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Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)

Common Name: Common Hackberry
Scientific Name: Celtis occidentalis
Other Names: Northern Hackberry, Hackberry, Western Hackberry, Bastard-Elm, Nettle-tree,
sugarberry.

Leaf: Deciduous; alternate; simple; 6-9 cm long; widest at asymmetrical base, tip is
long tapered point; deep bluish-green above, paler below with hairs on veins, yellow
in fall; short stalked; teeth on leaf edge.
Flower: Small; greenish; pollen (male) and seed (female) flowers on same tree
(unisexual), pollen flowers at base of new shoot in clusters, seed flowers in axil
(space between stem and leaf stalk) of new leaves; wind pollinated.
Fruit: Berry-like drupe; reddish-purple; 6-8 mm across; pitted stone; persists in
winter; edible; dispersed by fruit eating animals.
Twig: Thin; green, tinged with brown; covered in fine hairs.
Bark: Corky, irregular narrow ridges, wart like projections; grey to light
yellowish-brown.
Wood: Heavy, coarse, hard, weak, brown streaked with yellow.

Facts About This Tree:
1. There are sixty species of common hackberry, six are native to North America and two
are native to Canada.
2. Common hackberry can live to be between 150-200 years.
3. Common hackberry is used as a street tree because it can tolerate drought
and urban conditions.
4. Common hackberry needs at least 14 inches of precipitation annually to survive.
5. The fruit of the common hackberry is edible but people do not usually eat them.

Lat, Long: 43.743, -79.79459
Diameter (DBH): 26.3 cm
Last Year Modified: 2015
Carbon Stored in this Tree: 148.665 kg of C
Equivalent CO2: 545.051 kg of C

Find more trees in Heart Lake Conservation Area.

Reference
1. Kershaw, Linda. 2001. Trees of Ontario. Edmonton, AB Canada. Lone Pine Publishing.
2. Wennerberg, Sarah and Mark Skinner. 2004. Plant Guide – Common Hackberry.
3. USDA – Natural Resources Conservation Service. Retrieved on June 10, 2015
from http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_ceoc.pdf.
4. USDA. 2002. Plant Fact Sheet – Common Hackberry. Natural Resources Conservation
Service. Retrieved on June 10, 2015 from
http://plants.usda.gov/factsheet/pdf/fs_ceoc.pdf.
5. Photo Credit: R. A. Nonenmacher (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.
6. Photo Credit: Sten [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)
or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons.
7. Photo Credit: By Membeth (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons.
8. Photo Credit: Karelj (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or
CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Copyright 2015 Association for Canadian Educational Resources