Trees that grow well in Pennsylvania benefit from a landscape that remains one of the most heavily forested in the eastern United States, with woodlands covering nearly 58 percent of the state’s total land area today. This extensive forest cover reflects Pennsylvania’s favorable growing conditions, including a humid continental climate with well-distributed rainfall averaging around 42 inches annually, along with a range of elevation and terrain that spans the rolling Piedmont near Philadelphia, the rugged Appalachian ridges of the central counties, the Pocono Mountains in the northeast, and the unique Lake Erie shoreline in the state’s northwestern corner.
Pennsylvania’s hardiness zones range from about 5b in the higher elevations near the New York border down to 7a along the Delaware River and southeastern lowlands, giving the state enough climatic variety to support well over 100 native tree species. The state’s Eastern hemlock, designated the official state tree, once formed vast old-growth forests before extensive logging in the 1800s and early 1900s, and the species now faces new pressure from an invasive insect that has become a significant forestry concern in recent decades. This list explores 50 trees, ranging from towering native hardwoods to hardy conifers and popular ornamental species, that grow well across Pennsylvania’s varied forests and landscapes.
Eastern Hemlock
The Eastern hemlock, Pennsylvania’s official state tree, is a slow-growing evergreen conifer that once dominated old-growth forests throughout the state, with some historic stands containing trees that lived for more than 500 years. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 60 to 70 feet and thrives in cool, moist ravines and north-facing slopes, particularly throughout the Allegheny Plateau and Pocono Mountain regions.
Eastern hemlock provides critical shade and habitat along Pennsylvania’s mountain streams, helping to keep water temperatures cool enough to support native trout populations. This tree currently faces a serious threat from the hemlock woolly adelgid, an invasive insect first detected in the state in the 1960s that has significantly damaged hemlock populations across much of the eastern United States.
Sugar Maple
The sugar maple is one of Pennsylvania’s most economically and visually significant native trees, prized both for its brilliant orange and red fall foliage and as the primary source of the state’s modest but growing maple syrup industry. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 60 to 80 feet and can live for more than 300 years under favorable forest conditions.
Sugar maple requires a specific combination of freezing nights and warmer days in late winter to produce the sap flow needed for syrup production, a pattern that occurs reliably across much of Pennsylvania’s northern and central regions. This tree’s dense, hard wood has also made it historically valuable for furniture and flooring production throughout the state.
Red Maple
The red maple is the most widely distributed native tree species in Pennsylvania, found in nearly every county and across an unusually broad range of soil and moisture conditions, from swampy lowlands to drier upland forests. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 40 to 60 feet and produces some of the earliest spring color in the state, with small red flowers appearing on bare branches often as early as March.
Red maple displays vivid red fall foliage, one of the most reliable and widespread color displays found throughout Pennsylvania’s autumn landscape. This tree’s remarkable adaptability to varying soil types has made it one of the most commonly encountered native trees in both Pennsylvania’s forests and its urban and suburban landscapes.
Silver Maple
The silver maple is a fast-growing native tree commonly found along Pennsylvania’s rivers, streams, and floodplains, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 80 feet within just a few decades of establishment. This tree gets its common name from the silvery-white undersides of its leaves, which create a distinctive shimmering effect when the foliage moves in the wind.
Silver maple grows notably quickly, often exceeding 3 feet of height per year under favorable moisture conditions, though this rapid growth is associated with weaker wood more prone to storm damage compared to sugar maple. This tree’s tolerance for periodic flooding makes it a particularly important species along Pennsylvania’s major waterways, including the Susquehanna and Delaware river systems.
White Oak
The white oak is considered one of the most valuable native hardwood species in Pennsylvania, both ecologically and commercially, typically reaching a mature height of 60 to 100 feet and capable of living for more than 400 years. This tree produces relatively sweet acorns compared to many other oak species, an important food source for deer, turkey, squirrels, and numerous other wildlife species throughout Pennsylvania’s forests.
White oak grows notably slowly, often taking 50 years or more to reach significant size, but this slow growth produces exceptionally strong, durable wood that has long been prized for furniture, flooring, and barrel making. This tree’s rounded, spreading crown and light gray, scaly bark make it easily distinguishable from Pennsylvania’s other common native oak species.
