Forest Trees of Texas: How to Know Them

by Wilbur R. Mattoon; C. B. Webster

Other Texas Trees

ARIZONA CYPRESS
(Cupressus arizonica Greene)

is an evergreen native to the mountains of the south Trans-Pecos Region. It grows from a height of 30 to 70 feet and 18 to 24 inches in diameter. The needles are blue-green. [Fruit] a cone as large as 1¼ inches in diameter. The wood is heavy and used to some extent for fence posts.

ALLIGATOR JUNIPER
(Juniperus deppeana Steud.)

grows in the mountains of southwestern Texas, normally as a small tree, or even as a sprawling shrub under adverse conditions. Its name derives from the fact that the [bark] on older trees somewhat resembles alligator hide, being broken up into square plates 1 to 2 inches across. The leaves are about ⅛ inch long, and blue-green in color. The [fruit] is berry-like, nearly round, reddish-brown, and matures in two seasons. Seeds 3-4.

DROOPING JUNIPER (Weeping Juniper)
(Juniperus flaccida Schlect.)

occurs in this country only on the slopes of the Chisos Mountains in Brewster County, Texas. It has graceful spreading branches with long slender, drooping branchlets. After the leaves fall, the thin bright cinnamon-brown [bark] separating into thin loose papery [scales] is characteristic.

ONE-SEED JUNIPER
(Juniperus monosperma [Engelm.] Sarg.)

occurs throughout western Texas, usually as a spreading shrub or small, much branched tree. The [bark] is ashy gray, ridged and shreddy. The leaves resemble those of the alligator juniper, but are gray-green in color, and fringed with minute teeth. The [fruit] is smaller, usually copper colored or occasionally blue, usually one-seeded, and matures in one season.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN JUNIPER
(Juniperus scopulorum Sarg.)

occurs in western Texas where it is often the largest of the junipers found there. The [bark] is reddish-brown or grayish-brown, thin, fibrous, and divided into flat, interlacing ridges. The leaves are similar to those of the alligator juniper, but pale to dark green in color. The [fruit] is nearly round, blue, and matures in two seasons. Seeds 1 to 3, usually 2.

TEXAS PALMETTO
(Sabal texana [O. F. Cook] Becc.)

sometimes called palm, but not to be confused with the dwarf palmetto (Sabal minor [Jacq.] Pers.) found in East Texas, reaches to heights of 30 to 50 feet and often 2 feet in diameter. It is a native of the rich bottomlands on the Bernando River in Cameron County, Texas, but has been widely cultivated and is found along the Gulf Coast, where the trunks are sometimes used for wharf piles. On the lower Rio Grande the leaves are used for the thatch of houses.

SOUTHERN BAYBERRY (Sweet Myrtle or Wax Myrtle)
(Myrica cerifera L.)

sweet myrtle is found in East Texas, usually in swamp lands. Its small yellow-green leaves are fragrant with a balsam-like resinous odor. Light green berries, about ⅛ inch in diameter remain on the trees during the winter months and are coated with a thick, pale blue wax. Bay [berry] candles are made from the wax.

RIO GRANDE COTTONWOOD
(Populus fremontii var. wislizenii S. Watts)

is one of several cottonwoods growing in West Texas. Five other cottonwoods are native to the western part of the state. Wood is used for fuel and rafters of Mexican houses. It is not durable in the ground, but is fast growing on most areas. Populus tremuloides Michx., called quaking aspen or aspen popple, is a small-leafed, white-barked tree of the Trans-Pecos Region.

SPECKLED ALDER (Hazel Alder)
(Alnus rugosa [Du Roi] Spreng.)

occurs in East Texas west to approximately the 97th meridian. It is a thicket-forming shrub with thick foliage and is one of the first plants to leaf out in the spring. Birds feed upon the numerous [nutlets] produced by the woody, cone-like structure.

SWEET ACACIA (Huisache)
(Acacia farnesiana [L.] Willd.)

found mainly in South Texas, is a small, spiny shrub, with bright yellow flowers. [Fruit] a turgid, woody [pod]. The wood is heavy, hard, and a rich, reddish-brown.

GUAJILLO
(Acacia berlandieri Benth.)

pronounced “wa-he-o”, is the famous honey plant of the Lone Star State. From its white flowers bees produce a water-white honey, highly valued for its flavor and purity. Guajillo occurs in South Texas, and resembles the other trees in the acacia group. The wood is used locally for fuel.

