Celtis occidentalis aka Hackberry

Celtis occidentalis, also known as the common hackberry, is a large deciduous tree native to North America. It is often called the nettletree, sugarberry, beaverwood, northern hackberry, and American hackberry. The common hackberry is easily distinguished from elms and some other hackberries by its cork-like bark with wart-like protuberances. The leaves are distinctly asymmetrical and coarse-textured, with a pointed tip, and come out of the bud conduplicate with slightly involute margins. It produces small fruits that turn orange-red to dark purple in the autumn, often staying on the trees for several months. The common hackberry is easily confused with the sugarberry (Celtis laevigata) and is most easily distinguished by range and habitat. The common hackberry also has wider leaves that are coarser above than the sugarberry. The common hackberry is a medium-sized tree, 9 to 15 meters (30 to 50 feet) in height, with a slender trunk. It has a handsome round-topped head and pendulous branches. It prefers rich moist soil, but will grow on gravelly or rocky hillsides. The roots are fibrous and it grows rapidly. In the western part of its range, trees may still grow up to 29 meters (95 feet). The maximum age attained by hackberry is probably between 150 and 200 years in ideal conditions. The bark is light brown or silvery gray, broken on the surface into thick appressed scales and sometimes roughened with excrescences. The branchlets are slender, and their color transitions from light green to red-brown and finally to dark red-brown. The winter buds are axillary, ovate, acute, somewhat flattened, and light brown. The leaves have three nerves, the midrib and primary veins prominent, are thin, bright green, rough above, and paler green beneath. In autumn, they turn to a light yellow. Petioles are slender, slightly grooved, and hairy. Stipules vary in form and are caducous. Western Hackberry, belonging to the Celtis genus, is a rare houseplant that is easy to grow and needs regular watering to thrive. They do best in long-lasting, direct light and should be less than 1 foot from a window. Western Hackberry likes soil that is well draining. Your plant shouldn't need added fertilizers if you repot each time it doubles in size. Native to Central and Northeastern North America, Western Hackberry is a beautiful addition to any indoor garden.