# Early-Bearing Trees & Shrubs

> Native trees and shrubs that bear their first crop two to five years from seed.

We grow thirty-eight trees and shrubs that bear fruit, nuts, acorns or cones early, two to five years from seed. Twenty-six are shrubs, among them [black elderberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/black-elderberry/index.html.md), [American hazelnut](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/american-hazelnut/index.html.md) and [beach plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/beach-plum/index.html.md). The trees run from [Chickasaw plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/chickasaw-plum/index.html.md) and [flatwoods plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/flatwoods-plum/index.html.md) to [pin cherry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/pin-cherry/index.html.md) and [Nuttall oak](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/nuttall-oak/index.html.md). Most need a second plant, or a male among the females, before they bear, and the [pollination planner](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/pollination/index.html.md) says which. [Why a tree flowers but bears no fruit](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/why-a-tree-flowers-but-never-fruits/index.html.md) covers what else can keep a plant from bearing.

38 of 364 plants. Web version: https://bluewhaletrees.com/shop/early-bearing/. Each plant links to its own Markdown page with the full facts, description and growing guide.

Columns: Zones are the USDA hardiness zones the plant takes, from the coldest to the warmest it is rated for (zone 2 is the coldest, 10 the warmest); Height is mature height in feet; Sun and Soil list every condition the plant takes; Grown from is what the nursery offers it as (saplings, or acorns, nuts or seed to sow); Price is the lowest current price, or "ask" when the plant is not yet priced online (email captain@bluewhaletrees.com or join the waitlist on the web page).

This table accepts the shop's filters as query parameters on this address: size (shrub, small-tree, medium-tree, large-tree), sun (full, part, shade), moisture (dry, average, wet), zone (2 to 10), native (a state's two-letter code in capitals, such as PA: the plants native to that state by the USDA PLANTS records), want (a trait: flowers, fall-color, wildlife, honey, edible, evergreen, rare, drought, wet-tolerant, shade, early-bearing, screening, nitrogen-fixing, salt, winter-interest, street-tree, erosion-control; rare means uncommon in the wild or in nurseries, honey a nectar source for bees), as (acorns, seed, nuts, saplings) and q (a search word). Several values may be joined with commas.

