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Planting trees is one of the easiest yet effective means of giving your garden or your yard a face-lift. Trees can provide shade during summertime and protect you from harsh, chilly winds in the winter. Aside from these, they can also add to the privacy of your home while boosting real estate values. There are plenty of choices if you re planning to plant a tree. These depend on the size, shape, growth habits and care needed, so choose carefully, because the tree you pick will have long-lasting consequences.

When selecting a tree, the first step is to decide what kind of tree is suitable for your property and your needs. Climate and soil are important factors to consider. For example, if you plant a date palm, it might have difficulty surviving the winter season in Chicago. And planting a willow that always needs an ample supply of water would not be a good idea if you're living in a perennially dry climate. The tree species you are planning to get should be able to flourish in your local climate and soil conditions (designated hardiness zone).

Another important factor in selecting a tree is matching it to the surrounding locality. Think about the size of the area within which your new tree will be situated. Will that spindly sapling you just bought still be able to fit after 20 or 30 years? Conversely, a willow or an oak tree, both of which grow very large when mature, may be not the best tree to plant in a small front lawn in the city. The proximity of the tree to the surrounding houses, buildings, sidewalks, driveways, utility lines, and septic systems should also be considered. If a tree is not planted in an appropriate area, the overhanging branches and extensive root growth may cause damage to nearby adjacent properties and utility lines, and incur you sizeable expenses in the bargain.

Another issue to keep in mind is the drainage. Good quality, well-drained loam soil is best for planting young trees. Poorly-drained planting sites will give you problems, since many tree species, including firs, beeches, yellowwoods, oaks and yews will not be able to handle 'wet feet'. Avoid areas where stagnant water pools around roots, since this can lead to 'root rot' caused by lack of oxygen. To test the drainage of a planting area, dig a hole and fill it with water. After a couple of hours, the water should have drained away. If not, you may have problems with drainage. If this is the case, you can plant trees in raised beds of 12 to 18 inches of good quality topsoil to solve the problem.

Tree planters in new subdivisions will oftentimes meet soil quality problems. The PH level of the soil, and therefore its fertility, is often affected by construction materials and the resulting rubble. The chemical and petroleum spills which take place during building construction also present additional worries. If the soil contamination is quite severe, scraping away the contaminated soil and replacing it with good quality topsoil may be the only answer.

One of the critical factors to consider, of course, is your personal taste. The way that your property's appearance and ambience might be improved by the various kinds of trees should be taken into account. It's recommended to create a list of all the trees you want or like, and imagine how they would look when planted in your yard or garden. Think about how the tree you selected would fill in the property over time. You can make some sketches to help you decide, or if you don't have confidence in your artistic skills, hire a landscape designer or get some landscape design software.