APPENDIX A: NATIVE INDIANA TREES
Species
Years to Maturity
Mature Height (feet)
Soil Drainage
Seed Bearing Age (Years)
Light Needs
Value
Species
Years to Maturity
Mature Height (feet)
Soil Drainage
Seed Bearing Age (Years)
Light Needs
Value
American plum: Large wildlife shrub that produces abundant white flowers in spring and small edible plums in summer.
American Plum
10
15-30'
dry, moist, wet, well-drained
4
full sun
wildlife habitat & food & cover
Bald Cypress: Will grow in swamp, also grows well on better soil.
Bald Cypress
50
50-100'
dry/well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife cover, windbreak
Basswood: Flowers, honeybees.
Basswood
50
50-110'
well drained
10-20
partial sun full-sun
full timber, wildlife food & cover
Black Cherry: Valuable timber.
Black Cherry
50
50-100'
well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Black Chokeberry: Attractive shrub.
Black Chokeberry
2-3
5-13'
acidic, moist to dry soil
3-5
full sun
wildlife food and cover
Black Gum: Relatively low value for timber, blue berries in fall important food for wildlife.
Black Gum
50
50-80'
wet, dry, and well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Black Locust: Early fast growth & abundant root sprouts. Improves soil by fixing nitrogen-is a legume.
Black Locust
30
50-80'
dry/well drained
10
full sun
firewood, posts, timber, fixes nitrogen
Black Oak: Valuable oak timber, adapted to dry soil, consistently produces acorns.
Black Oak
50
50-100'
well drained/dry
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Black Walnut: Valuable timber, adapted to fertile, well drained soil.
Black Walnut
50
50-100'
well drained
10
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Bur Oak: Valuable timber on moist to wet sites.
Bur Oak
50
50-100'
wet, dry, and well drained
10
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Buttonbush: Wildlife cover-food on wet soils, will grow at edge of water.
Buttonbush
3
5-15'
well drained
3
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Cherrybark Oak: Valuable timber on moist fertile soil, natural range is S. Indiana, grows well on bottomland soil.
Cherrybark Oak
50
50-100'
well-drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Chestnut oak: A member of the white oak family adapted to dry, rocky soils. The acorns are an important food source for wildlife.
Chestnut Oak
15
50-100'
dry, well-drained
7
full sun
wildlife habitat & food & cover, timber
Chinkapin Oak: Valuable timber, adapted to high pH soil.
Chinkapin Oak
50
50-100'
dry/well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Common Chokecherry: Resembles Black Cherry
Common Chokecherry
5
20'
moist
15-20
full sun to partial shade
wildlife food and cover
Eastern Red Cedar: Excellent food and cover, windbreak for dry or high pH soil, cedar apple rust can be a problem when planted near Washington Hawthorn or related species.
Eastern Red Cedar
30
30-60'
wet, dry, and well
10
full sun
wildlife food and cover, windbreak, timber, post.
Elderberry: Medium size wildlife shrub producing large clusters of small white flowers in spring and small blue fruit in summer.
Elderberry
5
5-10'
moist, wet, well- drained
2
full sun, partial shade
wildlife habitat & food & cover
Flowering Crabapple: Large crop of small fruit that persists into winter providing food for wildlife.
Flowering Crabapple
5
15-40'
well drained
4
full sun
wildlife food & cover
Small tree well-known for its white flowers in spring. The red fruit is an important food for many species of wildlife.
Flowering Dogwood
50
15-30'
well-drained
4
full sun, partial shade
wildlife habitat & food & cover
Gray dogwood: Medium size wildlife shrub with clusters of white flowers in spring and white fruit in fall. Important food and cover for wildlife.
Gray Dogwood
15
5-10'
moist, well-drained
5
full sun, partial shade
wildlife habitat & food & cover
Green Ash: Valuable timber on all but dry soil, adapted to wet soil.
Green Ash
50
50-100'
well drained/wet
10
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Hazelnut: Native hazelnut adapted to all but very wet very dry soils.
Hazelnut
3
5-10'
well-draine d
3
full sun
wildlife food & cover
Highbush Cranberry: Red fruit persists until late winter providing wildlife food in severe winters.
Highbush Cranberry
5
5-15'
well drained/wet
3
partial shade
wildlife food & cover
Kentucky Coffeetree: Suited for moist streambank sites.
Kentucky Coffeetree
50
50-100'
well drained
20-30
full sun
timber, post, firewood
Ninebark: Fast growing shrub for moist to wet soil, attractive flower.
Ninebark
10
6-9'
well drained/wet
3
partial shade-
full-sun
wildlife food & cover
Northern White Cedar: Excellent windbreak, severe damage from bagworms in S. Indiana.
Northern White Cedar
30
30-60'
well drained
10
full sun
windbreak, wildlife food & cover
Northern Bayberry: Wildlife cover and food, improves soil by fixing nitrogen, adapted to all but very wet and very dry soil.
Northern Bayberry
5
5-20'
wet, dry, and well drained
4
full sun
wildlife food & cover
Norway Spruce: Windbreak for moist fertile soil.
