Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
Not Yet Rated

Sunday - March 27, 2011

From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Trees
Title: Tree (evergreen) to grow in area with high water table
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, We live in central Austin, Tarrytown specifically, just blocks from the aptly named Spring Lane. (sometimes we hit water in our back yard within 2 feet of the surface.) We lost a big tree (a Chinese tallow) on the west side and desperately need a replacement because that side of the house becomes uninhabitable most summer afternoons. It's a high-traffic area of deck and driveway, so we'd like a tree not as messy and hard on bare feet as the tallow–also, maybe an evergreen 'cause some winter days can be pretty hot, too. Do you think a Mexican white oak a good choice? From what I've read, I can't tell if they can withstand having wet feet for periods of time. Might something else be a better choice? Thanks.

ANSWER:

Well, I think it depends on how wet your yard really is.   Does it often stand in water in the area where you want to plant the tree or is the ground often squishy underfoot when you walk on it?  If the answer is 'yes', then the answer to whether a Quercus polymorpha (Mexican white oak) would thrive there would be 'no'.  If the high water content in the soil is a couple of feet down, it might do just fine.   However, the Learn2Grow and Mountain States Wholesale Nursery websites does say that it needs well-drained soils and the City of Austin Native and Adapted Landscape Plants says that it prefers deep soils.

An obvious great tree for your soil that has so much underground water would be  Taxodium distichum (Bald cypress).  It is a beautiful tree, but it's not evergreen.  It is shown as prefering acidic soils.  Most soils around the Austin area are not acidic, but it is probably more adaptable to Austin's soil pH than the recommended pH would indicate.  You do see them growing in various places in the city usually beside ponds, lakes or other waterways.  The Austin City Arborist Program has Bald Cypress on its list of Adapted Trees for the Austin Area.  You probably want to consider that its female cones (~3/4" in diameter) will fall under the tree.

Here are a few other trees, tall to small, that will tolerate moist soil—only one (yaupon) is evergreen.

Fraxinus pennsylvanica (Green ash) grows to 75 feet and tolerates wet, moist and dry soils and will grow in limestone soils.  Female trees produce lots of winged seeds that can litter the ground, but there are seedless male varieties available.

Platanus occidentalis (American sycamore) loves moist soils and can grow to 100 feet.  Here is more information from Ohio State University that gives assets and liabilities of this tree.

 Ulmus crassifolia (Cedar elm) grows 50 to 70 feet high, is reasonablly fast-growing and grows in moist soils.  It doesn't produce any considerable litter except its small deciduous leaves and small fruits/seeds.

Prunus mexicana (Mexican plum) grows 15 to 35 feet in dry or moist soils.  It produces beautiful fragrant flowers in the spring that become small plums.  The plums make wonderful jams and jellies and are nice to eat of the tree if they are completely ripe.  These plums would fall on the ground under the tree if not harvested.

Ilex vomitoria (Yaupon) usually grows to about 25 feet high but can grow taller.  It is evergreen and the female plants produce bright red berries that birds love.  The trees are either female and male—so if you don't want berries, there are varieties you can buy that are guaranteed to be male (e.g., Ilex vomitoria 'Dewerth').

You can search for more possibilities by going to our Recommended Species page and choosing Central Texas from the map.  This will give you a list of plants native to the area that are commercially available for landscaping.  You can use the NARROW YOUR SEARCH option to limit the list to 'Trees' and limit soil moisture to 'Moist' and/or 'Wet'.  You can also set other criteria (e.g., Height).  Also, if you scroll to the bottom of the Recommended Species page you will find "Just for Central Texans" with additional lists of plants for the area that you can search.


Quercus polymorpha


Taxodium distichum


Fraxinus pennsylvanica


Platanus occidentalis


Ulmus crassifolia


Prunus mexicana


Ilex vomitoria

 

 

 

More Trees Questions

Dwarf golden cypress outgrowing their space
December 28, 2008 - I planted two dwarf golden cypress on opposite sides of a dwarf alberta spruce in a small bed by the front door. After 4 years I have to severely prune back the dwarf cypress in spring as they will sp...
view the full question and answer

Problem with unknown tree in Austin, Texas
July 23, 2013 - Have recently moved to Austin, Texas and have a tree in my backyard that has been dropping leaves and one major branch appears to be dead. That branch has hard rust colored sap circles (about penny si...
view the full question and answer

Browning leaves on recently planted chinkapin oak in Rockwall TX
June 09, 2010 - I just planted a chinkapin oak that is about 1 1\2 inches thick last week and now some of the leaves are turning brown. Does that mean its dying? Do you have any tips that I could use to protect it?
view the full question and answer

Manzanita Not Growing Well
July 11, 2016 - Dear Mr Smarty Plants, I have a four native Dr. Hurd manzanitas growing in my yard, which I planted three years ago. Three seem quite happy with lots of foliage. The fourth has foliage only on this ye...
view the full question and answer

Trimming oaks and elms from New Braunfels TX
June 20, 2012 - I would like to trim my live oaks and elm trees at the same time, if possible. I think they are American Elms. When is the best time to do this and avoid oak wilt and Dutch elm disease? Should all c...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.