Translate
Choosing and planting trees
Advice for planting trees including how to choose a tree and where to get one.
Choosing a tree
- Plant a tree, any tree, as long as it is appropriate for the given region and climate. Native species will thrive in your soil and best support wildlife.
- Plant the right tree in the right location. In urban areas consider power lines, potential impacts of roots under sidewalks, and plant something that won’t need to be removed in just a few years.
- Choose low-maintenance trees to maximize carbon absorption: low-maintenance, disease-resistant species will do better without greenhouse-gas-producing fertilizers and equipment.
- Faster-growing trees store the most carbon during their first decades, often a tree’s most productive period. Faster-growing trees in our area include big leaf maple, black cottonwood, cascara, Oregon ash, Pacific willow, red alder, Douglas fir, Sitka spruce, black hawthorn, and western crabapple.
- Long-lived trees can keep carbon stored for generations without releasing it in decomposition. Western hemlock, western red cedar, Douglas fir, and Sikta spruce can all live 1,200 years or more. Those same four species are also our largest trees – they can grow to between 200 to 260 feet in height.
Some native species grow faster than others
Growth-Rate:
- S - Slow
- M - Medium
- F - Fast
| Tree* species | Conifer or Hardwood | Growth-Rate | Height (in meters) | Oldest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western white pine | Conifer | F | 40m | 400 |
| Shore pine | Conifer | F | 20m | 250 |
| Grand fir | Conifer | M | 80m | 300 |
| Western hemlock | Conifer | M | 60m | 1200 |
| Western redcedar | Conifer | M | 60m | 1400 |
| Douglas fir | Conifer | M - F | 70m | 1300 |
| Sitka spruce | Conifer | M - F | 70m | 1300 |
| Big leaf maple |
Hardwood |
F | 35m | 200 |
| Black cottonwood | Hardwood | F | 50m | 300 |
| Cascara | Hardwood | F | 12m | 60 |
| Oregon ash | Hardwood | F | 25m | 250 |
| Pacific willow | Hardwood | F | 18m | 25 |
| Red alder | Hardwood | F | 25m | 100 |
| Pacific dogwood | Hardwood | M | 20m | 150 |
|
bitter cherry |
Hardwood | M | 15m | 40 |
| Black (Douglas) hawthorn | Hardwood | M - F | 15m | |
| Western (Pacific) crabapple | Hardwood | M - F | 12m | |
| Pacific madrone | Hardwood | S | 30m | 250 |
| Oregon white oak (Garry oak) | Hardwood | S - M | 25m | 500 |
*Tree - A single-stem (bole) woody plant that grows 22 feet or higher