People are often looking for adaptable trees to put in their landscape.  They want to know which trees can adjust well to different soil conditions, but are also pretty enough to complement their yard.  This can be a hard questions to answer since everybody's needs and likes are different.  One category of trees that I personally find to be not only pretty, but very popular, are hawthorn trees. 

First of all, they are tough trees.  They adapt well to soil types, so they should work regardless if you have sandy or clay soil.  They are also adaptable to different soil moistures.  They can tolerate wet soils, but are drought resistant in most cases.  This is especially true with the Washington Hawthorn (Crataegus phaenopyrum) and the Crusader Hawthorn (Crataegus crusgalli 'Crusader'). 

Secondly, hawthorn trees can contribute a lot of beauty to your yard.  These flower trees will look great in the spring.  They also have a great fall look.  The leaves will change to vibrant colors when the weather starts to change later in the year.  Depending on the species, you will get bright reds or oranges to brighten up your yard.  These trees also provide nice shade in the summer months.  Finally they are a berry producing tree with berries that remain on the tree through much of winter.  Not only does this provide even more color to look at, these berries are great for local wildlife.  If you get excited about the look of winter berries you will definitely want to check out the Winter King Hawthorn (Crataegus viridis 'Winter King').  

The size of hawthorn trees are another plus.  There are a lot of beautiful trees, but in urban areas it is hard to find a spot for a tree that can get up to 90 feet tall at maturity.  The hawthorn trees are not that big.  Some varieties can be as small as 12 feet (like the Crusader Hawthorn).  The larger varieties top out at 25 to 30 feet.  These would include the Glossy Hawthorn (Crataegus nitida), Thicket Hawthorn (Crataegus punctata), Winter King Hawthorn, and the Washington Hawthorn.  So if you don't have a large yard to work with, this would be a good choice.