GREAT LEADTREE (Mexican Leadtree)
(Leucaena pulverulenta [Schlecht] Benth.)

sometimes called “tepehuaje” or mimosa, is found on the rich moist soil of river banks and small streams only a few miles from the mouth of the Rio Grande River. It grows 50 to 60 feet high and 18 inches in diameter. The finely divided leaves give the tree the appearance of a huge fern. Seed [pods] are 10 to 12 inches long. The wood is heavy, hard, very close-grained, rich dark brown with a clear yellow [sapwood]. It is considered valuable and is sometimes manufactured into lumber. Two other species, (L. greggii S. Wats.) and (L. retusa Benth.), are found in West Texas but are smaller.

TEXAS SOPHORA (Coral Bean)
(Sophora affinis Torr. and Gray)

also called “bear [berry]”, and pink or beaded locust, is a native to most all of Texas. It occurs as a small sized tree, 18 to 20 feet tall and 8 to 10 inches in diameter. The branches are slightly zigzag, bright green when young turning to orange-brown. The leaves are 6 to 9 inches long, made up of from 13 to 19 [leaflets]. In the fall, it is loaded with clusters of black bean [pods]. The pods are peculiar in shape in that they are pinched in at each seed giving it the appearance of a string of beads. In fact, it is often called the “necklace tree” for that reason. The wood is very hard, light red in color, with a thick bright clear yellow [sapwood].

TEXAS PORLIERIA (Guayacan)
(Porlieria angustifolia [Engelm.] A. Gray)

or soap bush, an evergreen of southern and western Texas, is usually a shrub, but occasionally reaches 8 inches in diameter and 30 feet in height. It is a source of early spring honey in the Rio Grande Valley. Its wood is heavy, hard, and exceptionally durable. Guayacan, sometimes called guaiacum, is the hardest wood in Texas and the United States. The lignum-vitae of commerce is produced from another species.

BARETTA
(Helietta parvifolia [A. Gray] Benth.)

a native of the Rio Grande Valley and abundant in Starr County where it may form considerable thickets, this small, slender evergreen is seldom more than 5 or 6 feet tall. On limestone ridges of the Sierra Madre of Nuevo Leon it reaches 20 to 25 feet high. Its leaves are trifoliate, 1½ to 2 inches long, and conspicuously marked with black [glandular] dots. The branches are brownish-red, but with bright yellow, new growth. The species is not native to any other section of the United States.

TREE OF HEAVEN
(Ailanthus altissima [Mill.] Swingle)

is native to the Orient but has been introduced to this country where it has grown wild and occurs generally throughout Texas. The long, pinnately [compound] leaves, 24 to 48 inches long, with 11 to 41 [leaflets], are [glandular] toothed at the base. The flowers and bruised leaves have a disagreeable odor. The tree is fast growing and spreads by [suckers] as well as by seed.

CHINABERRY
(Melia azedarach L.)

although a native of Asia, is so widely grown in Texas as an ornamental that it can be seen almost anywhere. It is a member of the mahogany family. The [bark] is furrowed, with the ridges flat-topped. The [alternate] leaves are twice-compound and 10 to 32 inches long. The [leaflets] are alternate, [ovate] to elliptic, sharply toothed or [lobed], ¾ to 2 inches long, light green and usually smooth. The flowers are showy, lilac-colored, fragrant, nearly an inch across, and arranged in loose clusters which appear in April. The [fruit] is nearly round, ½ to ¾ inch in diameter, fleshy, and yellow when mature. The wood is moderately heavy and moderately hard, light reddish-brown in color, with a rather narrow, yellowish [sapwood]. Formerly it was much used for cabinet-work.

AMERICAN SMOKETREE (Chittamwood)
(Cotinus obovatus Raf.)

a member of the sumac family, it grows along the Medina and Guadalupe Rivers and in Kendall County, Texas. Occasionally it reaches a height of 30 feet and 12 inches in diameter, but usually grows as a shrub or small tree, its trunk dividing into several stems 10 feet or so above the ground. The wood is bright, clear, rich orange color, and yields the same color dye. Sometimes it is used for fence posts. C. coggygria, the smoketree of gardens, is cultivated in the United States.

TEXAS PISTACHE
(Pistacia texana Swingle)

a less common member of the sumac family, is found native on limestone cliffs and the rocky bottoms of canyons along the lower Pecos River in Valverde County, Texas. It reaches a height of 15 to 20 feet and produces a [fruit] resembling the pistachio [nut] of commerce, except that it is smaller in size.