Northern Red Oak
The northern red oak is one of Pennsylvania’s fastest-growing native oak species, typically reaching a mature height of 60 to 90 feet and often used as a benchmark species for measuring overall forest health throughout the state’s hardwood regions. This tree produces attractive dark red fall foliage and grows considerably faster than white oak, often reaching commercial timber size in significantly less time.
Northern red oak is highly valued commercially, and Pennsylvania remains one of the leading producers of red oak lumber in the United States, supporting a significant portion of the state’s forest products industry. This tree’s relatively straight, tall trunk and strong, attractive wood grain have made it a particularly important species for both furniture manufacturing and cabinetry throughout the region.
Black Oak
The black oak is a common native tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s drier upland forests and ridges, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 80 feet and often growing alongside chestnut oak and scarlet oak in similar rocky, well-drained soil conditions. This tree is named for its notably dark, deeply furrowed bark, which contrasts with the lighter bark found on many other Pennsylvania oak species.
Black oak produces acorns with a distinctively bitter taste due to higher tannin content, though they remain an important food source for wildlife despite this bitterness. This tree’s strong tolerance for poor, rocky soils makes it a particularly important species throughout Pennsylvania’s Appalachian ridge and valley region, where thin, acidic soils limit many other tree species.
Chestnut Oak
The chestnut oak is especially well adapted to Pennsylvania’s rocky ridgetops and steep, well-drained mountain slopes, typically reaching a mature height of 60 to 70 feet across much of the state’s Appalachian terrain. This tree produces distinctive deeply ridged, dark gray bark, considerably thicker than that of most other Pennsylvania oak species, providing strong resistance to the periodic wildfires that occasionally affect the state’s drier ridge forests.
Chestnut oak acorns are notably large and relatively low in tannin compared to other oak species, making them an especially valuable and preferred food source for black bears, deer, and turkey throughout the state’s mountain regions. This tree’s ability to thrive in Pennsylvania’s thinnest, rockiest ridge soils has made it one of the dominant species along many of the state’s most prominent Appalachian ridgelines.
Pin Oak
The pin oak is a fast-growing native tree commonly found in Pennsylvania’s wetter lowland areas and floodplains, typically reaching a mature height of 60 to 70 feet with a distinctive pyramidal to oval crown shape. This tree is easily identified by its numerous small, pin-like branches along the lower trunk, a feature that persists even as the tree matures and gives the species its common name.
Pin oak tolerates wetter, poorly drained soils considerably better than many other Pennsylvania oak species, making it a valuable choice for low-lying urban and suburban landscape sites. This tree’s reliable bronze-red fall color and relatively fast growth have also made it one of the more commonly planted street and park trees throughout Pennsylvania’s cities.
Scarlet Oak
The scarlet oak is prized throughout Pennsylvania for producing some of the most vivid fall foliage of any native oak species, with leaves turning a brilliant, deep scarlet red each autumn. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 60 to 80 feet and favors the same dry, rocky, well-drained ridge soils preferred by chestnut oak and black oak throughout the state’s Appalachian regions.
Scarlet oak grows at a moderate rate and produces deeply lobed leaves with particularly pointed tips, a helpful identifying feature distinguishing it from Pennsylvania’s other common red oak group species. This tree’s striking fall color display has made destinations throughout the Laurel Highlands and central Pennsylvania mountains popular seasonal viewing locations each October.
American Beech
The American beech is a slow-growing, long-lived native tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s mature hardwood forests, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 70 feet and capable of living for more than 300 years under favorable conditions. This tree is easily recognized by its smooth, light gray bark, which remains notably smooth even as the tree ages, unlike the furrowed or scaly bark typical of most other large Pennsylvania hardwoods.
American beech produces nutritious beechnuts that serve as an important food source for black bears, squirrels, and numerous bird species throughout the state’s forests. This tree’s tendency to retain dried, tan-colored leaves through much of the winter, a trait known as marcescence, makes it one of the more easily identifiable native trees in Pennsylvania’s dormant winter forest landscape.
