The reasons people choose to use our RDC Contact Form are vast. Recipes…questions about relationships…companies asking us to review a product, etc. Yesterday, however, we fielded a question about native Oklahoma fruit trees that led me to a phone conversation with my father. I thought it might be helpful to pass the information along to others looking for the same information.
If you want to grow trees that have a good chance of survival and are native to our great state, here is a fairly comprehensive list created from using the “Forest Trees of Oklahoma” book by Dr. Elbert L. Little Jr.
List of Fruit and Nut Trees Native to Oklahoma
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Persimmon 60 ft.
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Paw Paw 10 – 30 ft.
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Red Mulberry 50 ft.
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Prairie Crab Apple 20 ft.
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Plums (American, Hortulan, Mexican, wildgoose) all 20 ft.
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Black Cherry 50 – 70 ft.
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Choke Cherry 15 ft.
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Pecan 70 ft.
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Hickory (several varieties) 60 ft.
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Black Walnut 50 ft.
You can also eat the berries from a Hackberry tree, but I’m not sure they are native to Oklahoma. They definitely grow here!
There are several fruit trees that have been introduced into our forests and Oklahoma landscape, but are not native to Oklahoma. An example of this would be a small, wild pear tree my Uncle found on his land in Clayton. It appeared as a small, slightly roundish fruit with the texture close to an Asian pear. It’s pretty cool to happen upon something like this, but isn’t “purist” if you want your trees to fit naturally with the original climate and environment.
There are quite a few grapes and a currant bush native to Oklahoma as well as several berries. I don’t have an exhaustive list, but I can point you to a wildcrafting website that is educational. The information on THIS PAGE isn’t delineated between native, and what simply grows naturally in our state because it was introduced. You can, however, learn quite a bit by just scrolling through the info and photos.
Please make sure that you are well informed if you decide to go wildcrafting for fruit in Oklahoma. There are many “look-alikes” across our landscapes and I want you to stay healthy!
Happy planting…and eating!
[kelly]
persimmon photo above by Rylee Roberts