If you draw an imaginary line from Grand Bend on Lake Huron to Toronto, the area south of that line to Lake Erie is called Carolinian Canada. An amazing variety of trees are found here and nowhere else in Canada!
The Carolinian zone in Canada is extremely rich in both plant and animal species. Even though this region includes examples of dunes, marshes, and tall grass prairies, it is the southern-type deciduous forests that characterize this unique Canadian ecosystem.
I researched broadly and wrote this in-depth piece on 9 Carolinian tree species that are found in Ontario.
1. Sweet Chesnut (Castanea dentata)
Since 1988, the Canadian Chestnut Council has been working on locating surviving trees and developing a breeding program with hopes to return this tree to its former status.
Place Found
- Southwestern Ontario
Planting Tips
- Size: Up to 10 m tall, rarely to 35 m
- Moisture: Moist to dry
- Shade: Full sun to full shade
- Soil: Adaptable, even to rocky soils
2. Sassafras Tree(Sassafras albidum)
Classified as either a tall shrub or a small tree, the Sassafras is known for its unique leaf that looks like a mitten, with a thumb on one side. This species has a distinct spicy fragrance that is emitted from the leaves, branches, and bark when crushed. The sassafras prefers rich, sandy loam soil and due to its shade tolerance can be found growing beneath other hardwood trees in the Carolinian zone.
Place Found
- Southwestern Ontario
Planting Tips
- Size: Up to 20 m
- Moisture: Moist to dry
- Shade: Can grow in full shade or full sun
- Soil: Adaptable
3. Tulip Tree(Liriodendron tulipifera)
This tree is widely known by the common name tulip tree or tuliptree for its large flowers superficially resembling tulips. This Tree is also referred to as tulip poplar or yellow poplar.
Place Found
Ontario: on the south shore of Lake Huron, the north shore of Lake Erie, and in the Niagara Peninsula.
Planting Tips
- Size: 25 to 30 meters tall, thick straight trunks 50 to 100 centimeters in diameter
- Moisture: Needs a lot of moisture during the summer
- Shade: Needs full sun
- Soil: Prefers sand and sandy loam
4. Shagbark hickory (Carya ovata)
Its trunk appears shaggy due to long, vertical, flat, loose plates of bark. The nuts are delicious and somewhat like Pecan, but with very hard shells and thick 4-sectioned husks. Compound leaves have 5 leaflets. Hard, close-grained wood is used for tool handles, interior finishing, and athletic equipment.
Place Found
- Southern Ontario
Planting Tips
- Size: 20 to 30 meters tall, the trunk is 30 to 80 centimeters in diameter
- Moisture: Prefers moist soil
- Shade: Prefers sun, but can tolerate some shade
- Soil: Prefers rich soil
5. Red mulberry (Morus rubra)
Red mulberry is a rapid-growing tree of valleys, flood plains, and low moist hillsides. This species attains its largest size in the Ohio River Valley and reaches its highest elevation (600 m or 2,000 ft) in the southern Appalachian foothills. The tree has abundant fruit, which is eaten by people, birds, and small mammals.
This tree is endangered nationally
Place Found
It is only found in the Carolinian Zone (the small area of Ontario southwest of Toronto to Sarnia down to the shores of Lake Erie) near rivers, the shores of Lake Erie, and the slopes of the Niagara Escarpment.
Planting Tips
- Size: Up to 9 m tall
- Moisture: Prefers moist soils
- Shade: Can grow in full sun or full shade
- Soil: Prefers rich, well-drained soils
6. Hop tree (Ptelea trifoliata)
A unique and shorter growing tree that is a host to Giant Swallowtail Caterpillars. Also, an important habitat for birds and tiny white flowers provide a valuable nectar source for a variety of butterfly species. An understory shade-tolerant tree that prefers dry to medium nutrient-poor sandy or rocky conditions.
Place Found
Southwestern Ontario on the north shore of Lake Erie. It is listed as Threatened and is protected by the Endangered Species Act, 2007.
Planting Tips
- Size: Up to 8 m tall
- Moisture: Moist to dry
- Shade: Prefers full sun, tolerates partial shade
- Soil: Requires well-drained soils, sand or loam best
7. Black gum (Nyssa sylvatica)
The black gum tree (Nyssa sylvatica) is a medium-sized deciduous tree (it drops its leaves in the fall) with a slow growth rate, gaining only around 1 to 2 feet per year. It generally grows in a rounded shape with a straight trunk, and its bark is said to look like alligator skin.
Place Found
Black gum is naturally rare in Ontario, found in low, wet areas in southwestern Ontario.
Planting Tips
- Size: Up to 20 m tall
- Moisture: Adaptable
- Shade: Prefers full sun, tolerates partial shade
- Soil: Prefers rich, slightly acidic soils
8. Eastern Cottonwood (Populus deltoides)
Eastern Cottonwood gets its name from the cottony, silky tufts of hair that are attached to the seeds and help them to disperse in early summer. Eastern Cottonwood’s can grow up to 1.2 m in diameter while the mature bark is dark grey or brown and usually furrowed.
Places Found
They grow best in moist, well-drained fine sandy or silty loam soils that are close to streams. Pure stands of smaller trees often grow along stream banks.
9. Pignut (Carya glabra)
Red Hickory, also called Pignut Hickory, is a Carolinian Tree.
The leaves of the Pignut Hickory are compound and pinnately divided, usually with 5-7 leaflets. They measure 15-25 cm in length and are finely toothed
Places Found
It grows along Lake Erie and in Lambton County and Brant County. Red Hickories prefer moist soil.
Planting Tips
The Pignut Hickory prefers more open, well-drained areas; but similar to the Bitternut Hickory, the fruits are largely unpalatable, although they will still be eaten by some wild animals as a last resort.
