Sugar Hackberry is a tree that reaches a height of 100 feet and can be found in the Edwards Plateau and the South Texas Plains. The leaves are wedge-shaped and are 2 1/2 to 4 inches long and 1 to 2 1/2 inches wide. The bark is pale gray in color and can be smooth or cracked. Sugar Hackberry has small flowers in spring and small, orange-red fruit in late summer. The wood is used for furniture, flooring, posts and fuel. Sugar Hackberry leaves are browsed by livestock and white-tailed deer. The fruit is eaten by small mammals and birds, such as cedar waxwings, cardinals and turkeys. Sugar Hackberry is also a food source for butterfly larvae. |