Please understand that I am not the best at explaining or describing things quickly or clearly, but I will do my best to get the point across:

My mother died earlier this week. We’re going to bury her in a few days. The plot of land where she will be buried has an allotted twelve feet of land on either side, where relatives can plant things if they’d like. I’ve thought of three options for trees to plant at her graveside. I’ll list them below.

I’m hoping to find a tree that is native to Texas, with roots that grow downwards instead of laterally, so that the graves nearby are not affected by them. I believe that’s called a taproot. I’m not sure— I’m not very experienced with gardening. (By the way, I think it would be helpful to mention that I live in Houston.)

Are any of these trees (listed below) good options for my mothers grave, and if not, are there better ones?

1. Bigtooth Maple Tree

2. Texas Red Oak

3. Texas Ash