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Sacramento Shade Tree List
The following trees are available through our partnership with Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD).
The Sacramento Shade Program provides shade trees for homes and public places.
These are all deciduous trees, meaning they lose their leaves in the winter, which helps keep you cool in the summer and warm in the winter. The trees have been selected by our Technical Advisory Committee to assure that they are suited to our climate and growing conditions. For a summary of recommendations on how far to plant each tree from sidewalks, foundations, powerlines, and more see our siting guidelines.
Large Trees
| Common Name |
Mature Height (ft) |
Mature Spread (ft) |
Leaf Type |
Growth Rate |
|
Red Maple
|
40'-60' |
30'-50' |
Wide toothed, 2-1/2"-4" wide, red to yellow in fall |
Moderate to fast |
|
London Plane
|
40'-60' |
30'-50' |
Large, light green with 3"-5" lobes, turning dull yellow in fall, fuzzy |
Fast |
|
Valley Oak*
|
40'-75' |
50'-90' |
3"-4" deep lobed leaves; Dark green turning dull yellow in fall |
Moderate to fast |
|
Bur Oak
|
50'-80' |
45'-80' |
Large 4"-10" long dark green lobed leaves turn yellow or brown in fall |
Moderate |
|
Scarlet Oak
|
60'-80' |
40'-50' |
Large, deeply lobed shiny green to 6" long, turn bright scarlet in fall, may hang on in winter |
Moderate |
|
European Hackberry
|
40'-80' |
40'-50' |
Sharp pointed and toothed, dark green, turn yellow in fall |
Moderate |
|
Sawleaf Zelkova
|
50'-60' |
50'-70' |
Pointed and toothed, dark green, turn yellow to red in fall |
Moderate to fast |
|
Willow Oak
|
50'-80' |
35'-65' |
Long willow like leaves, turn pale yellow in fall, some stay on in winter |
Moderate to fast |
|
Red Oak
|
40'-70' |
40'-60' |
Large lobed dark green leaves, turn dark red or orange in fall, may hang on through winter |
Moderate |
|
Blue Oak*
|
40'-75' |
50'-80' |
Small blue green rounded, light yellow in fall |
Slow |
|
River Birch
|
30'-50' |
30'-35' |
Doubly serrate (almost lobed), diamond shaped 1"-3" long; rich green glossy leaves above, silver below |
Fast |
|
California Sycamore*
|
40'-90' |
30'-60' |
3-5 lobed, 4"-10" inches wide maple-like leaves; pubescent when young; shallow sinuses |
Fast |
|
Chestnut-leaf Oak
|
50'-80' |
40'-65' |
7-1/2" x 3", oblong or narrowly oval with sharply pointed teeth; Dark glossy green above, minute gray down beneath; Fall color usually yellow |
Moderate to fast |
|
Shumard Oak
|
40'-60' |
40'-60' |
3"-8" inches long, 2-1/2"-5" wide, usually deeply divided nearly to midvein into 5-9 lobes becoming broadest towards tip; May turn red later than scalet oak and lose leaves a month earlier |
Moderate to fast |
Medium Trees
| Common Name |
Mature Height (ft) |
Mature Spread (ft) |
Leaf Type |
Growth Rate |
|
Trident Maple
|
20'-30' |
20'-25' |
3 lobed, 2"-4" long, 1-1/2"-3" wide; Dark green with fall color varying from red to orange or yellow |
Moderate to fast |
|
Hedge Maple
|
25'-35' |
25'-35' |
Palmate, 3-5 lobes, 2"-4" across and as long; Dark green with yellowish green or clear yellow fall color |
Moderate |
|
Shantung Maple
|
20'-30' |
20'-30' |
Glossy green palmate (5 lobes), 3"-5" inches long; Red orange fall color |
Moderate |
|
Japanese White Birch
|
35' |
15'-25' |
Green, glossy leaves to 3" long, turn yellow in fall |
Moderate to fast |
|
Chinese Flame Tree
|
20'-40' |
20'-30' |
1'-2' long leaves with 2"-4" leaflets, hold onto tree until December; Turn yellowish before dropping |
Moderate to fast |
|
Goldenrain Tree
|
20'-40' |
20'-30' |
Green with 7-15 leaflets, turning yellow in fall |
Slow to moderate |
|
Tupelo (Sour Gum)
|
30'-50' |
15'-30' |
Dark green, glossy leaves 2"-5" long, late budders in spring; Hot, coppery red in fall |
Moderate |
|
Chinese Pistache
|
30'-50' |
30'-50' |
10-16 paired leaflets, 2"-4" inches long by 3/4" wide; Bright green in summer; Orange, scarlet, crimson or yellow in the fall |
Slow to Moderate |
|
Little Leaf Linden
|
30'-50' |
30'-40' |
1-1/2" long, smaller than American linden; teardrop shape |
Slow in heavy soil |
|
'Chanticleer' Pear
|
30'-40' |
15' |
Narrow medium green glossy leaves that turn red in the fall |
Fast |
|
'Capital Pear'
|
35'-40' |
12 |
Narrow medium green glossy leaves that turn red in the fall |
Fast |
Small Trees
10- 15’ ’
| Common Name | Mature Height (ft) | Mature Spread (ft) | Leaf Type | Growth Rate |
| Eastern Redbud |
20'-25' |
20'-25' |
Heart shaped with sharp, broad point, turning yellow in fall |
Moderate |
| Chinese Fringe Tree |
15'-25' |
15'-25' |
2"-4" long, usually oval, dark green lustrous leaves |
Slow |
| Washington Hawthorn |
20'-30' |
15'-25' |
3-5 lobed; 4"-9" long and 5"-10" wide; Dark green lustrous above, deeply cut 2-1/2"inch leaves |
Moderate |
| Crape Myrtle |
20'-25' |
15'-25' |
Relatively small green rounded oblong leaves, sometimes turning yellow, orange or red in fall; Usually later to leaf out in spring than other trees |
Moderate |
| 'Prarifire' Crabapple |
15'-25' |
15'-25' |
Red-maroon, aging to reddish green |
Moderate to slow |
| Japanese Crabapple |
15'-25' |
15'-25' |
|
Moderate to slow |
| Japanese Snowbell |
20'-30' |
15'-25' |
2"-4", oval to oblong |
Slow |
| Vitex or Chaste Tree |
10'-15' |
spread to 15'-20' |
4"-8" long, 2"-4" wide blue green to green leaf; No fall color change |
|
* Indicates NATIVE species
Click here to see our Greenprint Tree Guide (.pdf), a resource to help you pick the right tree for the right place!
All of the trees in this guide were selected by tree experts for their beauty as well as their ability to thrive in our region. They were chosen based on their suitability for our climate, disease and pest resistence, soil tolerance, maintenance requirements, water usage, branch strength and longevity.