Common Hackberry
Celtis occidentalis Large tree Zones 2–9 40–60 ft
Shares dry uplands and rocky ground in the wild.
A native we do not grow
Ponderosa Pine
Pinus ponderosa. Large tree, 60 to 150 feet where planted, zones 3 to 9; full sun or part shade; dry or average ground.
We do not grow ponderosa pine, and it is not in our shop. This page gathers what our tools say about it and the natives we grow for the same ground.
At a glance
| Other names | Western yellow pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, Pacific ponderosa pine, Rocky Mountain ponderosa pine, interior ponderosa pine, western red pine, western pitch pine |
|---|---|
| Form | Large tree |
| Height, feet | 60 to 150 where planted; up to 272 in its native stands |
| Spread, feet | Up to 30 |
| Zones | 3 to 9 |
| Sun | Full sun or part shade |
| Soil moisture | Dry or average ground |
| Growth | Medium |
| Leaves | Evergreen |
| Traits | Wildlife value, salt tolerant, winter interest, erosion control |
| Pollen | April to June |
| Fruit | Cones, August to November |
| First crop | 7 to 20 years |
| Pollination | One bears; a second improves the crop. Each tree carries both male and female cones and the wind carries the pollen; trees mostly cross with their neighbors, though some selfing occurs. |
| Lifespan | Usually lives 300 to 600 years and can live 1,047, and the oldest dated one reached 929. Only a tiny share of trees has ever been ring-counted or cross-dated. |
| Black walnut | Not named on the Morton Arboretum's lists |
| Toxicity | The needles are poisonous to pregnant cattle and horses. |
| Ground | Dry uplands and rocky ground |
| Native in | 16 states |
Ponderosa pine is native in 16 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. The states are the USDA PLANTS Database's records, with the native range read from Silvics of North America.
What our tools say
How fast it grows and how big it gets, by site Whether it suits your zone, sun and soil How far from a house, wires and a septic field What grows with it in the wild and in a yard When to plant it where you live When it sheds pollen and bears cones, month by month How to sow its seed, with dates for your place How many to plant for a crop of seed Whether one you have can be moved, and what the move takes How old one is, from its trunk How a big one scores against the champion trees
For the same ground, we grow
These trees we grow share the most of ponderosa pine's natural communities in the wild, by the companion species tool's rules.
Black Oak
Quercus velutina Large tree Zones 3–9 50–80 ft
Shares dry uplands and rocky ground in the wild.
Rock Elm
Ulmus thomasii Large tree Zones 2–9 70–90 ft
Shares dry uplands and rocky ground in the wild.
Mockernut Hickory
Carya tomentosa Large tree Zones 4–9 60–80 ft
Shares dry uplands and rocky ground in the wild.
Pignut Hickory
Carya glabra Large tree Zones 4–9 50–80 ft
Shares dry uplands and rocky ground in the wild.
Northern Red Oak
Quercus rubra Large tree Zones 3–8 50–75 ft
Shares dry uplands and rocky ground in the wild.
Read from
Its figures come from Silvics of North America, the Forest Service's Fire Effects Information System, the Woody Plant Seed Manual, the USDA PLANTS Database, NC State Extension, the Missouri Botanical Garden, Oregon State University's Landscape Plants, Cal Poly's SelecTree, Calscape, the Wildflower Center, the Gymnosperm Database, the ASPCA and Rocky Mountain Tree-Ring Research.