The Best Trees for Clay Soil

Sticky and heavy when wet, clay soils are hard to work and are challenging for plants. The fine soil particles pack closely together, giving poor drainage and plant root aeration. Many trees won't grow well under clay soil conditions. Some of the best trees for clay soils are species native to floodplain and swamp habitats and to areas with clay soils. Keep the top of the rootball near the top or slightly above the soil surface when planting trees in clay.

Short trees under 30 feet tall are suitable for limited-space landscapes. Paperbark maple (Acer griseum), hardy in U. S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 8, features interesting reddish-brown, peeling bark and red leaves in fall. For xeriscape gardens in hot, dry exposures, desert willow (Chilopsis linearis) is a good choice for clay soils. It has a multi-trunked growth habit but can be trained to a single trunk. The deciduous tree has slender, graceful leaves and produces showy, fragrant, white, pink, lavender or purple flowers in spring and summer. Hardy in USDA zones 7b through 11, desert willow's native habitat of arid desert washes often contain clay.

Honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) is native to floodplains of the Mississippi River. It roots deeply even into clay soils. Growing from 40 to 80 feet tall, trees have stout, fierce spines on the branches and large, brown, woody seed pods. The leaves turn yellow in fall. Hardy in USDA zones 3 through 9, thornless and fruitless cultivars are available. Common hackberry (Celtis occidentalis) is native to moist bottomlands. In fall, songbirds and other wildlife come to the 40- to 80-foot-tall trees for the small, sweet fruits. The tree needs shaping during its first 15 years and is hardy to USDA zones 3 through 9.

Columnar-shaped California incense cedar (Calocedrus decurrens) brings a formal, stately presence to the landscape. Growing 40 to 60 feet tall under cultivation, the tree attracts songbirds and wildlife with the seeds in its small cones. Needing little care once established, the tree is long-lived, has fragrant foliage and red, flaky bark. It is hardy in USDA zones 5 through 8. White cedar (Thuja occidentalis) grows 25 to 40 feet tall in USDA zones 2 through 7. The green, fragrant foliage can turn brownish in winter. Use oval-shaped trees for hedges or screens.

Masses of fragrant, white to pink flowers grace tea crabapple (Malus hupehensis) in spring, followed by red-tinged, 1/2-inch, greenish-yellow fruits that attract wildlife. Yellow fall leaves give additional color. Trees grow 15 to 20 feet tall and wide in USDA zones 4 through 8a. Tea crabapple is considered particularly suited to clay soils by the University of Minnesota Extension service. Hawthorns (Crataegus spp.) tolerate clay soils well, but many have formidable spines. Green hawthorn (Crataegus viridis "Winter King") is nearly spineless and has white spring flowers, red to orange fruits that stay on the tree through winter, and colorful red, gold and bronze fall leaf color. Hardy in USDA zones 4 through 7, "Winter King" reaches 20 to 30 feet tall.