Anybody have experience planting these trees

I’m a big fan of cedar elms. They are a very hardy tree and tolerate wet and dry conditions. They grow great in dfw.

I was listening to an arborist radio show one time (Howard Garrett - The Dirt Doctor). Someone called in and asked what trees grew fastish, were hearty, and were good shade trees in the DFW area. These are the trees he listed off.

Dawn redwood
Montezuma cypress
Canby oak
American elm
Cedar elm
Drummond red maple
Bigtooth maple
Mexican sycamore

The Mexican Sycamore he said was the fastest growing but maybe not the heartiest tree of the group but still relatively hearty. This fall or early spring is when I plan on planting several trees.

Another tree I've come across is called the Royal Empress. I've done some reading on these. There are strains of this tree that are invasive and not ideal. But there are two strains called the Nordmax and one called the Phoenix One that are not invasive. These trees are supposed to grow incredibly fast. They have a shorter lifespan at roughly 50 years. They are also regenerative. Once they grow to a certain height, you can cut them down at the base, and they'll regrow as a new tree. I'm curious if anyone on the board knows anything about this tree and if I'm reading a load of crap or if it grows as advertised. From what I've read, the roots can be a problem if you're planting where you have underground plumbing or wiring. On my property I have plenty of room to plant this kind of tree and not create a problem.

Ash will give you a nice shaded canopy and fast. I have an older one in my front that’s at least 30 yrs and has offered awesome protection for my St Aug lawn as it’s the greenest on the block. It allows plenty of filtered light through.

I have a newer ash that’s 18 yrs old that I planted, and it’s much denser and deeper shade, by our patio.

The older ash does shed a lot of dead branches and you have to stay on top of trimming/thinning because the branches grow in a drooping fashion. If left unchecked it would be a messy looking tree.

ETA: older tree survived Katrina (eye wall on north shore) and both survived IDA. Lost some branches but I see it as a necessary thinning.

quote:

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he also was a proponent of Bradford Pears in the 1980s

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get a rope

I just planted a red maple this past winter. 6' tall, been a bitch keeping it watered during this drought. Supposed to grow pretty fast and thats what I'm hoping on.

for most areas in the south swamp red maple and shumard oak are your best bets

Shumard is a great oak variety. Don’t count out a willow oak either. Really depends where you are, what your goals are, and what the planting area is like regarding sun, soil composition, etc. It’s going to be hard to get really good recs without that info.

I have plenty of potted shummard, white oak and live oak if you need some. Not sure where you are but I get $12 per tree. They are 6’ tall. I have some in 7 gallon pots that are bigger and get $30 per tree. Volume discounts.

Can anyone clue me in on ways to tell a shumard and nutall apart? I seem to get confused when identifying them.

Is Dutch elm disease not an issue for American elms in the South?