Tacoma Heritage Tree Map

Mockernut hickory

(Carya tomentosa)

Native Habitat: Eastern US

DBH: 33 inches

The tree’s common name of “Mockernut” comes from the large, thick-shelled fruit with very small kernels of meat inside.

Although the Mockernut Hickory grows very slowly, it is long lived, sometimes reaching the age of 500 years.

Red Maple

(Acer rubrum)

Native Habitat: Eastern North America

DBH: 36 inches

Has become one of the most common trees across North America. "Red" maple is aptly named as its flowers, petioles, twigs, seeds, and fall leaves are all red to varying degrees.

Narrow-leaved ash

(Fraxinus angustifolia)

Native habitat: Central and Southern Europe

DBH: 38 inches

Wood of the ash tree is strong and elastic at the same time. It is used for making bows, tool handles, baseball bats, and electric guitar bodies.

Flowering occurs in early spring. The seeds, popularly known as “keys” or “helicopter seeds,” are a type of fruit known as a samara.

All ash species are vulnerable to the invasive pest known as the Emerald Ash Borer, which has devastated ash populations in the eastern US.

Paper birch

(Betula papyrifera)

Native Habitat: Northern North America

DBH: 39 inches

The name “papyrifera” comes from the Greek “papurus” (paper) and the Latin word “fero” (to bear, carry, bring). The distinctive white paper-like bark is highly weather-resistant due to its high oil content. Indigenous Peoples used the flexible, waterproof bark for canoes, shelter covers, and baskets.

This tree has suffered in recent years due to increased heat and drought during the summer months.

Plume Sawara cypress

(Chamaecyparis pisifera)

DBH: 25 inches

A popular ornamental tree from Japan, this tree is a cultivated variety that does not grow in the wild.

This slow-growing coniferous evergreen tree is cultivated for its timber in Japan, where it is used as a material for building palaces, temples, shrines and baths, and making coffins. The wood is lemon-scented and light-colored with a rich, straight grain, and is rot resistant.

Spanish chestnut

(Castanea sativa)

Native habitat: Europe & Asia

DBH: 61 inches

This long lived deciduous tree grows tall and strong. The bark often has a net-shaped pattern with deep furrows or fissures running spirally in both directions up the trunk. The small female flowers form strongly scented drooping clusters that mature into thorny shelled fruits which contain energy rich edible nuts (chestnuts). Roasted chestnuts are a well-known Christmas treat in Europe.

American chestnut

(Castanea dentata)

Native habitat: Eastern North America

DBH: 53 inches

It is estimated that approximately 3 billion American Chestnut trees were destroyed in the fi rst half of the 20th century by the airborne fungal disease chestnut blight after its initial discovery in 1904. Fortunately, this is a rapidly growing deciduous hardwood tree and a prolifi c bearer of nuts. This tree is a valuable food source for wildlife. It also contains more nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and magnesium in its leaves than many other trees which means they return more nutrients to the soil.

Giant sequoia

(Sequoiadendron giganteum)

Native Habitat: Sierra Nevada Mountains

DBH: 83 inches

This specific tree was planted in 1939 in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the adoption of the U.S. Constitution. Named after Sequoyah (1767-1843), the inventor of the Cherokee syllabary, sequoias are the world’s largest single trees, growing to an average height of 164-279 ft. and 20-26 ft. in diameter. They supplement water from the soil with fog, taken up through air roots to heights where the root water cannot be pulled. They are also among the oldest living things on Earth with the oldest known giant sequoia based on ring count being over 3,500 years old.

Rock elm

(Ulmus thomasii)

Native habitat: Midwestern United States

DBH: 38 inches

Planted: Late 1800s to early 1900s

Narrower than average and with short branches, Rock Elms are also unusual among North American elms in that they often have a single main stem. Due to a slow growth rate (average diameter increase is 1/12 inch per year), they produce the hardest, heaviest wood of any elm, remaining virtually free of knots and defects. Wood from these trees was once in great demand for shipbuilding, furniture, agricultural tools, and musical instruments. While they can live up to 300 years, Rock Elms are susceptible to Dutch elm disease.

Silverleaf magnolia

(Magnolia hypoleuca)

Native habitat: Southeast Asia

DBH: 31 inches

Planted: 1939

This specific tree, grown from a Japanese seed, was donated by Peter Faulk in 1939. Magnolia is an ancient genus with fossilized specimens of plants identifiably belonging to the Magnoliaceae dated to 95 million years ago. Appearing before bees did, this tree’s large powerfully scented pale yellow/cream colored flowers are theorized to have evolved to encourage pollination by beetles. To avoid damage from pollinating beetles, the carpels of Magnolia flowers are extremely tough. Also known as the Whitebark Magnolia, this tree is highly tolerant of airborne pollutants.

Tuliptree

(Liriodendron tulipifera)

Native habitat: Eastern North America

DBH: 70 inches

Planted: Late 1800s to early 1900s

The tuliptree is sometimes referred to as a yellow poplar, although it is more closely related to magnolia trees. The Latin “Liriodendron” actually means “lily tree.” It grows rapidly and its hard wood has high commercial value for cabinet and furniture framing. In the spring, if you look high enough, you can see 2-3 inch yellow-green and orange blossoms. The tree’s cone-like fruit matures in late summer to early fall. Long after the leaves have fallen, the seed clusters, which resemble wooden flowers, remain high in the tree.

English field maple

(Acer campestre)

Native Habitat: Great Britain

DBH: 29 inches

“Campestre” means from the fields. Also commonly called a hedge maple, it may be pruned to form a tall hedge. In England it is often included in hedgerows. As fall progresses, the sap flow slows and chlorophyll, the chemical that gives the leaves the leaves their green color in the spring and summer, disappears. The residual sap becomes more concentrated as it dries. Depending on how much iron, magnesium, phosphorus, or sodium is in the plant, leaves might turn amber, gold, red, orange or just fade from green to brown.