Yellow Birch
The yellow birch is found throughout Pennsylvania’s cooler, higher elevation forests, particularly in the northern tier counties and Pocono Mountains, typically reaching a mature height of 60 to 80 feet. This tree is named for its distinctive yellowish-bronze, curling bark, which peels away in thin, papery strips and provides year-round visual interest even in winter.
Yellow birch often germinates on top of moss-covered rocks or fallen nurse logs, eventually sending roots down around the original growing surface as the tree matures. This tree’s slow growth and long lifespan, sometimes exceeding 150 years, make it an important component of Pennsylvania’s northern hardwood forest ecosystems alongside sugar maple and American beech.
Paper Birch
The paper birch grows in scattered populations throughout Pennsylvania’s higher elevation and northern tier forests, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 70 feet and easily recognized by its striking white, papery bark that peels away in thin horizontal strips. This tree requires cooler temperatures than much of Pennsylvania offers, generally limiting its natural distribution to the state’s highest elevations and northernmost counties near the New York border.
Paper birch produces attractive yellow fall color and small, wind-dispersed seeds contained within distinctive drooping catkins. This tree’s relatively shorter lifespan compared to many hardwoods, combined with its specific climate requirements, means it remains less common in Pennsylvania than in more northern states, though isolated populations persist in the state’s coolest microclimates.
River Birch
The river birch is a fast-growing native tree found along Pennsylvania’s streams, rivers, and floodplain areas, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 70 feet and valued for its attractive, peeling, cinnamon-colored bark. This tree tolerates wet, poorly drained soils considerably better than most other birch species, making it particularly well suited to the floodplain habitats found throughout much of the state.
River birch is notably more resistant to the bronze birch borer, a damaging pest, compared to some other birch species, contributing to its continued popularity as both a native forest tree and a landscape planting throughout Pennsylvania. This tree’s multi-stemmed growth habit and attractive exfoliating bark provide year-round textural interest, particularly valuable during Pennsylvania’s long winter months.
Black Cherry
The black cherry is one of Pennsylvania’s most commercially valuable native hardwood species, with the state producing a significant share of the nation’s premium black cherry lumber, prized for furniture and cabinetry. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 50 to 80 feet and produces small white flowers in spring, followed by dark purple-black fruit that provides an important food source for numerous bird species.
Black cherry grows relatively quickly for a hardwood species, often reaching substantial size within 60 to 80 years under good forest conditions. This tree’s rich, reddish-brown wood, which darkens attractively with age, has made Pennsylvania-grown black cherry particularly sought after in the furniture and woodworking industries.
Tuliptree
The tuliptree, sometimes called yellow poplar, is one of the tallest native hardwood species found in Pennsylvania, capable of reaching a mature height of 80 to 120 feet, with some old-growth specimens in protected forest areas exceeding 150 feet. This tree produces distinctive tulip-shaped flowers in late spring, typically high in the canopy and easily overlooked despite their attractive yellow-green and orange coloration.
Tuliptree grows remarkably fast for a large hardwood, often exceeding 3 feet of height per year during its early decades of growth, making it one of the quickest native trees to reach substantial size. This tree’s tall, straight trunk and minimal lower branching have made it historically valuable for lumber production throughout Pennsylvania’s forest regions.
American Sycamore
The American sycamore is one of the largest native trees found in Pennsylvania by trunk diameter, commonly growing along the state’s major rivers and floodplains, typically reaching a mature height of 75 to 100 feet. This tree is easily identified by its mottled, peeling bark, which reveals patches of white, gray, and tan as older bark sheds away from the trunk and branches throughout the growing season.
American sycamore tolerates periodic flooding exceptionally well, making it one of the dominant large trees found along the Susquehanna, Delaware, and Allegheny river corridors. This tree’s massive trunk diameter, which can exceed 10 feet in old, undisturbed specimens, makes it one of the most visually impressive native trees found anywhere in the state.
Black Walnut
The black walnut is a valuable native hardwood found throughout Pennsylvania’s rich, well-drained bottomland forests, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 75 feet and prized for both its dark, richly grained wood and its large, edible nuts. This tree produces a natural chemical called juglone, released through its roots and fallen leaves, which can inhibit the growth of many other plant species growing nearby, an adaptation that reduces competition for resources.
