Common Hackberry
Celtis occidentalis Large tree Zones 3–9 40–60 ft
Shares dry uplands, rocky ground, old fields and edges in the wild.
A native we do not grow
Shortleaf Pine
Pinus echinata. Large tree, 50 to 100 feet, zones 6 to 9; full sun or part shade; dry or average ground.
We do not grow shortleaf 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 | Shortleaf yellow pine, shortstraw pine, Arkansas soft pine, longtag pine |
|---|---|
| Form | Large tree |
| Height, feet | 50 to 100 |
| Spread, feet | Up to 40 |
| Zones | 6 to 9 |
| Sun | Full sun or part shade |
| Soil moisture | Dry or average ground |
| Growth | Medium |
| Leaves | Evergreen |
| Traits | Wildlife value, hedge or screen, erosion control |
| Pollen | March to April |
| Fruit | Cones, August to December |
| First crop | About 20 years (earlier seed is exceptional) |
| Pollination | One bears; a second improves the crop. Each tree carries both male and female cones and the wind carries the pollen, but a lone pine tends to set less seed than pines in a group. |
| Lifespan | Typically lives 200 years, and the oldest dated one reached 324. Only a tiny share of trees has ever been ring-counted or cross-dated. |
| Black walnut | Not named on the Morton Arboretum's lists |
| Ground | Dry uplands, rocky ground, the coast, old fields and edges |
| Native in | 22 states and the District of Columbia |
Shortleaf pine is native in 22 states and the District of Columbia: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. The states are the USDA PLANTS Database's records, with the native range read from Silvics of North America and NatureServe Explorer.
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 shortleaf pine's natural communities in the wild, by the companion species tool's rules.
Winged Elm
Ulmus alata Medium tree Zones 6–9 40–60 ft
Shares dry uplands, rocky ground, old fields and edges in the wild.
Western Soapberry
Sapindus saponaria var. drummondii Medium tree Zones 5–9 20–50 ft
Shares dry uplands, rocky ground, old fields and edges in the wild.
Eastern Red Cedar
Juniperus virginiana Medium tree Zones 2–9 30–50 ft
Shares dry uplands, rocky ground, old fields and edges in the wild.
Eve's Necklace
Styphnolobium affine Small tree Zones 7–9 15–30 ft
Shares dry uplands, rocky ground, old fields and edges in the wild.
Farkleberry
Vaccinium arboreum Small tree Zones 6–10 10–25 ft
Shares dry uplands, rocky ground, old fields and edges in the wild.
Read from
Its figures come from Silvics of North America, NC State Extension, the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Morton Arboretum, the Wildflower Center, the Forest Service's Fire Effects Information System, the Woody Plant Seed Manual, the USDA PLANTS Database, the University of Georgia's forestry school, the US Forest Service and Virginia Tech's dendrology site.