Common Hackberry, American Hackberry

On Aug 1, 2019, jep1978 from Shorewood Hills, WI wrote:

I have dozens of hackberry trees on my half acre homestead in Wisconsin, and I really like them. It's not a tree you see all over, but they really thrive on the limestone-rich slopes of my neighborhood. The mature trunks are a pleasing light gray color with a unique pattern of short ridges providing texture. Hackberries cast ample but not oppressive shade. The small dark berries are favored by wild birds (including turkeys, which have gone up on my flat roof to find fallen berries), and also by me - the fruit has a very pleasant date-like flavor with a softly crunchy nut inside.

I can only think of a couple minor down-sides of this tree. First, they sometimes sprout new trunks from roots, which may be several feet or more from the parent tree. This can be a benefit o... read morer an inconvenience depending on the sprouts' location. Second, the leaves are utilized considerably by psyllid insects that form pea-sized leaf galls (sometimes many to a leaf). To me, this doesn't have much impact on the appearance of the tree. The psyllid flies can be seasonally abundant and a few get in the house, but they're harmless. It's worth noting that hackberry leaves are also favored by prettier insects such as the tawny emperor caterpillar/butterfly.

On May 15, 2016, pogson from Winnipeg,
Canada wrote:

I bought seed from TreeSeeds.com and followed their instructions. I got about 50% germination and have a bunch of seedlings growing in pots. Common Hackberry grows naturally even a bit further north and west of Winnipeg but it has a hard time producing fruit/seed beyond here because of late/early frosts. Otherwise, the trees once established are rugged and can stand the wind and cold and our soil which is clay with a lot of limestone. It's a very attractive and hardy replacement for our elms which are being killed off by Dutch elm disease.

On Dec 19, 2013, Rickwebb from Downingtown, PA wrote:

It is a fast growing, yet windfirm shade tree that is reliable. Elm-like with grayish warty bark that can become more plated when old. Adaptable to most any soil. The berries are edible for birds. Lives about 150 to 200 years like most shade trees. Should be planted more.

On Mar 5, 2008, Malus2006 from Coon Rapids, MN (Zone 4a) wrote:

Becoming more commonly planted - still uncommon to rare for home yards in Minnesota - most commomly planted for public projects - a good example is the Hennepin Side of the Coon Rapids Dam. The mature species form what one known professor said "worm casts" - squiggle lines that are short and raised from a mostly smooth to weakly cracked surface.

On Jul 15, 2005, minphilic from Austin, TX (Zone 8b) wrote:

I moved into a house with a mature hackberry next to the driveway. Initially, I thought it would be nice to park under it but I soon began to notice a strange residue on the car that attracted bees. Some kind of sap that dropped like raindrops. Then it started to berry and birds started leaving me little gifts all over my car. All that isn't too bad especially because you don't have to plant the tree next to the driveway, however, it reseeds itself everywhere and it is driving me nuts. I probably have about 10-15 hackberry trees growing vigorously in my backyard; it has potential to be invasive.

On Dec 25, 2004, TREEHUGR from Now in Orlando, FL (Zone 9b) wrote:

I have a c. occidentalis growing here in FL.
Although it's found growing in dry upland sites here in the state, my yard is anything but dry upland.

The tree isn't that happy here, I can tell. A better choice for this area is the c. laevigata or southern hackberry/ sugarberry which is found growing in my local area in wet sites.