10 Native Trees Landscape Designers Love
Planting a tree is a big investment in your landscape — but one that can have large payoffs, from beautifying your yard and enhancing curb appeal to shading your home and helping cut energy use. With the 10 native trees profiled here, the benefits are even greater. As these trees have evolved in the regions in which they grow, they’ve adapted to thrive in the local climate, support beneficial wildlife and pollinators, and give the landscape a sense of terroir, or place.
We asked 10 landscape designers and architects from around the country to share a tree native to their region that they like to include in their designs. From eastern and western species of redbud and serviceberry to a Texas native that produces grape candy-scented flowers, the following selections will take you on a mini arboreal journey from coast to coast.
1. Western Redbud
(Cercis occidentalis)
Native to Northern California, the Sierras, the San Joaquin Valley and the extreme southwest of California to Utah and Arizona
Loved by: Cassy Aoyagi of FormLA Landscaping in Los Angeles
Why this tree: “Western redbud can squeeze into tight spaces. Its ever-changing canopy delights clients — and is great where we want to produce energy savings. And as if all that weren’t enough, the blooms are delicious too,” Aoyagi says.
Special features: “It is spectacular at passive climate control,” Aoyagi says. “Barren or bloom-filled branches [which pollinators love] allow sun through to warm homes in winter. In spring, its heart-shaped leaves are translucent, and they become less so as gardens and homes need more cooling shade.”
Growing tips: “Make sure western redbud, and every tree, has room to grow to its full height and girth, regardless of how big it is when you plant it,” Aoyagi says. “You know you’ve succeeded in growing habitat when you see the sure signs of perfect little circles carved out of the leaves by leafcutter bees used to line their nests.”
Its compact size means western redbud can find a home in gardens big and small. In larger yards, it can be planted in clusters, as part of either a grove or an allée. “This clustering can also enhance energy savings, since their canopy stand alone covers a small footprint,” Aoyagi says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to 10 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 12.2 degrees Celsius (USDA zones 7 to 9; find your zone)
Water requirement: Moderate to low
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: 3 to 15 feet tall and wide
2. Eastern Redbud
(Cercis canadensis)
Native to the central U.S. east to southern New England and south to Florida and Texas
Loved by: Bob Hursthouse of Hursthouse Landscape Architect and Contractors in Bolingbrook, Illinois
Why this tree: With their delicate lavender blooms and vase shape, “eastern redbuds are wonderful additions to most residential settings,” Hursthouse says. “As an indigenous tree to northern Illinois, it will be compatible with most soil types we experience on our projects. As a result, we know we can anticipate optimum, healthy development,” he says.
Special features: “The pastel blooms in April will last in excess of three weeks if the weather stays cool enough, which is much longer than other spring-blooming ornamentals,” Hursthouse says. “In a multistem form, redbuds add an especially distinctive architectural element to residential landscapes.” These trees also provide nesting habitat and food source for wildlife, he adds.
Hursthouse Landscape Architects and Contractors
Growing tips: “Site redbuds where they will have room to naturally develop their vase shape,” Hursthouse says. He notes that gardeners might notice a fair amount of dead wood after the foliage emerges for the first year or two. “This is completely normal, and the tree will simply grow out of it in subsequent years,” he says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 31.6 degrees Celsius (zones 4 to 9)
Water requirement: Prefers moist, well-drained soil but can survive in drier conditions
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: 20 to 30 feet tall and up to 35 feet wide, but it can be kept smaller with pruning
3. Desert Willow
(Chilopsis linearis)
Native to the southwestern United States
Loved by: Noelle Johnson of Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting in Phoenix
Why this tree: “Desert willow is a medium-sized tree that easily handles the cold winters and intensely hot summers of the Southwest. The narrow leaves are a nice bright green, which adds a welcome splash of color to dry-climate gardens,” Johnson says.
Special features: “Desert willow thrives with little effort. Its medium size makes it suitable for many landscape uses, and it isn’t a thirsty tree, which is a plus in arid regions,” Johnson says. Lightly fragrant pink flowers provide a nectar source for hummingbirds from spring through summer.
Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting
Growing tips: “Prune to maintain tree shape, removing any suckers from the base. Water deeply and avoid overwatering,” Johnson says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 5 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 20.5 degrees Celsius (zones 6 to 9)
Water requirement: Low
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: 25 feet tall and wide
4. Sweetbay
(Magnolia virginiana)
Native to the eastern coastal U.S., from eastern Massachusetts south to Florida and west to Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas
Loved by: Adam Woodruff in Marblehead, Massachusetts
Why this tree: “It has a relaxed form yet is elegant,” Woodruff says. Its fragrant blooms appear later than the blooms of many other magnolias, he adds, so it’s less likely that you’ll lose some to a late-spring frost.
