Trees shade and cool us in the summer, protect us from cold winter winds, supply us with clean air to breathe, beautify our communities and provide habitat for wildlife. Selecting the trees that will survive and grow into healthy urban forests requires a thorough analysis of the planting site and a careful match of the trees to that environment.
The Recommended Trees series recognizes that Minnesota is an ecologically diverse state. For this series, the state is divided into six major ecological regions, each with characteristic soils, precipitation patterns, topography, and natural vegetation. Recommended trees for each region perform reliably in that environment, and should thrive for many years.
The following links recommend which trees should be selected for each region of Minnesota:
- Recommended Trees for Northwest and Central Minnesota: An Ecosystem Approach
- Recommended Trees for Southeast Minnesota: An Ecosystem Approach
- Recommended Trees for Southwest Minnesota: An Ecosystem Approach
- Recommended Trees for Northern Tallgrass Prairie: An Ecosystem Approach
More tree and shrub selection resources:
- Plants for Minnesota Minnesota Department of Transportation’s interactive plant selector
- Northern Trees interactive tree/shrub selector, a collaboration between Univeristy of Florida IFAS, Rutgers Cooperative Extension, and the USDA Forest Service
- Choosing Landscape Evergreens
- Dutch Elm Resistant Elm Cultivars
- Hardy Plant Options from research at the University of Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station.
- Minnesota Trees- This link will bring you to a sample version. A complete version will need to be purchased through the Extension Store.
- Minnesota’s Wild and Edible Fruits
- Landscaping with Native Plants
- Restore Your Back Yard and Shoreland with Native Vegetation
- Native Trees for Landscape Use
- Recommended Trees for: Northwest and Central Minnesota
- Recommended Trees for: Southeast Minnesota
- Recommended Trees for: Southwest Minnesota
- Recommended Trees for: Northern Tallgrass Prairie
- Right Tree Handbook, The
- Trees, Shrubs and Vines for Minnesota Landscapes
- Tough Trees and Shrubs for Tough Sites
- Toxicity of Black Walnut Towards Other Trees and Shrubs
- Trees & Shrubs for Clay Soil
I would like to plant Black Walnut trees up by Cass Lake. Am I wasting my time?
Hi Terry. Depends on why you want to plant them. If you’re hoping to grow veneer black walnut trees to fund your grandkids’ college education, you’d be wasting your time. On the other hand, if you enjoy planting different species and are going to be OK if they have poor form and suffer dieback from time to time from adverse growing conditions, go for it.
-eli