Black walnut grows best in Pennsylvania’s deep, fertile soils, particularly throughout the southeastern Piedmont and river valley regions of the state. This tree’s wood remains among the most valuable hardwood timber species harvested in Pennsylvania, commanding premium prices for furniture, veneer, and gunstock production.
Shagbark Hickory
The shagbark hickory is easily identified by its distinctive gray bark, which peels away from the trunk in long, curling strips, giving mature trees a notably shaggy, textured appearance. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 60 to 80 feet and produces sweet, edible nuts that were historically an important food source for both Indigenous communities and early Pennsylvania settlers.
Shagbark hickory grows relatively slowly, often taking several decades to reach significant size, and can live for more than 300 years in undisturbed forest settings throughout the state. This tree’s extremely hard, dense wood has also been historically valued for tool handles and smoking wood, prized for the distinctive flavor it imparts to meats prepared over hickory smoke.
Pignut Hickory
The pignut hickory is a common native tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s drier upland forests, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 65 feet and often growing alongside oak species in similar well-drained ridge and slope habitats. This tree produces smaller, pear-shaped nuts compared to shagbark hickory, with a notably bitter taste that historically made them less desirable for human consumption but still valuable to wildlife.
Pignut hickory features tight, ridged bark rather than the shaggy, peeling bark characteristic of its shagbark relative, making the two species relatively easy to distinguish. This tree’s strong, shock-resistant wood has made it historically valuable for tool handles and other applications requiring durability under repeated stress.
White Ash
The white ash was historically one of Pennsylvania’s most important native hardwood trees, valued for its strong, flexible wood used extensively in tool handles, baseball bats, and furniture, though the species has faced severe population declines throughout the state in recent years. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 60 to 80 feet and produces attractive yellow to purple fall foliage when healthy.
White ash populations across Pennsylvania have been devastated by the emerald ash borer, an invasive insect first detected in the state in 2007 that has killed the vast majority of mature ash trees in many affected forest areas. This tree’s dramatic decline has become one of the most significant forest health concerns in Pennsylvania over the past two decades, prompting extensive research into resistant breeding programs and biological control methods.
Green Ash
The green ash, closely related to white ash, was historically common throughout Pennsylvania’s floodplain and wetland forest areas, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 60 feet before the species faced similarly devastating losses to the emerald ash borer. This tree tolerates wetter soil conditions better than white ash, making it historically important along many of the state’s river corridors and low-lying urban planting sites.
Green ash populations throughout Pennsylvania have declined dramatically since the emerald ash borer’s arrival, with many municipalities now actively removing dead and dying ash trees from streets and parks. This tree’s ongoing struggle throughout the state serves as a significant example of the broader forest health challenges posed by invasive insect species in Pennsylvania’s modern landscape.
American Basswood
The American basswood, also called American linden, is a large native shade tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s rich hardwood forests, typically reaching a mature height of 60 to 80 feet. This tree produces small, fragrant yellow-white flowers in early summer that attract enormous numbers of bees, making it one of the most valuable native trees for supporting Pennsylvania’s pollinator populations.
American basswood often resprouts vigorously from its base after being cut or damaged, frequently forming multi-trunked clumps in forests that have experienced past disturbance. This tree’s soft, light wood has been historically valued for carving and woodworking, prized for its fine, even grain and resistance to splitting.
Eastern Cottonwood
The Eastern cottonwood is one of the fastest-growing native trees found in Pennsylvania, commonly found along the state’s major rivers and floodplains, capable of reaching a mature height of 80 to 100 feet within just a few decades. This tree can grow more than 6 feet in height per year under favorable moisture conditions, making it one of the quickest native trees to reach substantial size anywhere in the state.
Eastern cottonwood produces enormous quantities of cottony, wind-dispersed seeds each spring, an adaptation that allows the species to rapidly colonize newly exposed sandbars and disturbed riverside soil. This tree’s massive size and rapid growth make it an important component of Pennsylvania’s river corridor ecosystems, providing significant habitat despite its relatively short lifespan compared to slower-growing hardwood species.
