Types of Canopy Trees

Canopy trees provide a cool place to sit out of the summer sun.


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A tree canopy is the top portion of a tree composed of branches and leaves or needles. All trees have canopies, and all trees cast shade. But trees with tall trunks and dense, wide-spreading lateral branches create canopies that cast enough cooling shade to moderate the local environment, reducing temperatures in the shaded area by as much as 20 degrees. Canopy trees come in different types, from majestic tall evergreen or deciduous trees to smaller trees well-suited to a small landscape.

Large Deciduous Shade Trees

Wide-spreading, tall deciduous trees are capable of shading a large area. Tall shade trees not only shade a yard, a patio, or a deck, but they also create an ecosystem for understory plants, such as dogwood trees (Cornus spp.), azaleas (Rhododendrons spp.) and other plants that grow in shade or partial shade. Oaks (Quercus spp.), maples (Acer spp.), elms (Ulmus spp.) and ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) are among tall-growing deciduous species that impact the environment and local ecosystem. Considerations to take into account before planting large deciduous trees include lawn maintenance from leaf drop in autumn and sticks and limbs on the yard following storms. While leaf drop creates an annual lawn maintenance issue, leaf drop is an advantage, as it allows warming from the winter sun.

Small Deciduous Shade Trees

Small deciduous trees often have ornamental value that goes beyond the shade provided by the tree canopy. The late-winter-blooming Acacia smallii grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 8 through 10, blooming with clusters of puffy yellow, fragrant flowers. Japanese maple (Acer palmatum) is a wide-spreading tree with green or red foliage, and golden chain tree (Laburnum spp.) grows to a height of 25 feet with an equal spread. Both Acer palmatum and Laburnum grow in United State Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 6 through 8. Crape myrtles (Lagerstroemia spp.) cast filtered shade, but are planted primarily for their ornamental features of bark and summer-blooming flower clusters in shades of purple, red, pink, lavender and white where they grow in USDA plant hardiness zones 7 through 10.


Pine trees (Pinus spp.) are needled evergreens often grown for their canopies. Foxtail pine(P. balfouriana) grows to 50 feet tall and 25 feet wide in California's USDA zones 5 through 8. Big-cone pine (P. coulteri) reaches 80 feet tall with a spread of 25 to 30 feet in California and Baja California USDA plant hardiness zones 8 through 9. Holly trees (Ilex spp.) can reach heights of 70 feet, such as Ilex aguifolium, which grows in USDA plant hardiness zones 7 through 9 where it tolerates pollution and thrives in coastal conditions. Evergreen canopy trees create maintenance issues, with pine cones or prickly holly leaves, but cleanup is generally less than the clean =up from deciduous trees.

Flowering Fruit Trees

Many fruit trees develop significant canopies, providing shade and blossoming branches. Flowering crabapple (Malus spp.) blooms in spring with white or pink blossoms followed by clusters of small ovoid fruit. Leaves of crabapple are green, which can tolerate partial shade, or purple, which colors best in full sun. Grow crabapples as canopy trees in USDA plant hardiness zones 5 through 8. Ornamental cherries, peaches and plums (Prunus spp.) are grown as evergreens or deciduous trees for shade and spring blossoms. Carolina laurel cherry (P. caroliniana) is a 25-foot evergreen tree that grows in USDA plant hardiness zones 7 through 10a. Glossy green leaves make a backdrop for 1-inch spikes of white flowers from mid-winter until spring.

About the Author

Judy Kilpatrick


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