NEO Native Trees

In September 2024, I was able to find a handful of acorns beneath this 200+ year old original "Moses Cleaveland" swamp white oak in my city. This tree is one of the oldest in Cuyahoga County, and is thought to have been around in 1796 when surveyor and Revolutionary War veteran Moses Cleaveland led the first surveying group in the region that resulted in the founding of the City of Cleveland, Ohio. For more information on Moses Cleaveland trees, click here .  From the handful of acorns I collected, only three germinated. So I grew these "baby" Moses Cleaveland trees in containers (RootTrappers) over the spring and summer. In September 2025, I planted one in my backyard and will keep the other two in containers through the winter so they can have another growing season. Since this is one of the oldest trees in my city, I plan to donate them to the city and/or to my city's historical society next year if they're interested.   2025 The tree was about 26 inches ...

My birthday present to myself last November was a two-hour trip down to Riverside Native Tree Nursery in Delaware, OH, to pick up a swamp white oak and a sugar maple.  Their website has some really great info not just about native trees, but also about planting, pruning, site selection, and especially on fertilization. They tout that, given the right fertilization regimen (and other basic factors such as site selection), a 5' tall container grown tree can catch up to a 2"-3" caliper balled and burlap tree within five years. I think the argument makes sense and we'll certainly put it to the test with these two trees. The swamp white oak is one of my favorites. While native to my area, I really don't see many of them so it will add some native diversity. They have a beautiful fall color, interesting exfoliating bark when young, and can tolerate my clay soil.  I really love the leaf shape and fall color of this swamp white oak. We planted this one in our backyard ce...