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This page is one of a series discussing habitat and culture of native plants that include Pennsylvania in their continental range. Go up to index.
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The Pennystone Project provides information relating to sustainable landscape practices using native species, with emphasis on Pennsylvania.
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Trees and shrubs
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Taxus canadensis (Canadian yew) - cool moist rocky slopes or ravines under mixed coniferous (rarely deciduous) forest canopy; statewide. Declining because of deer browsing, FAC. Shrub to 5 feet; sun to part shade in mesic to moist sandy circumneutral loam. Needs protection from winter sun and wind; a few sources.
Tilia americana var. americana (Basswood) - rich uplands on mid-slopes in mixed deciduous forests and occasionally swamps, FACU; statewide. Grows to 130 feet in sandy loams to silt loams; prefers moist to mesic, finer textured, well-drained loams. Generally intolerant of air pollution and urban conditions; many sources.
Toxicodendron vernix (Poison sumac) - wet soil of swamps, bogs, seepage slopes, and frequently flooded areas; in shady hardwood forests, OBL; statewide except north-central (Northern Unglaciated Allegheny Plateau). Grows to16 feet. Not a suitable landscape plant. All parts, in all seasons, will cause severe skin irritation if plant sap contacted; a few sources.
Tsuga canadensis (Canada hemlock, Eastern hemlock) - moist rocky ridges and hillsides, cool moist valleys, flats and ravines, especially on northern and eastern facing slopes, and swamp borders if peat and muck soils are shallow, usually above 1,200 feet, FACU; statewide. Grows to 100 feet; average, medium, well-drained soil in part shade to full shade. Prefers acidic cool, moist, humid conditions with good drainage; textures include sandy loams, loamy sands, and silty loams with gravel of glacial origin in the upper profile. Intolerant of drought and should be watered regularly in prolonged dry spells, particularly when young. Best sited in a location protected from strong winds. Currently under attack by Adelges tsugae (wooly adelgid), a pest from Japan; once infected, a tree is usually dead within a few years; many sources.
Ulmus americana (American elm) - alluvial woods, swamp forests, deciduous woodlands, fencerows, pastures, old fields, waste areas, FACW-; statewide. Grows to 130 feet; average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun. Tolerant of light shade. Prefers rich, moist loams. Adapts to both wet and dry sites. Generally tolerant of urban conditions and often planted as a street tree. Once a very common species, it fell victim to a fungus imported from Europe; many sources.
Ulmus rubra (Red elm or slippery elm) - moist rich soils on lower slopes, alluvial flood plains, stream banks, riverbanks and river terraces, and wooded bottom lands, sometimes on drier, limestone-origin sites, FAC-; statewide. Grows to 65 feet; average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun. Tolerant of light shade. Prefers rich, moist loams. Adapts to wet and dry sites. Generally tolerant of urban conditions; a few sources.
Vaccinium angustifolium (Low sweet blueberry) - dry woods and barrens, acidic soils, FACU; statewide. Grows to 30 inches with white flowers in spring and dark blue fruit in late summer; part sun to part shade in dry to mesic sandy loam; several sources.
Vaccinium corymbosum (Highbush blueberry) - dry to wet woods, thickets, stream banks, bogs in acidic soil, FACW-; statewide, especially east. Grows to 10 feet with white flowers in spring and dark blue fruit in late summer; sun to part shade in dry to mesic sandy organic loam. Parent plant of almost all hybrid blueberries; several sources.
Vaccinium macrocarpon (American cranberry) - peaty woodlands, seepy areas and sphagnum bogs, OBL; statewide, especially northeast (Northern Glaciated Allegheny Plateau). Trailing shrub with white flowers in spring and the familiar red cranberry in late summer; sun to part shade in damp, acidic (pH 4.0 to 5.2), organically rich, well-drained soil in full sun; several sources.
Vaccinium myrtilloides (Sour-top blueberry) - wet thickets and barrens, FAC; mostly northwest (Western Glaciated Allegheny Plateau) and northeast (Northern Glaciated Allegheny Plateau); scattered elsewhere. Shrub to 30 inches with greenish-white flowers in spring and dark blue fruit in late summer; sun to part shade in moist acidic sandy loam; a few sources.
Vaccinium oxycoccos (Small cranberry) - bogs, especially in cool areas, OBL; mostly northeast (Northern Glaciated Allegheny Plateau). Trailing shrub with white flowers in spring followed by red fruit; sun to part shade in moist to wet acidic sandy loam; a few sources.
