Common Hackberry:
Celtis occidentalis. Sometimes called the nettle-tree.
Why You Should Not Plant Hackberry!:
Hackberry is a weak tree whose forked are subject to split and which makes the tree vulnerable to major wind and ice damage. Hackberry bark is very thin, the tree damages easily and is susceptible to disease, eventual rot and catastrophic limb loss.
Roots can raise sidewalks and interfere with mowing. The tree is messy with an abundant loss of small limbs and fruit each year. The best use of hackberry is along woods lines and well away from pavement and utilities.
Redeeming Features:
*Hackberry will survive on poor soils.
*Hackberry provides abundant wildlife food.
*Hackberry hosts many butterfly species.
*Hackberry is one of only a few tree species that thrive on the Great Plains.
"More Bad Trees"