Special features: “It has an upright oval [shape],” he says, and its fragrant, creamy-white flowers appear in early summer. “Handsome glossy green leaves with silver matte undersides provide an interesting effect when the wind blows,” he adds. The tree also produces yellow fall color.
Growing tips: “For best results, plant sweetbay magnolias in full to partial sun in rich, acidic soil that is moist and well-drained. Plants will tolerate a range of soils, including wet, boggy soils and clay,” Woodruff says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 15 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 26.1 degrees Celsius (zones 5 to 10)
Water requirement: Low (but the plant is often found in swampy sites)
Light requirement: Full sun to partial sun
Mature size: Up to 35 feet tall and wide
5. Common Manzanita
(Arctostaphylos manzanita)
Native to California, including the Outer North Coast Ranges, Inner North Coast Ranges, Cascade Range foothills, north and central foothills of the Sierra Nevada and San Francisco Bay
Loved by: Steve Ritchey of Seed Studio Landscape Design in San Francisco
Why this tree: “This was one of the first trees I noticed on local hikes when I moved to the Bay Area. It is such a striking plant,” Ritchey says, referring to its smooth bark, gnarled trunk, gray-green leaves and bell-shape winter flowers. “The name is Spanish for ‘little apple,’ which the fruits resemble,” he adds. Manzanita can be grown as a large shrub or small tree.
Special features: “Manzanitas are incredibly tough plants and can grow in poor, rocky soil with little water, while supporting a myriad of life, from insects and native bees to hummingbirds,” Ritchey says. “I use these as my California native Japanese maple. The forms are similar, but manzanitas say ‘This is a California garden.’ The small size and wildlife benefits mean almost every garden can host one if there is sun exposure.”
Growing tips: “Do not overwater in the summer, though this particular manzanita is more adapted to moderate watering than some species,” Ritchey says. Otherwise, manzanita is “a very easy small tree to grow for all the rewards it brings,” he says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to 10 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 12.2 degrees Celsius (zones 8 to 10)
Water requirement: Low
Light requirement: Full to partial sun
Mature size: 10 to 12 feet tall and wide; up to 25 feet tall and 18 feet wide
6. Vine Maple
(Acer circinatum)
Native from southwest British Columbia in Canada to Northern California
Loved by: Leslie Batten of Board & Vellum in Seattle
Why this tree: “So many of our native trees grow really big, but [vine maple is] a good smaller tree that works in an urban or yard setting. It has a nice form with an open vase shape,” Batten says. She adds that the tree also features a beautiful multistem structure and great fall color.
Special features: Vine maple produces delicate nine-point leaves that emerge bright chartreuse in early spring. “Even the small flowers, and later on their seeds — samaras — are little darlings that add a minute splash of color and feed squirrels and birds. They are hardy and can tolerate a variety of conditions, though preferring dryer soils than soggy to avoid root rot,” Batten says.
Scot Ragsdale
Growing tips: Vine maples “are flexible and can be maintained with careful, attentive pruning to keep a nice form. Pair them with a low, complementary understory plant community to allow the trunk form and canopy to shine,” Batten says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 5 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 20.5 degrees Celsius (zones 6 to 9)
Water requirement: Drought-tolerant once established but prefers a moisture-retentive soil
Light requirement: Morning sun and afternoon shade or dappled light all day
Mature size: Usually reaches 12 to 14 feet tall and wide
7. Texas Mountain Laurel
(Dermatophyllum secundiflorum)
Native to the southwestern United States
Loved by: Gregory Thomas of CG&S Design-Build in Austin, Texas
Why this tree: “It’s a hardy evergreen shrub that can be trained into a small, multitrunked tree,” Thomas says. He adds that Texas mountain laurel’s pendulous, grape candy-scented flowers in early spring are a standout feature, with attractive seedpods following. (Caution: The seeds inside the pods are poisonous.)
Special features: “It’s drought-resistant and fine with our intense heat and periodic deep freezes. It’s happy in our alkaline limestone soils. It’s slow-growing — meaning that it’s a long-lived, durable species. It’s also a legume, and as such sets its own nitrogen in the soil, and it needs little input,” Thomas says, adding that it will appreciate being deeply watered in drier times.
