Ornamental Tree Yellow Flowers

USDA Zones 2 and 3

• The American linden Tilia Americana "Redmond" is a tree able to survive in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 2. Growing to 70 feet, Redmond requires a large space. The pale yellow flowers emerge in clusters in June, attracting bees from all around in search of nectar. The cucumber tree Magnolia acuminate not only has yellow-green flowers resembling tulips, it has foliage that turns golden yellow in autumn. It handles zone 3, maturing to 70 feet. The white stripes on the green bark give snakebark maple Acer pensylvanicum its name. Growing from zone 3 into warmer zones, snakebark maple has yellow May flowers in 6-inch hanging chains.

USDA Zones 4 and 5

• Yellow buckeye Aesculus flava is the biggest of the buckeye trees in North America, fit for USDA zones 4 and 5. The tree's yellow flowers bloom in April or May. Yellow buckeye grows to 75 feet in full sun or part shade, with the foliage changing to orange-yellow in fall. Consider planting Scotch laburnum "Laburnum alpinum" in groups to take advantage of the yellow spring flowers. Similar to wisterias, the flowers of this 15- to 30-foot European tree hang down in clusters as long as 15 inches, notes the Missouri Botanical Garden website. Zones 4 and 5 are suitable for the yellow flowering magnolia hybrid cultivars "Yellow Fever" and "Solar Flair."

USDA Zonez 6, 7 and 8

• Blue-green leaves and pale yellow flowers are features of Japanese linden Tilia japonica, a species of linden from Japan growing to 65 feet. Use it in zones 6 through 8, where it will develop in full sun or some shade. Tasty, edible fruit is a benefit of the persimmon Diospyros virginiana "Meader." Growing smaller than the parent species, Meader possesses dark green leaves with good fall colors of orange and red, plus fruit ripening by fall. Use this ornamental tree with green-yellow flowers in all three zones. In bloom during early summer with brilliant yellow flowers, golden rain tree Koelreuteria paniculata grows to 40 feet and it is a good fit for a terrace.

USDA Zones 9, 10 and 11

• In USDA zones 9 through 11, purging nut Jatropha curcas grows to 20 feet. From the tropics of America, this tree with yellow-green flowers has a smooth, grayish bark and the flowers generate greenish seed pods containing oily, black seeds. The yellow-green flowers are not conspicuous, but the corky bark of cork oak Quercussuber makes this an ornamental options for zones 9 and 10, provided you have the room for a potentially 70-foot high tree.