EASTERN WAHOO
(Euonymus atropurpureus Jacq.)

also called arrow-wood and burning bush in some localities is a small tree rarely over 20 feet high and 4 to 6 inches in diameter. The [bark] is thin and covered with thin, tiny [scales]. The wood is heavy, hard, white, tinged with orange. The leaves are [opposite], thin, and finely [serrate]. In the fall and winter the tree is characterized by bright red berries in lighter red, 4-lobed [capsules]. It is a native of East Texas.

FLORIDA MAPLE (Southern Sugar Maple)
(Acer barbatum Michx.)

grows in East Texas and resembles the sugar maple (A. saccharum Marsh.) with which it blends in Northeast Texas, except that the tips of the leaves of A. barbatum Michx. are more rounded and the young leaves are hairy on the underside when they first unfold.

BIGTOOTH MAPLE
(Acer grandidentatum Nutt.)

a maple native to the mountains and canyons of the Trans-Pecos Region of Texas, grows to 30 and 40 feet high and occasionally 8 to 10 inches in diameter. Its bright red branchlets are nearly encircled by the narrow [leaf-scars]. Leaf lobes few toothed or nearly entire. When accessible, the wood is valuable for fuel and building material.

UVALDE BIGTOOTH MAPLE (Sugar or Mountain Maple)
(Acer grandidentatum var. sinuosum [Rend.] Little)

resembles the above two maples but is confined to the Balcones Escarpment in western Texas along creek bottoms in parts of Kendall, Bandera, and Uvalde Counties. It is a rare tree, seldom more than 20 feet high. Branchlets pale red-brown and marked by pale [lenticels] during their first season, ultimately turning dull gray-brown.

FLORIDA BASSWOOD
(Tilia floridana Small)

grows from East Texas to the Edwards Plateau. The leaves are coarsely [serrate] with sharp-pointed tips, dark green and [glaucous] above, and pale or covered with a silvery-white [bloom] and often axillary hairs below. The tree may reach 40 to 50 feet high and 12 to 15 inches in diameter.

CAROLINA BASSWOOD
(Tilia caroliniana Mill.)

located in East Texas to the Edwards Plateau, Kendall County. Underside of the [ovate] leaves covered with soft, short, brownish-white hairs; smooth on upper surface and coarse-veined. Leaves usually obliquely [truncate] at the base.

TAMARISK
(Tamarix species)

all of the many species of Tamarix are native to the Mediterranean Region or to East Asia and India. However, three of them (T. araiculata Vahl, T. gallica L., and T. pentandra Pall.), are widely planted in the South. All are shrubby in nature, or they may attain the stature of small trees. When of tree size, the trunk normally is short, with main branches quite close to the ground. This gives rise to a wide-spreading bushy [crown]. The leaves are sparse, delicate, evergreen, [alternate], [simple], small, scale-like, pale green to dull or bluish-green, [ovate] or rhombic, sharp pointed, sometimes with thin, dry margins, and without petioles. The foliage presents a leathery appearance. The wood is hard, heavy, white to light straw colored, shows a prominent mottled wavy pattern when quarter-sawn, and takes a high polish.

BUCKTHORN BUMELIA (Buckthorn)
(Bumelia lycioides [L.] Pers.)

also called ironwood, is found along the Southeast Coastal Region of Texas. In contrast to B. lanuginosa, the leaves are smooth instead of hairy on the underside. They are also thin. Sometimes grows 25 to 30 feet in height with a short trunk rarely more than 6 inches in diameter. It has stout, flexible branches, usually unarmed.

TEXAS BUMELIA
(Bumelia lanuginosa var. rigida A. Gray)

occurs in Texas from the upper Brazos River to the Rio Grande and upper Guadalupe River. It has thick, leathery-like leaves smooth on the underside. The [lateral] branches are spiny and occasionally end in stout pines; branchlets slender, often zigzag, and lustrous. The fresh-cut wood of the bumelias in Texas usually produces considerable quantities of clear viscid gum. Mexicans have given some species of this small tree the name “chickle” for that reason.

TEXAS PERSIMMON (Black Persimmon)
(Diospyros texana Scheele)

also called Mexican persimmon, is native to southern and southwestern Texas, from the Colorado River. It is characterized by 1 to 2 inch leaves and small edible black [fruits], about ¾ inch in diameter. They will stain the skin black. Mexicans make a hair dye from the ripe fruit, which has given the plant the local name of “capote”. The wood is heavy with a black [heartwood] often streaked with yellow, and with a bright yellow [sapwood]. The wood is used in turnery and for the handles of tools.

