Leveraging the Sun: Six Great Trees that Require Intense Sunlight

To develop and maintain a luxurious landscape, you have to work with the resources the local environment provides. Sure, you can amend soils or provide supplemental irrigation to help support trees that aren’t well-suited for your location, but that quickly becomes frustrating, laborious and expensive.

Instead, it makes more sense to take a look at what the local environment provides and take advantage of these resources. For those living in Bel Air, Beverly Hills or many other parts of Southern California, this means taking advantage of the copious sunlight bathing the land.

Many of those living along the East Coast or the Pacific Northwest struggle to care for trees that require full sun exposure. The trees and terrain help to reduce the amount of early morning and late afternoon sun, and the frequent rain and cloud cover make things even more difficult.

But we don’t have to deal with those types of problems here in the land of perpetual sunshine. Accordingly, you should take advantage of this fact, and consider the following six species the next time you are thinking about adding some new trees to your property.

1.Bigberry Manzanita (Arctostaphylosglauca)

Bigberry manzanitas are great choices for many southern California properties, and they grow best with plenty of strong sunlight. They are susceptible to sudden oak death, but they are relatively fire resistant and stay small enough to be planted around structures or under utility lines.

2.Gowen Cypress (Hesperocyparisgoveniana)

While it is a rare species that can be hard to track down, the Gowen cypress is another great sun-loving tree to grow in southern California. They have somewhat problematic roots, so you won’t want to plant them near underground utilities or sidewalks, but they are hardy, attractive trees who provide a ton of food for local wildlife. Reaching about 30 to 50 feet in height, they provide great shade, thanks to their dense foliage.

3.Catalina Ironwood (Lyonothamnusfloribundus)

The Catalina ironwood will grow in light shade, but it thrives best when drenched in plenty of photosynthesis-powering sunlight. Both the bark and the foliage of these 30- to 40-foot-tall trees is attractive, and will provide different textures for your property. Birds often feed on the trees’ dry fruit, especially when the species is maintained in clumps, hedges or rows.

4.Blue Palo Verde (Parkinsoniaflorida)

The Blue Palo Verde is a fantastic tree for sunny, well-drained properties. It is valuable to wildlife and quite drought tolerant, although it will shed its leaves in times of significant water stress. Reaching only about 25 feet in height, these blue-leaved trees work well near structures or under utility lines.

5. California Sycamore (Platanusracemosa)

If you are looking for a large, fast-growing tree, and you have the water to spare for its growth, the California sycamore is hard to beat. Although you’ll want to plant these trees in low-lying areas, they love sunlight and will exhibit a very rapid growth rate in good locations.

6. Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia)

Coast live oaks are often overlooked as a landscape species, but they are one of the best possible species to select for exposed, sun-drenched habitats. Coast live oaks are well adapted to the climate of southern California, and they tolerate drought quite well. They can grow as either shrubs or small trees, which make them very flexible for use in suburban settings.

If you are interested in installing some sun-loving trees on your Bel Air property, give your friends at Evergreen Arborist Consultants a call. We can help guide you through the process and ensure you pick trees well-suited for the local climate and conditions.