Sugarberry

Celtis laevigata

native · Hill Country

Sugarberry is a tree native to the Texas Hill Country that grows 60–80 ft tall and 30 ft wide. It wants full sun or part shade and high water, and handles caliche and clay soil. Blooms green in early spring. Good for butterflies.

Wet ground only. Usually found in wetlands and creek bottoms. It wants reliably moist ground and struggles in a dry upland bed.

Will it grow in your yard?

Enter your ZIP. The finder checks Sugarberry against your microclimate, then ranks it against your sun, your watering and deer pressure.

The facts

6 sources

Type: Tree
Sun: Full sun to part shade (3–7 hrs of direct sun)
Water: High
Height: 60–80 ft
Spread: 30 ft
Bloom: Early Spring · green
Foliage: Deciduous or dies back in winter
Soil: Takes caliche and clay · recorded on caliche, clay, loam, rich, rocky, sand
Deer: Moderate — deer may browse it, especially new growth
Wildlife: Supports butterflies

Where it grows

Recorded in these EPA Level IV ecoregions in the Austin and Hill Country launch area:

Balcones CanyonlandsLlano UpliftEdwards Plateau WoodlandNorthern Blackland PrairieSouthern Post Oak SavannaFloodplains and Low TerracesLimestone Cut PlainSan Antonio Prairie

2,652 occurrence records in Central Texas (GBIF).

Can you buy it?

Also grows here — hard to find. Native and recorded growing in Central Texas, but not on the grower stock lists we read. Sourcing varies: some are stocked widely, others you will have to hunt for.

also grows from seed It starts readily from seed, so a packet from a native-seed supplier, or seed collected with permission, is often the easiest way to get a plant no nursery pots.