Thanks to all who answered a previous question regarding Kousa dogwoods and sun. It was very helpful.
A related question: I have a young red oak in my front lawn (facing south), which I've been told could grow eventually to over 60 ft by 50 ft. (Of course, growing at about 1 1/2 ft per year, that means abut 40 years from now.) The problem is, I have a ranch home on a relatively small lot, and at that size, the tree will totally dominate the yard as well as place everything in shade. I like having some sun hit the house, both for lighting purposes and for my garden at the front of the house. My question is: is it possible/advisable to periodically trim back the oak to keep its size more manageable? Or would this harm the tree, or really not help reduce the size of the tree in the long run?
An alternative is to transplant the oak to a place where this won't be an issue.
Thanks for the input. I'm new to this, and find I am learning an awful lot reading this newsgroup.