Black Locust
The black locust is a fast-growing native tree found throughout much of Pennsylvania, particularly common on disturbed sites, reclaimed mine lands, and forest edges, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 60 feet. This tree produces fragrant white flower clusters in late spring that provide an important early-season nectar source for bees throughout the state.
Black locust has a unique ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen through a symbiotic relationship with soil bacteria, allowing it to thrive in poor, nutrient-depleted soils where many other trees struggle to establish. This tree’s extremely dense, rot-resistant wood has made it historically valuable for fence posts and other applications requiring long-term ground contact durability throughout Pennsylvania’s rural landscape.
Honeylocust
The honeylocust is a hardy native tree found throughout parts of Pennsylvania, particularly in the state’s southeastern and southwestern regions, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 60 feet with an open, airy canopy. This tree tolerates a wide range of soil conditions, including compacted urban soils, making it a popular choice for street tree plantings throughout Pennsylvania’s cities.
Most landscape honeylocust trees planted today are thornless, seedless cultivars, avoiding the sharp thorns and messy seed pods found on the wild native form common throughout the state’s forests. This tree’s fine-textured, compound leaves produce light, dappled shade that allows grass and other plants to grow successfully beneath its canopy, a valuable trait in urban landscape settings.
American Elm
The American elm was once one of the most commonly planted street trees throughout Pennsylvania, valued for its graceful, vase-shaped canopy and mature height that can reach 80 to 100 feet under favorable conditions. This tree suffered devastating losses throughout the state due to Dutch elm disease, which arrived in the United States in the late 1920s and eliminated the vast majority of Pennsylvania’s mature street and forest elms over the following decades.
Several disease-resistant American elm cultivars have been developed in recent decades, allowing this tree to make something of a comeback in newer Pennsylvania plantings. This tree’s fast growth rate and excellent historical tolerance for urban conditions continue to make it a valuable option in areas where disease-resistant varieties are specifically selected.
Slippery Elm
The slippery elm is a native tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s forests, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 60 feet and named for the mucilaginous, slippery inner bark that has long been used in traditional herbal remedies. This tree is somewhat more resistant to Dutch elm disease than the American elm, though it has still experienced population declines throughout the state since the disease’s arrival.
Slippery elm produces rough, sandpaper-textured leaves that help distinguish it from the smoother-leaved American elm growing in similar Pennsylvania forest habitats. This tree’s inner bark was historically harvested and dried for use in soothing sore throats and digestive complaints, a practice that continues in some traditional herbal medicine circles today.
Sassafras
The sassafras is a distinctive native tree found throughout Pennsylvania, easily recognized by its unusual leaves, which can appear in three different shapes, including oval, mitten-shaped, and three-lobed forms, sometimes all on the same branch. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 30 to 60 feet and produces small yellow flowers in early spring, followed by dark blue berries on red stems that provide an important food source for birds.
Sassafras roots and bark carry a distinctive spicy, root-beer-like fragrance, historically used to flavor traditional root beer and various other beverages before safety concerns limited commercial use of the tree’s oil. This tree’s brilliant orange, red, and yellow fall color, often displaying multiple shades simultaneously, makes it one of the most visually striking native trees found throughout Pennsylvania’s forest edges and understory.
Flowering Dogwood
The flowering dogwood is one of Pennsylvania’s most beloved native ornamental trees, producing a spectacular display of white or pink bracts each spring that are often mistaken for flower petals, typically reaching a mature height of 15 to 30 feet. This tree naturally grows as an understory species throughout much of Pennsylvania’s hardwood forests, thriving in the dappled shade found beneath larger canopy trees.
Flowering dogwood has faced significant challenges from dogwood anthracnose, a fungal disease that has reduced wild populations throughout parts of the state since the 1970s, though resistant cultivars remain widely available for landscape planting. This tree’s bright red fall berries provide an important food source for migrating birds, and its attractive layered branching structure adds visual interest to the Pennsylvania landscape throughout every season.
Eastern Redbud
The Eastern redbud is a small native ornamental tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s forest edges and understory, producing a striking display of magenta-pink flowers directly along its bare branches each spring before the leaves emerge. This tree typically reaches a mature height of 20 to 30 feet and tolerates a range of soil conditions, though it performs best in the well-drained, slightly acidic soils common throughout much of the state.
