Most Popular Trees in the North

#1: Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis)

@Sharon says, "This is a lovely early spring bloom in Kentucky. They dot the hillsides with their deep rosy color. The black seedpods of fall create quite a show too, and you'll need to watch out for multiple seedlings if the pods are left where they fall.

Cercis species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species."

#2: Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)

@Bonehead says, "This is not my favorite tree, simply because it looks dead in the winter when I would like more of a lively presence. It's very beautiful when it first greens up, kind of a soft look to it, and is also nice in fall when it turns. Grows fairly quickly."

#3: Blue spruce (Picea pungens)

@robertduval14 says, "Utah and Colorado's state tree."

#4: Bradford Pear (Pyrus calleryana 'Bradford')

@SongofJoy says, "These trees are subject to breakage and are easily broken or split in very windy conditions. Almost every year a number of mature specimens are lost here."

@eclayne added, "The Bradford Pear was for years a common street tree in Boston's Fort Point Channel district. Generally thought to be low maintenance, its fairly upright habit is particularly well suited to the narrow sidewalks common throughout much of Boston while the root system creates little or no heaving of brick sidewalks. Many side streets, planted exclusively with Bradfords, create a wonderful spring display. Unfortunately over the years the very windy conditions of this harbor-side area have taken a toll and the Bradfords have fallen out of favor."

#5: Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)

@Marilyn says, "When I was growing up in Centerville, OH (a southern suburb of Dayton, OH), my parents planted an American Sycamore on their quarter-acre lot, as well as other types of trees. My dad planted it within a year of building the house and they had the house for 16 years. As the years went by, that tree shaded the whole house in the summer so well that the AC didn't have to be used.

Then, when they moved to Lebanon, OH, and built another house, they already had American Sycamores growing on their 5-acre property.

I always loved seeing those beautiful trees! To this day, whenever I see an American Sycamore, I remember the wonderful trees growing in the Centerville and the Lebanon yards!

DH and I don't have a large enough yard to grow this wonderful tree, but if we did, we'd grow it!

Love the peelings on the bark and the distinctive white bark color underneath the peelings!"

#6: Black Walnut (Juglans nigra)

@Mindy03 says, "Honey bees get pollen and honeydew from this plant."

@Marilyn added, "This is the state nut of Missouri."

#7: Golden Rain Tree (Koelreuteria paniculata)

@Sharon says, "This is a young tree, started from seed in '06. It's a bit of a slow grower here in zone 7, but this year it reached a height of about 10 feet, bloomed and also produced the golden seed pods that give it its name. It's a gorgeous little tree, and though the pods stayed lime green until mid September, they are now a rich coppery red color and still clinging to the tree this first weekend of October."

#8: Pawpaw (Asimina triloba)

@jmorth says, "Fruit is quite edible, ..Matter of fact: chilled fruit was a dessert favorite of George Washington. Ripens in late Aug, early Sept. Has a sweet custard-ish flavor similar to banana, mango, & cantaloupe. Unfortunately, it has a very short shelf-life. I believe it is North America's largest indigenous edible fruit.
Fruits should manifest in tree's 6th or 7th year.
Native to eastern North America and the Midwest.
It is a patch-forming (clonal) understory tree found in well drained, deep, fertile bottomland and hilly upland habitats.

Young trees are susceptible to sun damage the first 2 years. To remedy that I planted Kong Sunflowers in the same area I planted 2 trees. These sunflowers grow so tall so fast, they performed an admiral job of shade protection. Being self seeders, the sunflowers returned to fulfill said duty the following year.

It's been 6 years and I'm still waiting...Flowered and fruited years 7 and 8. (Updated fall 2013).

Another positive about the Paw Paw is that it is the exclusive food source for the larvae of the Zebra Swallowtail butterfly. By consuming paw paw the butterflies ingest a chemical that makes them unpalatable to birds and other predators."

#9: Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida)

@SongofJoy says, "Numerous species of birds feed on the red ripe fruit of Dogwood trees, swallowing the entire berry. The seeds inside the fruit are undamaged and softened in the digestive process. They are then passed in bird droppings to be scattered and "planted" many places. Other animals such as squirrels eat and destroy the seeds from the center of the fruit and leave the surrounding meat of the fruit untouched."

#10: Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)

@jmorth says, "One cool tree. Autumn brings yellow-copper hue to leaves before dropped (1 of only a few conifer trees w/ deciduous habit). Tree is well suited to wet conditions (though conversely, is drought tolerant when established). Fast growth rate (2'/yr), can reach 60' in less than 25 years. Often utilized in landscaping. Native to the US.
When in standing water, often sends up large root projections called knees above surface of earth or water (note pics from Ft Worth)."