A co-worker of mine recently passed away unexpectedly. We have a tradition of planting something in our front yard at work to commemorate folks. In the past we've planted peach trees, because they're something that provides for everyone, and the peach is the symbol of longevity. But if we add another peach we're going to start looking like an orchard. (Not to mention a kinda scary place to work!)

I'm looking for suggestions for this one. The guy was a noted local expert on Celtic music, and I thought we could plant a rowan near our front door. (Or perhaps espaliered against a wall?) It has a long history in the British Isles as a magical tree, has beautiful flowers in the spring and fruit long into winter, plus the birds and butterflies apparently love it.

We have a south facing slope that has full sun. Extremely sharp drainage, so we have a lot of prairie plants and Mediterraneans there. The grounds crew would probably rather we didn't plant a tree in the middle of the lawn, so we're looking for something that can be planted along the orange brick building. The doorway is a fairly narrow space (4-5 feet?) so if we plant something there, we need something that grows a trunk for at least 6-7 feet before branching out.

A lot of you have far more experience with trees than I do -- let me know what you'd suggest. And let me know how much realistic root room I should plan on. (I'm used to cramming small plants in to small spaces - I want to make sure this tree has plenty of room!)