| Plant | Botanical name | Group | Type | Height (ft) | Zones | Sun | Soil | Grown from | Price |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Dwarf Chinquapin Oak](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/dwarf-chinquapin-oak/index.html.md) | *Quercus prinoides* | Rare & Uncommon Oaks | Shrub | 6–15 | 4–8 | Full, Part | Dry, Average | Saplings, Acorns | ask |
| [American Plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/american-plum/index.html.md) | *Prunus americana* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Small tree | 15–25 | 3–8 | Full, Part | Average, Dry, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [American Hazelnut](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/american-hazelnut/index.html.md) | *Corylus americana* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Shrub | 8–12 | 4–9 | Full, Part | Average, Dry | Saplings, Nuts | ask |
| [Beach Plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/beach-plum/index.html.md) | *Prunus maritima* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Shrub | 4–8 | 3–8 | Full | Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Allegheny Chinquapin](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/allegheny-chinquapin/index.html.md) | *Castanea pumila* | Chestnuts & Chinquapins | Small tree | 10–25 | 5–9 | Full, Part | Dry, Average | Saplings, Nuts | ask |
| [Spicebush](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/spicebush/index.html.md) | *Lindera benzoin* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 6–12 | 4–9 | Part, Shade, Full | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Black Elderberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/black-elderberry/index.html.md) | *Sambucus canadensis* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 6–12 | 3–9 | Full, Part | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Red Elderberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/red-elderberry/index.html.md) | *Sambucus racemosa* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 8–12 | 3–7 | Part, Full, Shade | Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Ninebark](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/ninebark/index.html.md) | *Physocarpus opulifolius* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 5–10 | 2–8 | Full, Part | Dry, Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Staghorn Sumac](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/staghorn-sumac/index.html.md) | *Rhus typhina* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 15–25 | 3–8 | Full | Dry, Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Leadplant](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/leadplant/index.html.md) | *Amorpha canescens* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 1–3 | 2–8 | Full | Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Black Chokeberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/black-chokeberry/index.html.md) | *Aronia melanocarpa* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 3–6 | 3–8 | Full, Part | Dry, Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Silky Dogwood](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/silky-dogwood/index.html.md) | *Cornus amomum* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 6–12 | 4–8 | Full, Part | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Bristly Locust (Rose Locust)](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/rose-locust/index.html.md) | *Robinia hispida* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 3–8 | 5–8 | Full | Dry, Average | Saplings | ask |
| [Northern Bayberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/northern-bayberry/index.html.md) | *Morella pensylvanica* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 5–10 | 3–7 | Full, Part | Dry, Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Gray Dogwood](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/gray-dogwood/index.html.md) | *Cornus racemosa* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 4–10 | 4–8 | Full, Part, Shade | Dry, Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Arrowwood Viburnum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/arrowwood-viburnum/index.html.md) | *Viburnum dentatum* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 5–10 | 2–8 | Full, Part, Shade | Dry, Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Deerberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/deerberry/index.html.md) | *Vaccinium stamineum* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 5–15 | 5–9 | Full, Part | Dry, Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Ozark Chinquapin](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/ozark-chinquapin/index.html.md) | *Castanea ozarkensis* | Chestnuts & Chinquapins | Small tree | 15–30 | 5–8 | Full | Dry, Average | Saplings, Nuts | ask |
| [Rusty Blackhaw](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/rusty-blackhaw/index.html.md) | *Viburnum rufidulum* | Native Shrubs | Small tree | 10–20 | 5–9 | Full, Part | Average, Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Chickasaw Plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/chickasaw-plum/index.html.md) | *Prunus angustifolia* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Small tree | 4–20 | 5–9 | Full, Part | Average, Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Allegheny Plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/allegheny-plum/index.html.md) | *Prunus alleghaniensis* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Shrub | 3–20 | 4–8 | Full, Part | Average, Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Southern Crabapple](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/southern-crabapple/index.html.md) | *Malus angustifolia* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Small tree | 20–30 | 4–9 | Full, Part | Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [American Chestnut](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/american-chestnut/index.html.md) | *Castanea dentata* | Chestnuts & Chinquapins | Small tree | 15–30 | 4–8 | Full, Part | Average, Dry | Saplings, Nuts | ask |
| [Red Chokeberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/red-chokeberry/index.html.md) | *Aronia arbutifolia* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Shrub | 6–12 | 3–9 | Full, Part | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Nuttall Oak](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/nuttall-oak/index.html.md) | *Quercus texana* | Rare & Uncommon Oaks | Large tree | 50–80 | 5–9 | Full | Average, Wet, Dry | Saplings, Acorns | ask |
| [Flatwoods Plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/flatwoods-plum/index.html.md) | *Prunus umbellata* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Small tree | 12–20 | 4–10 | Full, Part | Dry, Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Pin Cherry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/pin-cherry/index.html.md) | *Prunus pensylvanica* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Small tree | 15–40 | 2–7 | Full | Average, Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Dwarf Live Oak](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/dwarf-live-oak/index.html.md) | *Quercus minima* | Rare & Uncommon Oaks | Shrub | 1–3 | 7–10 | Full, Part | Dry, Average | Saplings, Acorns | ask |
| [Mapleleaf Viburnum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/mapleleaf-viburnum/index.html.md) | *Viburnum acerifolium* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 3–6 | 3–8 | Part, Shade, Full | Average, Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Wild Black Currant](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/wild-black-currant/index.html.md) | *Ribes americanum* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Shrub | 3–6 | 3–7 | Full, Part | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Sand Pine](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/sand-pine/index.html.md) | *Pinus clausa* | Uncommon Yard Trees | Small tree | 25–40 | 7–10 | Full | Dry | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Hortulan Plum](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/hortulan-plum/index.html.md) | *Prunus hortulana* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Small tree | 20–30 | 5–7 | Full, Part | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Three-flower Hawthorn](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/three-flower-hawthorn/index.html.md) | *Crataegus triflora* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Shrub | 3–20 | 7–8 | Part, Full | Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Sand Cherry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/sand-cherry/index.html.md) | *Prunus pumila* | Nut & Fruit Trees | Shrub | 1–8 | 3–6 | Full, Part | Dry, Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Squashberry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/squashberry/index.html.md) | *Viburnum edule* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 2–7 | 2–8 | Full, Part, Shade | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Red Osier Dogwood](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/red-osier-dogwood/index.html.md) | *Cornus sericea* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 6–12 | 2–7 | Full, Part, Shade | Average, Wet | Saplings, Seed | ask |
| [Chapman's St. John's-wort](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/chapman-st-johns-wort/index.html.md) | *Hypericum chapmanii* | Native Shrubs | Shrub | 7–13 | 8–9 | Full, Part | Wet, Average | Saplings, Seed | ask |