Plant Name

Scientific Name: Celtis laevigata var. reticulata

Synonym: Celtis reticulata

Common Name: Netleaf Hackberry

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial, Deciduous

Growth Habit: Tree, Shrub

Arizona Native Status: Native

Habitat: Upland, Riparian (desert)

Flower Color: Inconspicuous (greenish)

Flowering Season: Spring

Height: To 30 feet (9.1 m) tall

Description: The small, greenish flowers are followed by small, round, orange to reddish brown berries. The leaves have prominent veins and a rough, scratchy texture and are green, alternate, non-symmetrical (curved and lopsided), and lance-shaped. The bark is silvery gray, and with age, it becomes covered with strange, corky warts.

Special Characteristics

Allergenic – The pollen is a moderate allergen.

Butterfly Plant – Emperor butterfly caterpillars (Subfamily Apaturinae) feed on the leaves.

Culturally Significant Plant – Native Americans used the berries of C. laevigata for food, the bark for medicinal purposes, and the leaves to make wool dye.

Edible – The berries are sweet and edible either raw or cooked, but they are small and rather dry.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Hamamelididae
Order: Urticales
Family: Ulmaceae – Elm family
Genus: Celtis L. – hackberry
Species: Celtis laevigata Willd. – sugarberry
Variety: Celtis laevigata Willd. var. reticulata (Torr.) L.D. Benson – netleaf hackberry

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map
Netleaf Hackberry Flowers (Celtis laevigata var. reticulata) – The Firefly Forest