Just because you’ve got a smaller-than-average yard doesn’t mean it can’t impress people. It’s not the size that counts—it’s what you do with it, we swear! Style and confidence go a long way, and plenty of ornamental trees are small in size but big on visual impact—perfect for brightening up your modestly sized yard with a bold splash of color. 

Make the Most of a Small Yard with Oceanside’s Best Ornamental Trees

Fragrant spring flowers, juicy summer fruits, vibrant autumn foliage—there are endless perks to planting ornamental trees in the yard. No one will judge you for having a small yard when they see how pretty and colorful the space is—they’ll look right past that small square footage and see nothing but your shiny, bright personality!

True short kings know how to compensate with big style! These five ornamental trees are perfect for small yards in Oceanside—some are under 10 feet tall, but they always make a big statement. 

Eastern Redbud

The vibrant pink blooms of the ornamental Eastern redbud are matched in style by its color-shifting foliage. Leaves emerge as a rich plum wine shade, transitioning to dark green in summer, then golden yellow in fall. They reach up to around 20–25 feet at maturity, so they’re a nice, manageable size and grow about 1–2 feet per year. Eastern redbuds tend to flower quite early in their lifespan—often by their fourth or fifth year after planting—so you won’t have to wait long for this multi-seasonal stunner to start showing off! 

Flowering Dogwood

Four perfectly spaced petals comprise each little bloom on the flowering dogwood—a highly sought-after ornamental tree that blooms profusely through spring. In summer, it produces small red berries that are inedible to humans but prized among birds and other beautiful Oceanside wildlife. Most dogwood trees have white flowers, but there are a few varieties that flush with rosy pink. Depending on your chosen variety, your dogwood will max out somewhere between 12–30 feet high. 

Dwarf Japanese Maple Trees

Does the sight of colorful fall leaves light a fire under your seat? Don’t worry; we get it—something about autumnal foliage just hits different. If you want in on some of that action for your front yard, a small Japanese maple will work perfectly. Their signature lobed leaves bring plenty of texture and vibrancy to the landscape, but once they transition to blazing red in the fall, this ornamental tree will knock your socks off. Most dwarf maple tree varieties reach about 3–8 feet tall at maximum height, but it’s dependent on your chosen cultivar, so check the projected size before you plant! 

Purple Leaf Plum

Shake things up a bit! Get noticed! Why stick to plain old green leaves when you can fill your yard with dazzling purple ornamental foliage? The purple leaf plum is truly in a league of its own, bringing fabulous visual contrast to the landscape. After its soft pink flowers fade at the end of spring, you’ll never have to worry about your yard being short on color. Many purple leaf plums develop delicious edible fruits, but some ornamental cultivars are fruitless—less cleanup to worry about! Dwarf purple leaf plums will reach around 10–12 feet tall, but larger varieties of this popular ornamental tree may grow up to 25 feet high. 

Fringe Tree

This ultra-fragrant ornamental tree is actually native to New York, so you’ll have no problems growing it here in Oceanside. It reaches about 10–20 feet tall, with fluffy white flower clusters that look like snowballs. Male trees tend to have larger, showier blooms, but if you plant them alongside female trees, dangling blue berries will appear for the local birds to enjoy. Fringe trees are excellent for border planting if you’d like to create an ornamental privacy hedge—much prettier than a boring fence! 

Explore even more small ornamental trees in Oceanside by dropping into Dees’ Nursery—the best garden center in Oceanside, NY! Our selection of trees and shrubs, garden and landscape plants, gardening tools, and supplies are second-to-none. Visit us soon to get stocked up for the season!