Best fall color shade tree to plant?

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vaneperez Killeen, TX Jul 28, 2014

My husband and I just purchased a home and I've always wanted a colorful maple for the front of our house, i finally decided on the Autumn Blaze but just recently I've read bad reviews on it. Basically I'm looking for a fast growing shade tree with gorgeous fall coloring. We are in zone 8 please help me decide I would hate to buy something and regret it later and the Internet is just not helping. TIA

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ViburnumValley Scott County, KY(Zone 5b) Jul 29, 2014

Plant an oak native to your region. You will never be sorry you did.

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Sequoiadendron4 Lititz, PA(Zone 6b) Jul 31, 2014

Oh my gosh! DON'T EVER PLANT AN AUTUMN BLAZE!!! Horrible, horrible spawn of a Acer saccharinum. Glad you decided to ask for help :)

Three awesome shade trees with great color:
American Sweetgum
Red Maple - October Glory or Red Sunset
Katsura

I have all three. If you are planting the Katsura, make sure you water that baby plenty the first few years. It like it's drink. Also, the Sweetgum is the best fall color and leaf shape, IMO, but the caveat is the seed balls, which can be a nuisance to some. Rake them in the winter and they're gone, no worries. The red maple is fairly carefree but the seeds produced from mature trees can be a nuisance.

Good luck and let us know what you come up with :)

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cottelpg Hamilton, OH(Zone 6a) Aug 01, 2014

Sequoiadendron4 is right--the spiney balls of the sweet gum can be quite a chore. Another great choice for fall color is the unrelated black gum or tupelo.

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Sequoiadendron4 Lititz, PA(Zone 6b) Aug 01, 2014

Yeah, that would work too. Pretty tree and you don't see many of them in our area.

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