American Hackberry Celtis occidentalis

A majestic and versatile shade tree, inconspicuous small greenish flowers are followed in the fall by persistent small (1/4”) hard orange to dark purple/red fruits that are a favorite of many birds (including fox sparrows, towhees, robins, cedar waxwings and mockingbirds) and are eaten through the winter by non-migratory birds (it’s a good nesting tree too!), finely toothed 4’ tapering leaves, attractive large corky warts and ridges develop on the bark, mature trees have elm-like shape with a fine branching habit, tolerant of tough conditions such as high acid soil, drought, air pollution, constant wind, salt spray and short term flooding once established, host plant for caterpillars of many butterflies including the Hackberry Emporer (Asterocampa celtis), Tawny Emperor (Asterocampa clyton), Questionmark (Polygonia interrogationis), Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa), Snout Butterfly (Libytheana carinenta), fast growing under farvorable conditions, dry to wet soil, sun to partial shade, up to 80’ tall and 40 to 60’ wide. Our plants are mostly 1st and 2nd year plants – about 5 to 7” tall (we also have a small number of larger plants – please contact us for pricing and availability). Give this plants some shade for the first few years after transplanting to help them establish – they take a year to two to adjust after transplanting before they put on a growth spurt.

Zone 3-8

Native Range: s. Ontario and Quebec, New Hampshire south to n. Florida and e. New Mexico. Rare in NH

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