Eastern redbud features attractive heart-shaped leaves that turn a pleasant yellow color each fall, adding a second season of visual interest beyond its notable spring bloom period. This tree’s relatively compact size and vivid early spring color have made it one of the most popular native ornamental trees planted throughout Pennsylvania’s residential landscapes.
American Holly
The American holly is one of the few broadleaf evergreen trees native to Pennsylvania, typically found in the state’s warmer southeastern counties, reaching a mature height of 30 to 50 feet with distinctive spiny, glossy dark green leaves. This tree produces bright red berries on female trees each winter, providing an important food source for birds during the coldest months when other food options become scarce.
American holly requires a male tree growing nearby for successful pollination and berry production, an important consideration for anyone planting this species for its ornamental winter fruit display. This tree’s evergreen foliage and colorful winter berries have made it a traditional choice for holiday decorating throughout Pennsylvania for well over a century.
Serviceberry
The serviceberry is a versatile small native tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s forest understory and edges, typically reaching a mature height of 15 to 25 feet with clusters of white flowers in early spring followed by small, sweet, blueberry-like fruit in early summer. This tree is often among the first native species to bloom each spring throughout Pennsylvania, historically giving rise to its common name, since the flowering coincided with the return of circuit-riding preachers able to travel again after winter thaws.
Serviceberry fruit is highly attractive to birds and was historically an important food source gathered by Indigenous communities and early settlers throughout the region. This tree also produces excellent orange to red fall color, adding a third season of visual interest beyond its spring flowers and summer fruit.
Sourwood
The sourwood is a smaller native tree found in Pennsylvania’s southern counties, typically reaching a mature height of 25 to 40 feet and known for its drooping clusters of small, fragrant white flowers that bloom in mid to late summer. This tree produces some of the most vivid and reliable fall color of any native Pennsylvania tree, with leaves turning brilliant shades of red and burgundy earlier in the season than most other hardwood species.
Sourwood gets its common name from the sour, acidic taste of its leaves, a distinguishing characteristic that has been used historically for identification purposes. This tree’s honey, produced by bees that forage heavily on its summer flowers, is particularly prized in regions where sourwood grows in sufficient quantity to support commercial honey production.
Black Tupelo
The black tupelo, also called blackgum, is a native tree found throughout Pennsylvania’s forests and wetland edges, typically reaching a mature height of 30 to 50 feet and known for producing some of the earliest and most reliable fall color of any tree species in the state. This tree’s leaves often begin turning a deep, glossy red in late August or early September, well before most other Pennsylvania hardwoods begin their seasonal color change.
Black tupelo produces small, dark blue fruit that is highly attractive to birds, particularly during fall migration when the tree’s fruiting coincides with peak bird movement through the state. This tree’s tolerance for both wet and dry soil conditions allows it to grow successfully across a wide range of Pennsylvania forest habitats, from swampy lowlands to drier upland sites.
Sweetgum
The sweetgum is found throughout Pennsylvania’s southeastern counties, typically reaching a mature height of 60 to 75 feet and valued for its exceptional, multicolored fall foliage display. This tree’s star-shaped leaves turn vivid shades of yellow, orange, red, and purple in autumn, often displaying several of these colors simultaneously on the same tree.
Sweetgum produces distinctive spiky seed pods, sometimes called gumballs, which persist on the tree through much of the winter and are considered by some homeowners to be a landscape maintenance drawback due to the litter they create. This tree’s attractive corky bark ridges, which develop along young branches, provide additional winter visual interest beyond the species’ notable fall color display.
Eastern White Pine
The Eastern white pine is the largest native conifer found in Pennsylvania, historically forming vast old-growth forests before extensive logging in the 1800s, and it remains an important species throughout the state’s forests today. This tree can reach a mature height of 80 to 100 feet, with historic accounts describing pre-colonial specimens exceeding 200 feet in the state’s original old-growth forests.
Eastern white pine grows relatively quickly for a conifer, often exceeding 2 feet of height per year under favorable conditions, and is easily identified by its soft, blue-green needles arranged in bundles of five. This tree’s straight, tall trunk made it historically valuable for ship masts during the colonial period, and it remains one of the most commonly planted conifers throughout Pennsylvania today.