Pond cypress

(Taxodium ascendens)

Native habitat: Southeastern United States

DBH: 22 inches

Planted: 1969

This deciduous conifer tree is often found along the edges of streams and around the edge of swampy ground where water is standing. The trunk is expanded at the base, assisting the tree in anchoring in soft, muddy soil. The deeply furrowed bark is a pale gray color. Like Bald Cypresses, Pond Cypresses growing in water have a characteristic growth trail called cypress knees; these are woody projections (pneumatophores) sent above the water from the roots, probably enabling this plant to breathe air in habitat with waterlogged soil. Maximum longevity of this plant is estimated at 1000 years.

Sugar maple

(Acer saccharum)

Native habitat: Northeastern North America

DBH: 62 inches

Sugar maple is best known for its bright fall foliage and for being the primary source of maple syrup. Sugar Maples produce 5 to 60 gallons of sap per year. It takes about 32 gallons of sap to make each gallon of syrup. The sugar maple will generally begin flowering when it is between 10-15 years old. The fruit has two winged seeds which fall from the tree in autumn, where they must be exposed to 90 days of temperatures below 0° F to break their coating down.

Montpelier maple

(Acer monspessulanum)

Native habitat: Mediterranean Region

DBH: 22 inches

This is a medium-sized deciduous tree with smooth, dark gray bark on young trees, becoming finely fissured on old trees. The flowers are produced in spring, in pendulous yellow to white flat topped clusters. The samaras (one seeded winged fruit) have rounded nutlets. This tree is popular among bonsai enthusiasts due to its smallish leaves and shrubby habit.

English oak

(Quercus robur)

Native Habitat: Great Britain

DBH: 43 inches

This is a large deciduous tree, with a wide spreading crown of rugged branches. Flowering takes place in mid-spring. The fall fruit, the distinguishing acorn, is dispersed by jays and squirrels. Robus is Latin for “strength, hard timber.” The English Oak is considered a “King of Trees” symbolizing strength and duration. These trees can live for 1,000 years or more. They have been a prized source of timber since prehistoric times.

Giant sequoia

(Sequoiadendron giganteum)

Native Habitat: Sierra Nevada range, California

DBH: 147

Year planted: unknown, however the tree was already quite mature in aerial imagery from 1950!

With its massive trunk, this sequoia may appear ancient, but at ~100-150yrs old, it's still very young for a sequoia, which can live for over 3,000 years! Go under this tree with your friends or family and see how many of you it takes to get your arms all the way around its trunk.

Tulip tree

(Liriodendron tulipifera)

Native Habitat: Eastern North America

DBH: 67 inches

Year Planted: ~1890

This impressive tree is the lone survivor on this area of S M St, many decades older than any nearby street trees. In its native habitat, a tulip tree often has a strong single trunk that can reach almost 200-ft in height with branches forming higher in the canopy. In the Pacific Northwest it tends to develop a wider, sometimes multi-stemmed trunk with a shorter stature, not usually getting taller than 80-100-ft. This tree is a prime example of that growth habit.

Coffin tree

( Taiwania cryptomerioides)

Native Habitat: Taiwan and scattered parts of Southeast Asia

DBH: 15 inches

Year planted: 2003

The only living species in its Genus and possibly the only representative of its species in Tacoma, this Coffin tree was acquired by a rare plant collector as a sapling and sold to homeowners on N J St where it grew to 18-ft tall before being rehomed by the North Slope Historic District in 2012 to its current home: North Slope Historic District Park.

Douglas fir

(Pseudotsuga menziesii)

DBH: 92 inches

The "Mountaineer Tree", this massive Douglas fir in Point Defiance has been growing since the 1500s! The Mountaineer Tree is so named because the Tacoma chapter of The Mountaineers were the first to formally recognize this as a special tree in 1949. The Mountaineer Tree is over 200-ft tall, has a trunk that's 24-ft around, and has branches high up in its canopy that are larger than 20-30 year old whole trees on the ground.

Pin oak

(Quercus palustis)

Native habitat: Eastern and Central United States

DBH: 35 inches

This specimen was planted in 1931 as a "George Washington Bicentennial Memorial Tree" by the Tacoma League of Garden Clubs as part of a nationwide project organized by the American Tree Association to celebrate the 200th birthday of George Washington.

Cedar of Lebanon

(Cedrus libani)

Native habitat: Mountains of the Eastern Mediterranean region

DBH: 59 inches

This tree is listed as the state's largest Cedar of Lebanon in Champion Trees of Washington State (Van Pelt, 2003). The Rust Mansion property, where the tree resides, was built in 1906 for wealthy smelter businessman William Rust.

Sweet gum

(Liquidambar styraciflua)

Native habitat: Eastern/southeastern N. America

DBH: 48 inches

Sweet gum trees are native to wet, warm lowlands in the southeastern United States. While popular as street trees during the 1990s, the shallow root systems of sweet gum make them much better suited for yards or parks in our climate. This fantastic specimen is well-placed in a front yard, offering shade to both the nearby home and pedestrians using the sidewalk. Sweet gums are easily identified by their distinctive leaves and round, spiky fruit known as gumballs that drop throughout the late fall and into winter.

Giant sequoia

(Sequoiadendron giganteum)

Native habitat: Sierra Nevada range, California

DBH: 86 inches

This tree is the tallest tree and only sequoia in South Park. Visible for a considerable distance along S. Tacoma Way, it stands out in stark contrast to the low-canopy street it borders.