and dry conditions, so you don’t have to worry about over or under-watering it.

The bald cypress is a deciduous conifer. It loses its needles every fall and regrows them in spring. Its needles are green in spring and summer, then orange and red in fall, like leaves on other trees.

 

Black Olive

 

This Florida native tree doesn’t actually produce olives. It’s an evergreen tree that stands up to 40 feet tall. The trunk and branches are thick and sturdy. It grows well in salty soil, and the roots grow straight down, so you can plant it near other trees and structures.

Because the roots grow down, they are well-anchored and can withstand high winds and storms without damage. The tree grows yellow-green flowers during spring and summer that would look perfect in Lakeland landscaping projects, which leads to black fruits, but remember, you can’t eat them.

 

Banana

 

Banana trees thrive in the full sun of Florida’s subtropical climate. You need to water them regularly and provide drainage so that the roots won’t rot.

There are different banana trees, so you can choose a large one that grows 30 feet tall or a dwarf that maxes out at 5 feet tall. The varieties produce different bananas as well, ranging in size and taste. Each spring, bright stalks of flowers will grow. In late summer, these flowers blossom into fruit. These trees also smell sweet.

 

Crape Myrtle

 

These trees grow well throughout all Florida climates. Crape myrtles are small, deciduous trees with branches covered in green leaves. In spring, it blooms with pink, white, purple, or red flowers. These blossoms are soft and ruffled, giving the tree a unique look, easily a focal plant in your Lakeland landscape design.

With a crape myrtle, you’ll get beautiful colors year-round. This tree grows up to 30 feet tall, but you can prune it to stay about 10 feet tall. You can also let the branches grow to make it look more like a shrub than a tree. The ability to transform this tree to best fit your space means it’s a must-have for any Florida lawn.

 

Chickasaw Plum

 

This tree grows into a mass of thin and thorny branches twirling around a trunk, so it is not a good idea to climb it. It grows up to 25 feet tall, but you can easily find ones in the 6-12 feet range.

The Chickasaw Plum tree is covered with small and white fragrant flowers during spring. Small fruits that turn from red to yellow as it ripens can also sprout. You can actually eat the tart juicy plums or harvest them and turn them into jelly. Other animal species enjoy it as a snack as well; isn’t that cute?

 

Citrus

 

The state is most known for its oranges! Citrus trees grow best in Central and South Florida. They include mandarins, tangerines, oranges, grapefruit, lemons, and lime trees like the kaffir. Each tree has a different maximum height, but the average range is between 15 to 30 feet tall.

Citrus trees have dark green, glossy leaves that look great even when no blossoms or fruits grow. The pretty white blossoms bloom throughout winter and spring and smell fantastic. You need to have a well-drained area for citrus trees and keep them watered. They love a lot of sun and give back a lot of vibrant color to your Lakeland landscape when it blossoms. It will take about five years for a new tree to begin producing fruit.

 

Redbud

 

The Eastern Redbud is a magnificent, medium-sized native tree that can reach up to 30 feet with a spread of up to 25 feet. It grows in almost every part of the eastern U.S. It also has a fantastic floral display (comparable to the Japanese sakura) telling everyone that spring has arrived. Its decent size and rapid growth make it a great choice option for many who want to liven up their Lakeland lawns.

 

Crabapple

 

Crabapple trees grow in North Florida and love the sun. The tree grows up to 25 feet tall, and the branches spread wide. Green leaves cover the branches until spring blossoms take over the view in your yard. Crabapple blossoms and fruits can vary in color. The fruits are small, but you can eat them like standard apples. Because they’re tart, you might prefer to use them in a recipe instead of eating them straight off the tree.

 

Sand Pine

 

This Florida pine tree is small, usually less than 25 feet tall. Take note though that this usually grows in sandy coastal areas of the peninsula. And you know what? This is actually a perfect exterior tree for Christmas time; all it needs is a set or two of fairy lights to make your Lakeland lawn more festive.

 

Buttonbush

 

The adaptability of a buttonbush is well-appreciated by gardeners. Buttonbush is a small deciduous tree. It grows best in well-drained areas that get partial sun and partial shade. This tree doesn’t do well in salty environments, so it’s not ideal for coastal regions.

A buttonbush can also be grown as a shrub. You can trim it to keep it low and bushy, to let it stretch tall and develop a twisted trunk. This versatility makes it ideal for various Lakeland garden spaces.

We hope you enjoyed your Lakeland lawn care and landscape maintenance team’s short guide on trees you may want to consider adding to your landscape. We are sure you are going to adopt the right tree friends. And don’t forget to nurture and prune them once you have them.