Pitch Pine
The pitch pine is a tough, fire-adapted conifer found throughout Pennsylvania’s rocky ridges and barren areas, particularly common in the state’s Pocono Plateau and Ridge and Valley regions, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 60 feet. This tree is notably drought and fire tolerant, capable of resprouting directly from its trunk and roots even after significant fire damage, an unusual trait among conifer species.
Pitch pine thrives in Pennsylvania’s poorest, sandiest, and rockiest soils, often growing successfully in sites where few other tree species can establish and survive. This tree’s twisted, irregular growth form and thick, resinous bark give older specimens a distinctively rugged appearance throughout the exposed ridge habitats where it typically grows.
Red Pine
The red pine is a native conifer found in scattered populations throughout Pennsylvania’s northern tier counties, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 80 feet with a distinctive reddish-orange, plated bark that becomes more pronounced as the tree matures. This tree favors sandy, well-drained soils and has also been widely planted throughout the state in reforestation efforts, particularly on formerly cleared or mined lands during the mid-20th century.
Red pine grows in relatively dense, uniform stands and produces long, straight trunks that have made it commercially valuable for utility poles and construction lumber. This tree’s needles, which grow in bundles of two and are notably longer and stiffer than those of Eastern white pine, provide a useful identification feature distinguishing the two species.
Eastern Red Cedar
The Eastern red cedar, technically a juniper species rather than a true cedar, is one of the most widespread native conifers found throughout Pennsylvania, typically reaching a mature height of 30 to 50 feet and thriving in a remarkably wide range of soil and moisture conditions. This tree is often among the first woody species to colonize abandoned farmland and disturbed sites throughout the state, playing an important early role in Pennsylvania’s forest succession process.
Eastern red cedar produces small, bluish, berry-like cones that provide an important winter food source for numerous bird species, particularly cedar waxwings, which take their name from their fondness for this tree’s fruit. This tree’s dense, aromatic, rot-resistant wood has been historically valued for fence posts, chests, and closet linings throughout Pennsylvania’s rural communities.
Balsam Fir
The balsam fir grows in scattered populations throughout Pennsylvania’s highest, coolest elevations, particularly in parts of the Pocono Mountains and northern tier counties, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 60 feet. This tree is easily recognized by its symmetrical, pyramidal shape and pleasantly fragrant needles, traits that have made it one of the most popular Christmas tree species grown throughout the state’s higher elevation tree farms.
Balsam fir requires cooler temperatures and more consistent moisture than much of Pennsylvania offers, generally limiting its natural range to the state’s coolest, wettest microclimates. This tree’s strong needle retention, even after cutting, has made it a particularly valued choice among Pennsylvania’s commercial Christmas tree growers.
Norway Spruce
The Norway spruce, though not native to Pennsylvania, has become one of the most widely planted ornamental and windbreak conifers throughout the state since its introduction from Europe in the 1800s, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 75 feet. This tree grows notably fast compared to many native Pennsylvania conifers, often adding 1 to 2 feet of height per year under favorable conditions.
Norway spruce features distinctive drooping branchlets, particularly noticeable on mature specimens, which help distinguish it visually from Pennsylvania’s native spruce and fir species. This tree’s dense, symmetrical form and strong tolerance for a range of soil conditions have made it a popular choice for windbreaks and large-scale ornamental plantings throughout the state’s rural and suburban landscapes.
White Spruce
The white spruce is found in scattered native populations throughout Pennsylvania’s northern tier, along with widespread use in reforestation and ornamental plantings across the state, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 60 feet. This tree tolerates Pennsylvania’s cold winters exceptionally well and produces dense, symmetrical growth that has made it a popular choice for both windbreak plantings and Christmas tree production.
White spruce needles have a somewhat unpleasant odor when crushed, a trait that has earned the tree the informal nickname of skunk spruce in some parts of its range. This tree’s strong tolerance for wind and cold has made it a valuable species for windbreak plantings throughout Pennsylvania’s more exposed agricultural areas.