Vaccinium pallidum (Lowbush blueberry) - dry, rocky hillsides, upland ridges, rocky outcrops and ledges, sandy knolls, shale barrens and upland swamps; statewide. Shrub to 3 feet with white flowers in spring and dark blue-purple fruit in late summer; part sun to part shade in dry to mesic sandy loam; a few sources.
Vaccinium stamineum (Deerberry) - dry woods, openings, barrens and clearings. FACU; statewide. Shrub to 6 feet with white flowers and spring and green fruit when ripe in late summer; part sun to part shade in mesic sandy clay loam; a few sources.
Viburnum acerifolium (Maple-leaved viburnum) - upland forests, woodlands, ravine slopes and hillsides in well-drained, moist soils; particularly tolerant of acid soils, UPL; statewide. Shrub to 6 feet with white flowers in spring; part sun to part shade in mesic to moist rich sandy loam; pH 5.1 to 6; several sources.
Viburnum cassinoides (Witherod) - swamps, moist upland woods and clearings and exposed rock crevices, FACW; statewide. Shrub to 15 feet with white flowers in spring; full sun to part shade in well-drained moist loams, but tolerates a wide range of soils including boggy ones; many sources.
Viburnum dentatum (Southern arrow-wood) - moist woods and along stream banks. FAC; mostly southeast (Piedmont). Grows 6 to 10 feet with white flowers in spring; sun to shade in wet to dry acidic soils and sandy loams; among the most adaptable of all the viburnums. Suckers freely from the base and is easily transplanted; many sources.
Viburnum lantanoides (Hobblebush) - rich, moist acidic woods, stream banks, ravines and swamps, FAC; mostly north (Western and Northern Glaciated, Northern Unglaciated Allegheny Plateaus) and Allegheny Mountains. Shrub to 6 feet with white to pink flowers in late spring; part sun to part shade in moist sandy loam. Trailing stems take root where they touch the ground, creating hazards for walkers, hence the name; a few sources.
Viburnum lentago (Nannyberry) - woods, swamps and thickets with rich, moist soil, FAC; statewide, especially southeast (Piedmont). Shrub to 15 feet with white flowers in spring; part sun to part shade in average, medium, well-drained soil; prefers mostly gravelly sandy loam; many sources.
Viburnum nudum (Possum-haw) - rare in low woods, swamps, bogs, OBL; southeast (Atlantic Coastal Plain) and endangered. Grows 5 to 12 feet with white flowers in spring; prefers moist loams in full sun to part shade, but tolerates wide range of soils; a few sources.
Viburnum opulus var. americanum (Highbush cranberry) - swampy woods, bogs, lake margins, pastures, thickets, slopes and moist low places, FACW; widely scattered south, especially southeast (Piedmont). Shrub to 15 feet with white flowers in spring; full sun to part shade in moist to wet circumneutral (but not limestone) well-drained soil. Prefers loams with consistent moisture, but tolerates a wide range of soils. AKA Viburnum trilobum; many sources.
Viburnum prunifolium (Black-haw) - successional woods, thickets, old fields, roadsides, FACU; statewide except north (Western and Northern Glaciated and Northern Unglaciated Allegheny Plateaus). Shrub or small tree to 25 feet with white flowers in spring; sun to part shade in dry to mesic sandy loam. Tolerates drought; many sources.
Viburnum rafinesquianum (Downy arrow-wood) - rocky woods, old fields, dry slopes and banks; widely scattered statewide. Shrub to 5 feet with white flowers in spring; part sun to part shade in dry to mesic rocky sandy loam. White flowers in spring; a few sources.
Viburnum recognitum (Northern arrow-wood) - swamps, boggy woods, wet pastures, stream banks, FACW-; statewide. Shrub to 15 feet with white flowers in spring; part shade to shade in moist, humusy well-drained acidic loam; a few sources.
Viburnum trilobum (Highbush cranberry) - swamps, thickets, fens and wet woods; mostly northwest (Western Glaciated Allegheny Plateau). Shrub to 15 feet with white flowers in spring; full sun to part shade in moist to wet circumneutral (but not limestone) well-drained soil. Prefers loams with consistent moisture, but tolerates a wide range of soils. Also known as Viburnum opulus var. americanum; many sources.
Zanthoxylum americanum (Prickly-ash) - calcareous soils or diabase along streams, on river bluffs, rocky hillsides and ravines and along roadsides; FACU; Mostly southeast (Central Appalachians, Piedmont). Grows 12 to 35 feet with inconspicuous flowers in rocky, calcareous soils (circumneutral to pH 7.2) in sun; a few sources.