TEXAS ASH
(Fraxinus texensis [A. Gray] Sarg.)

a small tree, rarely more than 50 feet high, of the dry limestone bluffs and ridges of the Dallas area to the valley of the Colorado River and the Edwards Plateau. Leaves 5 to 8 inches long with usually five, long-stalked [leaflets]. [Fruit] in short, compact clusters.

BERLANDIER ASH (Mexican Ash)
(Fraxinus berlandieriana A. DC.)

grows along the banks of streams and canyons in the San Antonio and Neuces River watersheds and over the Edwards Plateau. It is rarely more than 30 feet tall. The three to five [leaflets] are smooth. The wood is light brown and soft.

ANACAHUITA (Texas Wild-Olive)
(Cordia boisseri A. DC.)

occurs along the lower Rio Grande Valley, is said to be almost extinct. It is a small tree, sometimes 20 feet tall and 6 to 8 inches in diameter, noted for its large velvety leaves (4 to 5 inches long and 3 to 4 inches wide), clusters of yellow and white flowers and delicate ivory-white coated [fruit]. The [bark] is thin, gray, tinged with red.

ANAQUA
(Ehretia anacua [Mier and Berland.] Johnst.)

also called knackaway, anama, and yara, occurs in West Texas from the upper San Marcos River to the Rio Grande River. It is a tree of the tropics and of about 40 species in its family, is the only one found in the United States, and here only in Texas. It is valued as a shade tree in some communities of South Texas and is noted for its growth and beauty. Occasionally it grows to a height of 40 to 50 feet with a trunk 3 feet in diameter, attaining its largest size on the Guadalupe and Nueces Rivers. Anaqua has slender branchlets, without [terminal] buds, and leathery, very rough leaves which are almost evergreen. It [blooms] with white flowers in March and April and has large groups of edible red berries in June and July. The wood is heavy, close-grained, light brown and of little value.

TEXAS MADRONE
(Arbutus texana Buckl.)

also called Texas Madroño is a small poorly shaped tree found on dry limestone hills, and in the valley of the Rio Blanco, and among the Eagle Mountains. The trunk is seldom over one foot in diameter and is usually divided into several branches near the ground. The leaves are [oval] to [oblong] and [persistent] until the new leaves are formed. The [bark] of young stems and branches is smooth, thin, and yellowish-green in color tinged with red. At the base of old trunks the bark, sometimes ¼ inch thick, is dark reddish-brown in color.

AUSTRIAN PINE
(Pinus nigra Arnold)

is similar in appearance to red pine (P. resinosa Ait.) but needles are more rigid. [Bark] is black to dark brown and the cones are 1½ to 2 inches long. The tree is a native of central and southern Europe and Asia Minor. It has been planted extensively in the U. S. as an ornamental but is apparently not yet naturalized. It is planted in Texas in windbreak plantings.

RUSSIAN-OLIVE
(Elaeagnus angustifolia L.)

is a small tree, not more than 25 feet tall, usually with thorny branches. Leaves are [simple], [alternate], narrow and 2 to 3 inches long, bright green on the upper surface and silvery underneath. It is a native of Europe and Asia and is used as an ornamental and in windbreak plantings in the United States.

BUFFALOBERRY (Silver Buffaloberry)
(Shepherdia argentea [Pursh] Nutt.)

is a small silver gray-green tree with edible scarlet colored [fruit] which is useful for making jelly, which may reach 18 to 23 feet in height. It generally has narrow [oblong] leaves ¾ to 2 inches long and twigs are often thorny. Its native range is from the northern Great Plains to Kansas. Useful for windbreak plantings and erosion control.

SIBERIAN ELM (Chinese Elm)
(Ulmus pumila L.)

is more commonly known in the Plains area as Chinese elm. It is drought-resistant and [tolerant] of a variety of sites but cannot stand too much water. A small tree with slender drooping branches. Clusters of short pedicelled winged [fruit] appear in April or May. The leaves are [simple], [alternate], [oval] to [elliptical], 1 to 2 inches long and leaf edges are doubly [serrate]. Widely used for shade and windbreak plantings.

WINTERBERRY EUONYMUS
(Euonymus bungeanus Maxim.)

was introduced from China and has adapted well to the southern Great Plains area centered around the Texas Panhandle. The small tree is very hardy and drought-resistant. Its very light green leaves are 2 to 4 inches long, pointed and borne on slender petioles. The heavy leaves cause the petioles to bend giving the foliage a limp or drooping appearance. Young stems and branches are green, older ones are gray. The [fruit] is a four-lobed [capsule] which, before ripening in the fall, has a pinkish cast. The ripened seeds are bright red.