Dawn,
YOU ROCK!!! Thanks so much for the beginning list...I can't wait for the others! I know this is taking up alot of your time-so I truly appreciate it! I am transferring this over to Word to keep forever! I am already getting some wonderful pictures in my head...especially of those on the list that I recognize and love. I have a feeling this list will continue to come in handy for a very long time...until, of course, I am as well educated in all of this as you! :)
Thanks again! Keep it comin'!
-Em-

Nice list!, but I have 1 question. Does any nursery in OK carry most all of these trees? Like Texas Persimmon, Caddo Maple, Bigtooth Maple, Blackjack Oak, etc? I've seen some of these here and there, but I've never seen Texas Persimmon, or Bigtooth Maple for sale in an OK nursery before. I'd love to find them!

Maybe someone who lives in the OKC or Tulsa area can answer this question for you.

I am so far down south in extreme south-central Oklahoma that I can generally find these trees at any of the many nurseries in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area (only 80 miles south of us) that carry native trees.

I think there are some specialty nurseries in Oklahoma that would carry some of these but I don't usually venture north of the Arbuckle Mtns.

You might check with Sunshine Nursery in Clinton, OK. I believe they specialize in native plants. Their website is www.sunshinenursery.com.

Dawn

Check out metromaples.com

They are located just outside of Fort Worth. I know he'll ship his trees (the fire dragon Shantung Maple is another non-native to try -- great tree).

I bought a Big Tooth Maple from him in October (along with a Fire Dragon and Gingko). The trees were the healthiest I've ever seen. No circling roots, the trees weren't buried in the container, etc. There are so many unhealthy, buried container trees out there, and he actually takes care of them.

Thanks for the replies. I've been to Sunshine Nursery and they don't carry all of these trees(at least not at the same time), but I think in the past they have had some limited numbers of most of these. Steve is a great guy and I'd recommend anyone and everyone who's interested in rare and/or special native plants, go out and give Steve a visit. It's a trip well worth it! You'll probably fill your vehicle with plants! I haven't been to metromaples when it's been open yet(went once, but they were closed), but I've heard nothing but good things about them and their trees. I'll have to make it a required visit on my next trip into the DFW area. I also know that Wichita Valley Nursery in Wichita Falls, TX has had many of these trees for sale before, but of course it's not in OK.

okiedawn, there aren't any good native nurseries in the Ardmore area? I'm kind of surprised nobody in OKC(or Tulsa) hasn't chimed in with a couple good nurseries to check for these trees. I haven't found any in KS which has more than about 1/2 to 2/3 of these trees. Just about all of these trees do wonderful up here in KS also and I think many of them are greatly underused in most of the Southern great plains. Since I frequent OK more than TX, it'd be great to find a nursery with some of these harder to find trees in OK(especially Texas Persimmon (Diospyros texana)).

One tree I'd add to the list is Bigelow Oak, which is a small tree(20' tall and wide is average) with spectacular bark, nice blue-green foliage, and is tough as nails in clay alkaline soils. Shin Oak(Quercus havardii) is also another small growing Oak(5'-12' is typical) which is great for well drained soils(especially sandy). Although it'll want to grow more as a shrub and will need to be pruned to keep it as a tree form. It too is tough as nails once established. It grows native all over the place out by Sunshine Nursery(just a bit further West), as well as SW KS and the OK & TX panhandles, so you know it's tough.

Kman04,

There are only 2 or 3 small nurseries in Ardmore and they pretty much sell the standard nursery stock you'd find anywhere. There's one larger nursery on Rockford Road that has a somewhat better selection, but there is not a nursery that specializes in native plants.

I am sure there must be some nurseries in the northeastern corner of Oklahoma that specialize in natives, but haven't been up to that area myself so cannot provide first-hand knowledge of any. You might google and find the website for the Tulsa Master Gardeners. They have a lot of info on their website and might list nurseries that specialize in natives. The Oklahoma Forestry Service sells bundles of native trees (small, small whips) to landowners "for conservation" in late winter to early spring.

Since the great ice storm wiped out so very many trees in a large portion of Oklahoma a few weeks ago, I expect that some of the nurseries lost a lot of stock, at least of their larger trees. And, of course, many people will be replanting this spring after they clean up all the downed trees, so competition for good trees will be fierce.

I haven't had to go out and buy a lot of natives, because we have about 10 acres of woodland on our property filled with many of the natives we love. So, when I want a few natives to plant in the open (unforested) areas around the house, I just go down into the woods and dig up and transplant what I want. So far, we've transplanted quite a few Shumard and Bur Oaks, redbuds, possumhaw hollies, Virginia creeper, rusty blackhaw viburnums, American beautyberries, Mexican plums and some American Persimmons.
We've also spent lots and lots of time removing the horribly invasive cedars that have invaded and colonized so much of our state.

Shin Oaks! I remember the first time I saw a 'forest' of shin oaks in west Texas, near the Midland-Odessa area. The ones I saw were in Monahans Sandhills State Park and were only 2' to 4' tall. I was amazed to see the oaks growing in pure desert sand in a very hot and dry area. It is definitely a very tough tree.

Dawn

What is adequate soil impreovement? How wide and deep do I amend the clay? Thanks

It is hard to describe adequate soil improvement without actually seeing the soil itself. Some clay is heavier than other clay. Some clay is almost pure clay while other clay is more of a sandy-clay mix or a silty-clay mix. If you don't know exactly how heavy your clay is, you can do the jar test and see if your results give you almost all clay, or some silt, sand, etc.

Most trees that grow in clay can grow in very heavy clay as long as it does not stay wet ALL the time. I like to till in a few inches of organic material before planting a new tree in the absolute heaviest clay soil. (My heaviest clay soil has virtually no organic material in it, dries and cracks in the summer, and cannot be penetrated by a shovel or pick ax unless it is fairly wet. It is, literally, as hard as a rock. About the only way to dig a hole in it is to use a post-hole digger or auger.)

Keep in mind that you CANNOT improve all the soil in which a tree's roots will be growing as tree roots will eventually grow beyond the improved soil area. Also, clay soil tends to be mineral-rich and very fertile and the only reason it needs improvement is that it tends to lack organic material and drain too slowly.

In general, though, I don't amend clay otherwise. Most oaks, for example, can grow in any clay that doesn't stay soggy and swampy.

Here is a link that might be useful: Soil Jar Test

Bumping this back up to the top.