London Plane Tree
The London plane tree, a hybrid closely related to the American sycamore, is one of the most widely planted large shade trees throughout Pennsylvania’s urban areas, typically reaching a mature height of 70 to 100 feet. This tree tolerates the state’s varied urban growing conditions exceptionally well, including compacted soil, air pollution, and road salt exposure, all significant considerations throughout Pennsylvania’s older cities.
London plane tree produces distinctive mottled, peeling bark similar to its sycamore relatives, along with large, maple-like leaves that provide substantial cooling shade along city streets. This tree’s strong tolerance for regular pruning has made it a popular choice for formal street tree plantings throughout Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and many of the state’s other historic urban districts.
Littleleaf Linden
The littleleaf linden is a popular ornamental shade tree widely planted throughout Pennsylvania’s urban and suburban landscapes, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 50 feet with a distinctive pyramidal to oval canopy shape. This tree produces small, fragrant yellow-white flowers in early summer that attract large numbers of bees, making it a valuable addition for supporting pollinator populations in developed areas.
Littleleaf linden tolerates urban conditions well, including compacted soil and reflected heat, making it a common choice for street tree plantings throughout many of Pennsylvania’s cities and boroughs. This tree’s dense, uniform growth habit and strong tolerance for pruning have made it a popular formal shade tree choice throughout the state’s more developed landscapes.
Kentucky Coffeetree
The Kentucky coffeetree is a hardy, adaptable shade tree found in scattered native populations throughout Pennsylvania’s southwestern counties, and it is also increasingly planted as an urban street tree, typically reaching a mature height of 50 to 70 feet. This tree tolerates urban stresses including drought, pollution, and salt exposure with relative ease, making it well suited to Pennsylvania’s challenging city growing environments.
Kentucky coffeetree features bold, coarse-textured compound leaves and large, leathery seed pods that were historically roasted as a coffee substitute by early Pennsylvania settlers, giving the tree its common name. This tree’s strong branch structure and resistance to storm damage have made it an increasingly popular choice for street tree plantings throughout Pittsburgh and other Pennsylvania cities in recent years.
Ginkgo
The ginkgo is a highly resilient ornamental shade tree widely planted throughout Pennsylvania’s urban areas, typically reaching a mature height of 40 to 50 feet and valued for its unique, fan-shaped leaves that turn a brilliant, uniform gold each fall. This tree is highly tolerant of urban pollution, compacted soil, and road salt exposure, making it particularly well suited to street tree plantings throughout Pennsylvania’s older, more developed cities.
Ginkgo grows relatively slowly compared to many other large shade trees, often taking 20 years or more to reach substantial landscape size, but rewards patience with a lifespan that can exceed several centuries. This tree is considered a living fossil, with a lineage tracing back more than 200 million years, making it one of the oldest tree species still commonly planted in Pennsylvania’s cities today.
Japanese Maple
The Japanese maple, though not native to Pennsylvania, has become one of the most popular small ornamental trees planted throughout the state’s residential landscapes, typically reaching a mature height of 15 to 25 feet with delicate, deeply lobed foliage. This tree performs particularly well throughout Pennsylvania’s milder southeastern counties, where winter temperatures are generally less severe than in the state’s higher elevation and northern regions.
Japanese maple offers striking foliage color options, including deep burgundy, bright red, and variegated varieties, providing season-long visual interest beyond a typical single autumn color change. This tree’s relatively compact size and elegant, layered branching structure have made it one of the most sought-after specimen trees for smaller Pennsylvania garden spaces.
Flowering Crabapple
The flowering crabapple is one of the most popular small ornamental trees planted throughout Pennsylvania, valued for its dramatic spring flower display in shades of white, pink, or deep red, typically reaching a mature height of 15 to 25 feet. This tree tolerates Pennsylvania’s cold winters and varied soil conditions well, making it a reliable choice for adding seasonal color to residential landscapes across the state’s different climate zones.
Many crabapple varieties also produce small, colorful fruit that persists into winter, providing an important food source for robins and other birds during the colder months when other food options become scarce. This tree’s compact size and reliable spring bloom have made it one of the most commonly planted ornamental trees throughout Pennsylvania’s suburban neighborhoods.