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What about a nice Chinese Elm or Ginko?

I love ginko trees as well. In my part of the world, the Bradford Pear right outside my window is blooming with lovely white flowers. They are known for being fast growing and hearty. When pruned well, the branches make a nice oval shape. Here in the southeast, the leaves turn scarlet in January or so.

An American Redbud would look lovely. It's a native in most parts of the U.S. and spreads with lovely silvery branches into a nice shape without much pruning help. The leaves are very large and heart-shaped, and it blooms into a fiery fuchsia focal point!

Hi, I am a landscape architect and your post grabbed me! What kind of tree did you have removed? What 'needs' do you have? For example, would you like more shade? Screening? Something to bloom? Fill us in, I would love to help out. Also, I agree with the comments above. I love ginkgos. Make CERTAIN you get a male variety as the females drop vomit smelling fruit : ) If you go with a redbud, get the Cercis occidentalis as it is more native to california. It is more difficult to find than the Cercis canadensis - which is not native to california.

Plant something native to your area, as it will be more drought-tolerant and will benefit native birds, insects, etc. I would go with a sycamore or a coast live oak. Any tree that flowers prolifically is going to require lots of irrigation in a dry climate, especially during its establishment phase as a sapling.

Wow, I have the same problem....can you all extend more help to an ATer that lives in central va? I am thinking about a magnolia but I know there can be problems...

oh, come now, the fruit does not smell like vomit. It's actually really delicious when roasted; caramalized in its thin shell, it's nutty, sweet, and rich... but your neighbors may poach them. lol. (as i've done in the past)

Do NOT plant a Bradford pear. They're really common in Oklahoma, where I'm from originally, because they grow so fast and have such pretty flowers. The downside is that they smell AWFUL. Like something is rotting. We had them outside of some of the classrooms at my High School, and every spring that smell was just over whelming.

Perhaps instead of a tree a nice planter would look good there?

Do some research and get a tree that fits the situation. Consider Height, coverage, roots, tree needs and growth.

It is just not as easy as saying "get a Japanese Maple tree, they are cute with the red leaves!"

That is a great point about what the tree drops. I have a tree that drops its fine leaves that continually fill the gutters of my house.

We had a peppermint tree once. It was a weeper, and every time it rained, the peppermint smell was great.

I'd recommend a low-maintenance fruit tree, such as an avocado or orange, so that you get some return for your water. Jujubes are bit messy, but fun and pretty. Get the Sunset Western Garden Book to determine your zone. Their entries for varieties of each kind of tree is excellent. Nursery workers don't always know all the details.

Trees planted in grass tend to have shallow roots:
You might want a small tree, in case it falls again, or to put it in planter, so that it gets occaisional deep watering instead of frequent shallow watering.

Please, please, please use this as an excuse to get rid of that water-hogging lawn!

You could do a low-water-use landscape with some sages and lavenders, and maybe put in a chitalpa or crepe myrtle where your old tree was -- pretty shape, lovely flowers, useful shade on your house and no extra watering.

Alas, losing a beautiful tree is like like losing a family member.

To the person who wanted a magnolia, I would advise against it. I had one in my yard growing up. I'm now 23, and it's since grown so large it needs to be trimmed constantly so it doesn't run into the electric wiring running to our house, the roots have killed our small front lawn and possibly gotten into the sewer pipes, the branches grow so low they encourage constant head-hitting and neighborhood kids to come climbing (law suit alert), and every year it drops its pods everywhere, littering our driveway and attracting some very annoying squirrels.

And if it's really in the sewer pipes, my mother is going to have to pay to have it removed, and to repair the pipes...

Worst tree ever.

Citrus and stone fruit trees! Check out the Dave Wilson nursery site for ideas on planting a small backyard orchard. If you plant one small lemon, orange, peach and plum trees, you will make lots of friends with your neighbors when you pass around the fresh fruit. Plus fruit blossoms are lovely.

http://www.davewilson.com/homegrown/homeindex1.html

p.s. If you'd rather have a shade tree, check out the City of Los Angeles's tree guide, which lists only trees appropriate for our Southern California climate & water needs. Those living in Los Angeles can get free trees from the city. Perhaps Pasadena has a similar program?

http://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/cms/ladwp000744.jsp

Here's another aspect: if you own a fruit tree, you'll have to manage it for pests. A lot of times, that involves spraying chemicals. For most pests, there are other means, but they are often costly and time-intensive. Are you willing to devote the extra hours and $$$s every growing season?

It's not fair to fruit growers in your region (many of whom are trying to reduce pesticide use) to allow your trees to become a breeding ground for commercially damaging pests.

Yes, fresh fruit is delicious, but maybe it's best left to the folks at the farmers' market.

P.S. My philosophy is "Cut down one, plant two."

I agree with GingerVitis! look into alternatives to lawn - I bet there are plenty you will love a lot more than what you currently have!

I think citrus, avocado, or stone fruit trees. (I'm biased because I am currently enjoying all our pink blossoms!)

But ... it looks awfully close to your house and the roots can have adverse affects on your plumbing pipes, so maybe something more drought tolerant would be good, but I like the fruit trees since they don't grow tall, you get fruits or avocados, and there is still some shade.

Just an FYI--I have a peach, plum and lemon tree, and I have NEVER sprayed any pesticides on them. Fruit trees are surprisingly easy to maintain as long as you select the right tree for your climate and soil.

Thanks for your tips everyone! I'm reading up on the Cool Trees of Pasadena right now (FYI, for anyone who lives in Pasadena, you can actually get a rebate if you plant a shade tree!) This guide is pretty handy--it lists small, medium, and large cool trees that are native to Southern California.

I'm wavering between the jacaranda or the peppermint trees. Both are medium-sized, according to the guide...Does anyone have any experience with either one? I'm not even sure what my old tree was, aside from being huge and having very small, delicate leaves.

I know I'm definitely NOT wanting a tree that produces acorns--my neighbor has one that hangs over my driveway. During the winter months, my driveway is covered. My dogs, however, love chasing the squirrels.

I have a lemon tree and a persimmon tree in my backyard, and I can't give away the lemons fast enough!

Jacarandas are gorgeous but when they drop their purple stuff they are a huge mess. They take a long time to grow large, too...

That being said, had we had any room for trees in our yard, we'd have put a jacaranda in. DH was in lurve with them.

Jacaranda litter can also be sticky, and hard to get off of cars, driveways, etc., so you might want to do some research -- might be a make tree/female tree thing.

Regarding jacarandas (and other trees), you might want to check out the "Tree of the Week" post on the LA Times - LA Land blog. There are warnings about sticky litter, plus foundation concerns that you might want to double-check.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/laland/2007/05/saturdays_tree_.html
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/laland/gardening/index.html

I recall taking the jacaranda off my list of possibles because of the foundation concerns (although I can't remember how I researched that issue).

I inherited a Golden Wonder cassia (Cassia splendida) instead and it seems to be a good compromise between showy (fall time!) flowers and water consumption. It attracts a lot of cloudless sulfur butterflies, too. However, it's not a very tall tree, if that's what you want.