Growing tips: As Texas mountain laurel grows, “try gradual, selective pruning to slowly transform it from a shrub into a multitrunk tree. It blooms best when planted in full sun,” Thomas says. He adds that it can become susceptible to a certain caterpillar type, which can be removed by hand, water or other means if the infestation is particularly bad. And note that this tree “doesn’t like to be transplanted. At all. Ever. No way,” Thomas says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to 15 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 9.4 degrees Celsius (zones 8 to 10)
Water requirement: Low
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: Up to 15 feet tall and wide
8. American Beech
(Fagus grandifolia)
Native in the U.S. from Maine south to Florida and west to Texas, Michigan and Wisconsin
Loved by: Hannah Paulson of Ginkgo Leaf Studio in Cedarburg, Wisconsin
Why this tree: “I love this tree for its dark green, almond-shaped serrated foliage. It has a wide-spreading canopy with a sculptural branching structure. It is supported by a straight, thick trunk that is very smooth and gray. This tree alone makes a statement. I find it especially gorgeous when bright green moss and lichen grow on the gray bark,” Paulson says, adding: “We use the straight native species when planting as a shade tree in a more open property.”
Special features: “They have large root systems that can use excess water on a property while mitigating any flooding that could occur. They also tend to develop buttress roots, which is when the roots flare out at the base. These can help guide water to specific root system pockets,” Paulson says. “The beech’s root system can also create a humid environment underground for beneficial microbial activity, and supports soil organisms producing healthier soil for other plant growth. This tree has long been a sign of fertile soil wherever it is found growing.”
Growing tips: “Remove any competing [stems] at a young age, and dead branches. They are otherwise pretty low-maintenance trees, since they naturally have a healthy growing structure,” Paulson says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 31.6 degrees Celsius (zones 4 to 9)
Water requirement: Medium
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: 60 to 80 feet tall
9. Canadian Serviceberry
(Amelanchier canadensis)
Native from Maine south to Georgia and Louisiana and west to Iowa and Missouri
Loved by: Marianne Wheatley-Miller of A J Miller Landscape Architecture in Syracuse, New York
Why this tree: Wheatley-Miller recommends Canadian serviceberry for yards of all sizes. “People with a very small backyard and those with a larger area can use them,” she says. In a smaller yard, she might use it as a specimen tree; in a larger yard, she might plant multiples as a grid or grove.
Special features: The tree offers year-round interest, with white flowers in spring, leaves that create dappled shade throughout the year, attractive fall color and a great form in winter. Beautiful white flowers in spring go on to produce a blueberry-like fruit that the birds love to eat, Wheatley-Miller says. (The berries are safe for people to eat too.) Canadian serviceberry has “a lot of wildlife usage,” Wheatley-Miller says. “It really earns its keep in the garden.”
Growing tips: Wheatley-Miller praises Canadian serviceberry for its versatility. “It doesn’t mind full sun or shade,” she says, although she adds that it produces more flowers and fruit in sun. It’s also very drought- and soil-tolerant where Wheatley-Miller grows it. “I have one in my garden, and I never water it. It likes acid soil, but it will also do well in alkaline soil,” she says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 31.6 degrees Celsius (zones 4 to 7)
Water requirement: Medium
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: 15 to 20 feet tall and wide
10. Saskatoon Serviceberry
(Amelanchier alnifolia)
Native from Minnesota and Iowa southwest to New Mexico and the entire West, and in most of Canada
Loved by: Emma Smith of Environmental Designs in Henderson, Colorado
Why this tree: “It has a multistem branching habit and grows into a large shrub or small tree. It’s a popular choice for habitat plantings, because it is favored by birds and other wildlife,” Smith says.
Special features: “It’s a unique specimen, because it provides three seasons of interest. Whitish-pink flowers emerge in the spring, followed by edible fruit that’s a deep matte blue reminiscent of blueberries, and then finally the leaves turn a vibrant red to deep orange in the fall,” Smith says.
Growing tips: “In the mountains they are understory plants, growing below aspen, where the soil is moist and well-draining. They tolerate some drought but prefer moist woodland sites, so require moderate watering in the landscape,” Smith says. “East-facing, protected from northwest winds, is a good place to plant serviceberry,” she says.
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 45 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 42.7 degrees Celsius (zones 2 to 6)
Water requirement: Moderate
Light requirement: Full sun to partial shade
Mature size: 4 to 15 feet tall and 6 to 8 feet wide