Click on the images help you identify a hackberry.
Form
Height ranges from 40 to 75 feet, with a trunk diameter of 10 to 36 inches. Limbs are often crooked and angular. In forested areas, the crown consists of slender, hanging branches or short, bristly, stubby twigs. In open conditions, the crown is generally symmetrical.
Bark
Grayish brown, heavily roughened with prominent, short, corky ridges.
Leaf
Leaves are simple, alternate on the stem, 2 to 4 inches long, with long, narrow, tapering points and sharply toothed margins. Bases are uneven, veins are prominent, and upper surfaces are hairy. Leaves turn yellow in autumn.
Fruit (seed)
Fruit is a berrylike drupe, 1/4 to 1/3 inch wide, with thin purplish skin and sweet yellowish flesh, sometimes called sugar berry. Ripens in September and frequently remains on the tree most of the winter, providing an important food source for wildlife.
Range
Found sparingly in southern Minnesota and in the western part of the state northward through the Red River Valley. Naturally occurs in flood plains but will grow on a variety of soils, from poor to rich. Never found in pure forest stands. Moderately shade-tolerant and moderately fast-growing.
Wood uses
Wood is heavy, rather soft, weak, coarse-grained, and fairly durable in contact with soil, light yellow or greenish brown with narrow white sapwood. Used for inexpensive furniture, fuel, and occasionally for lumber. Valued as a shade tree and often planted in urban areas and ornamental landscapes. Learn more with our planting hackberry in your yard video.