Norway Spruce
30
50-70'
well drained/wet
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Overcup Oak: Valuable timber, adapted to very wet soil, natural range S. Indiana.
Overcup Oak
50
50-80'
well drained/wet
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Pawpaw: Pawpaw fruit is a valuable wildlife food. Native shrub growing in shade of trees but much more productive in full sun.
Pawpaw
5
10-30'
well drained/wet
5
partial shade - full sun
wildlife food & cover
Pecan: Valuable timber on moist fertile soil, hardy to N. Indiana, grows well on moist bottomland soil.
Pecan
50
50-100'
well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Persimmon: Excellent wildlife food and valuable timber.
Persimmon
30
30-70'
well drained/wet
10
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Pignut Hickory: Valuable timber.
Pignut Hickory
50
50-100'
well drained/wet
20-30
partial shade - full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover, firewood
Pin Oak: Adapted to very wet soil, will not tolerate high pH soil.
Pin Oak
50
50-100'
well drained/wet
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Pitch Loblolly Pine: Replacement for red pine in southern Indiana.
Pitch Loblolly Pine
40
50-100'
well drained/wet
10-20
full sun
erosion control, timber, wildlife food & cover
Red Bud: Flowers-attractive to pollinators.
Red Bud
10
30'
well drained/wet
5
full sun- partial shade
wildlife food & cover
Red Oak: Valuable timber on moist fertile soil, not suited for very wet or dry soil.
Red Oak
50
50-100'
well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Red Pine: Windbreak for dry soil, best for central and N. Indiana.
Red Pine
30
40-80'
dry/well drained
10
full sun
Windbreak, wildlife cover, timber
River Birch: Rapid growth and adapted to very wet soil.
River Birch
40
40-80'
well drained/wet
10
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Scarlet Oak: Adapted to dry acid soil, abundant acorn crops.
Scarlet Oak
50
50-100'
dry/well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Shagbark Hickory: Valuable timber.
Shagbark Hickory
50
50-100'
well drained/wet
20-30
partial shade -full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover, firewood
Long lived, large seeded hickory adapted to moist or wet soil. Bark provides shelter for bats and nuts consumed by humans and wildlife.
Shellbark Hickory
100
50-100'
moist, wet, well-drained
20
full sun
wildlife habitat & food & cover, timber
Shingle Oak: Adapted from dry to wet soil, abundant acorn crops.
Shingle Oak
50
50-100'
wet, dry, and well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Shumard Oak: Valuable timber on good soils, adapted to soils with high pH and wet, but not swampy soil, grows well on moist bottomland soil. Has good form and rapid growth.
Shumard Oak
50
50-100'
well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Silky Dogwood: Wildlife cover and summer food, will grow at waters edge.
Silky Dogwood
3
5-10'
well drained/we t
3
partial shade
wildlife food & cover
Silver Maple: Adapted to stream bank soil, fast growth.
Silver Maple
30
50-100'
well drained/we t
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Spicebush: Medium size wildlife shrub that will grow in full or partial shade on moist soils. Red fruit is food source for migrating song birds.
Spicebush
10
5-10'
moist, wet, well drained
3
full sun, partial shade
wildlife habitat & food & cover
Sugar Maple: Valuable timber.
Sugar Maple
50
50-100'
well drained
20-30
partial shade - full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Swamp White Oak: Valuable timber adapted to wet soils.
Swamp White Oak
50
50-100'
well drained/we t
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Swamp Chestnut Oak: Valuable timber on moist but not extremely moist soils, grows well on moist bottomland soil.
Swamp Chestnut Oak
50
50-100'
well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Sweetgum: Adapted to very wet soil. Natural range is central and southern Indiana.
Sweetgum
50
50-100'
well drained/we t
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover BR:AL:0.0138889,0.00138889,FC:0,0,0,HZ:0.0138889,0.00138889,FC:0,0,0,VT:0.0138889,0.00138889,FC:0,0,0>
Sycamore: Adapted to wet soil, fast growth.
Sycamore
50
50-120'
well drained/we t
15
full sun
timber, wildlife cover
Tulip tree: Valuable timber and fast growth on moist soil.
Tulip tree
50
50-120'
well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Virginia Pine: Will stabilize severely eroded soil, windbreak on poor soil.
Virginia Pine
30
30-80'
dry/well drained
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
Washington Hawthorn: Excellent cover and winter food for wildlife/thorns protect nests, may be damaged by cedar apple rust if planted near eastern red cedar.
Washington Hawthorn
5
15-30'
well drained
4
full sun
wildlife food & cover
White Ash: Valuable timber on all but dry sites, adapted to wet soil.
White Ash
50
50-100'
well drained/we t
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
White Oak: Valuable timber on a wide range of soils from moist to dry.
White Oak
50
50-100'
well drained/we t
15
full sun
timber, wildlife food & cover
White Pine: Fast growing windbreaks on all but wet or very dry soil.
White Pine
40
50-100'
well drained/we t
15
full sun
windbreak, wildlife food & cover, timber
 
*List provided by DNR Indiana Department of Natural Resources
(Ord. 2023-04, passed 10-9-23)