HIGH TREE!
Approximate Maximum Tree Heights of Common Trees in Western Pennsylvania under ideal conditions.
Compiled by Paul Beck, Pleasant Hills Arboretum
Trees will grow! Knowing how tall trees grow in our area is useful information in making decisions on which tree to plant and where. The average width of a tree canopy is not covered in this list, but may also be useful information in selecting the best location to plant a tree. Trees planted in the open and those in the forest often take on completely different widths and heights. For information about the potential width of trees, you can check one of the references in the Bibliography below. Note: The maximum height of a tree is accomplished only after many years of growth in the best conditions.
150 feet plus
Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziessii) Maximum height in original North American range
125 feet
Blue Spruce* (Picea pungens)
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120 feet
Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipfera)
100 feet
White Oak (Quercus Alba)
American Sycamore (Plantus occidentalis)
American Basswood (Tilia Americana)
Black Gum, Black Tupelo, Pepperidge, (Nyssa sylvatica)
Shagbark Hickory (Carya ovata)
Pecan (Carya illinoensis)
Black Willow (Salix Nigra)
Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus)
Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)
American Elm (Ulmus americana)
Sweet Gum (Liquidambar styraciflua)
Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)
Dawn Redwood* (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)
White Poplar* (Populus alba)
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90 feet
Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra)
Pin Oak (Quercus palustris)
Red Maple (Acer Rubrum)
Yellow Buckeye (Aesculus octoandra)
Black Walnut (Juglans nigra)
Hackberry, Sugarberry, Sugar Hackberry, (Celtis laevigata)
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80 feet
Bitternut Hickory (Carya cordiformis)
Pignut Hickory (Carya glabra)
Black Oak (Quercus velutina)
Chestnut Oak (Quercus prinus)
Scarlet Oak (Quercus coccinea)
English Oak (Quercus robur L.)
Willow Oak (Quercus phellos)
Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa)
Black Cherry (Prunus serotina)
Black Maple (Acer Nigrum)
Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum)
Cucumber Magnolia (Magnolia acuminata)
Honey Locust (Gleditsia triacanthos)
Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
American Beech (Fagus grandifolia)
Mockernut Hickory (Carya tomentosa)
Norway Spruce* (Picea abies)
Ailanthus, Tree of Heaven* (Ailanthus altissima)
White Ash (Fraxinus Americana)
Northern Catalpa (Catalpa speciose)
Red Pine (Pinus resinosa)
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70 feet
Zelkovia* (Zelkova serrata)
Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides)
Ginkgo, Maidenhair-tree (Ginkgo biloba)
Swamp White Oak (Quercus bicolor)
Slippery Elm (Ulmus rubra)
London Plane* (PlatanusXacerfolia)
Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium)
Kentucky Coffee Tree (Gymnocladus dioicus)
American Holly (Ilex opaca)
Horse Chestnut (Aesculus Hippocastanum)
Ohio Buckeye (Aesculus glabra)
Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga Canadensis)
European Beech* (Fagus grandifolia)
Butternut (Juglans cinerea)
Scotch Pine (Pinus sylvestris)
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera)
Chinese Scholar Tree* Japanese Pagoda (Sophora japonica)
Silver Linden (Tilia tomentosa)
Siberian Elm* (Ulmus pumila)
Sycamore Maple* (Acer pseudplatanus)
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60 Feet
Serbian Spruce* (Picca oimorika)
Shingle Oak (Quercus imbricaria)
Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Norway Maple (Acer platanoides)
American Chestnut (Castanea dentate)
Austrian Pine* (Pinus nigra)
Big Tooted Aspen (Populus grandidentata)
Red Mulberry (Morus Rubra)
Box Elder, Ashleaf Maple, Manitoba Maple (Acer negundo)
Green Ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica)
Common Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)
Katsura-tree* (Cercidiphyllum japonicum)
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50 Feet
Chinese Elm* (Ulmus rubra)
Yellowwood (Cladrasitis kentukea)
English Holly* (Ilex aquifolium)
Frasier Fir (Abies fraseri)
Osage Orange (Maculura pomifera)
Eastern Hophornbeam, Ironwood (Ostrya virginiana)
Royal Paulownia* Princess-tree (Paulownia tomentosa)
Callery Pear * (Pyrus calleryana)
Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides)
European White Birch (Betula pendula)
40 Feet
Pear* (Pyrus communis)
Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis)
Weeping Willow (Salix babylonica)
White Mulberry* (Morus alba)
Downy Serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea)
Downy Hawthorne (Craetaegus mollis)
Black Willow (Salix nigra)
Ohio Buckeye (Aesculus glabra)
Hedge Maple* (Acer campestra)
European Hornbeam* (Carpinus betulus)
Goldenraintree* (Koelreutaria piniculata)
Amur Corktree* (Phellodendron amurense)
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30 Feet
American Smoketree (Cotinus obovatus)
Crabapple (variety of species)(Malus sp)
Dotted Hawthorne (Crataegus punctate)
Devil’s Walking Stick (Aralia spinose)
Paw Paw (Asimina triloba)
Mountain Maple (Acer spicatum)
Trident Maple* (Acer buergerianum)
Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana)
American Plum (Prunus Americana)
Peach* (Prunus persica)
American Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana)
Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)
Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida)
Kousa Dogwood* (Cornus Kousa)
Gray Birch (Betula populifolia)
White Birch (Betula papyrifera)
American Hornbeam, Blue Beech (Carpinus caroliniana
Cockspur Hawthorne (Crataegus crus-galli)
Crimson Cloud Hawthorne* English Hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata “Crimson Cloud”
Japanese Umbrella Tree* (Sciadopitiys verticillata Koyamaki)
Kwanzan Cherry* (Prunus sargentii
Paperbark Maple* (Acer griseum)
Sargent Cherry* (Prunus Sargentii)
Mimosa* (Albizia julibrissin)
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20 Feet
Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra)
Franklinia (Franklinia alatamaha)
Pussy Willow (Salix discolor)
Scarlet Hawthorn (Crataegus coccinea)
Japanese Maple* (Acer palmatum)
Amur Maple* (Acer ginnala)
Tatarian Maple* (Acer tataricum)
Star Magnolia* (Magnolia stellate)
Japanese Tree Lilac* (Syringa reticulate)
Russian Olive* (Elaegnus augustifolia)
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10 Feet
Dwarf Alberta Spruce (Picea glauca)
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Wide range 60-200 feet
False Cypress (Chamaecyparis)
Species dependent, native and nonnative varieties and local growing conditions.
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*Nonnative to
North America
Bibliography
1) The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees, Eastern Region, Elbert Little, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1985
2) Our Native Trees, Harriet L. Keeler, Charles Scribner’s sons, New York, 1900
3) Evergreens, The Time Life Encyclopedia of Gardening, New York, 1971
4) Trees, The Time Life Encyclopedia of Gardening, New York, 1972
5) How to grow a Japanese Umbrella Tree, www.ehow.com.Home.plants,
6) A Field Guide to Trees and shrubs, George A Petrides, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1958, 1972
7) Tree Vitalize list of provided trees adopted from
the City of Pittsburgh recommended trees for planting, 2015