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| ## sugarberry {#sugarberry .Title-Header}                             |
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| *Celtis laevigata* Willd.                                             |
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| Plant Symbol = CELA                                                   |
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*Contributed by: USDA NRCS National Plant Data Center*

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height="2.186111111111111in"}

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# Alternate Names

Texas sugarberry

# Uses

*Ethnobotanic*: Sugarberry was used by a variety of Native American
tribes. The Houma used a concentrate made from the bark to treat sore
throats and a decoction made from the bark and ground up shells to treat
venereal disease. The Comanche would beat the fruits of sugarberry to a
pulp. The pulp was then mixed with animal fat, rolled into balls, and
roasted in the fire for food. The Acoma, Navajo, and Tewa all consumed
the berries for food. The Navajo boiled the leaves and branches to make
dark brown and red dye for wool.

# Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural
Resources for this plant's current status (e.g. threatened or endangered
species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

# Description

######## General: Elm Family (Ulmaceae). Sugarberry is a tree that can become up to 30 m tall and 1m in diameter. It has a broad crown formed by spreading branches, that are often drooped. The bark is light gray in color and can be smooth or covered with corky warts. The branchlets are covered with short hairs at first and eventually they become smooth. The leaves are alternated, simple, and slightly serrate. The leaves are 5 to 13 cm long and 3 to 5 cm wide. The lance-shaped leaves gradually taper to a point that is often curved. They are pale green on both the upper and lower surfaces with conspicuous veins. The flowers appear just before, or with the leaves in the spring. The drupes are subspherical and 5 to 8 mm in diameter. They have a thick skin and the pit surface has a netlike pattern. The drupes range in color from orange to reddish-brown and are attached by pedicels that are 6 to 15 mm long.

*Distribution*: For current distribution, please consult the Plant
Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Web site.

*Habitat*: Sugarberry is found growing in sandy loam or rocky soils
along streams, in bottomlands, and in woodlands.

# Adaptation

When sugarberry is top-killed by fire it will resprout from the root
collar.

# Establishment 

##### Sugarberry can be propagated by seed and cuttings, planted in autumn. Sugarberry has no preference for a particular soil type.

# Pests and Potential Problems

Grown in its native habitat and using local seed stock, sugarberry
should not be prone to debilitating pests.

# Cultivars, Improved, and Selected Materials (and area of origin)

These materials are readily available from commercial plant sources.
Contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil
Conservation Service) office for more information. Look in the phone
book under "United States Government." The Natural Resources
Conservation Service will be listed under the subheading "Department of
Agriculture."

# References 

##### Castetter, E.F. 1935. *Ethnobiological studies in the American Southwest I. Uncultivated native plants used as sources of food*. University of New Mexico Bulletin 4:1-44. 

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Carlson, G.G. & V.H. Jones 1940. *Some notes on uses of plants by the
Comanche Indians*. Papers of the Michigan Academy of Science, Arts, and
Letters 25:517-542.

Correl, D.S. & M.C. Johnston 1970. *Manual of the vascular plants of
Texas*. Texas Research Foundation, Renner, Texas. 1881 pp.

Elmore, F.H. 1944. *Ethnobotany of the Navajo*. University of New Mexico
Press. Albuquerque, New Mexico. 136 pp.

Great Plains Flora Association 1986. *Flora of the Great Plains.*
University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. 1392 pp.

Harlow, W.M., E.S. Harrar, J.W. Hardin, & F.M. White 1996. *Textbook of
dendrology*. 8^th^ edition. McGraw-Hill Inc., New York, New York. 534pp.

Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium Staff 1976. *Hortus Third*. Macmillan
Publishing Company. 1290 pp.

Moerman, D.E. 1998. *Native American ethnobotany*. Timber press,
Portland, Oregon. 927 pp.

Moerman, D.E. 1999. *Native American ethnobotany database: Foods, drugs,
dyes and fibers of native North American peoples*. The University of
Michigan-Dearborn. <http://www.umd.umich.edu/cgi-bin/herb>.

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##### Robbins, W.W., J.P. Harrington, & B. Freire-Marreco 1916. *Ethnobotany of the Tewa Indians*. Unites States Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 55. 124 pp. 

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Speck, F.G. 1941. *A list of plant curative obtained from the Houma
Indians of Louisiana*. Primitive Man 14:49-75.

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain
Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. 2001.

##### [**http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/carill/index.html**](http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/carill/index.html)

# Prepared By: 

##### *Matthew D. Hurteau*

##### Formerly USDA, NRCS, National Plant Data Center, c/o Environmental Horticulture Department, University of California, Davis, California

# Species Coordinator: 

##### *M. Kat Anderson* 

##### USDA NRCS National Plant Data Center, c/o Plant Science Department, University of California, Davis, California

##### Edited: 29jan03 jsp; 09jun03 ahv ; 01jun06 jsp

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your
local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS
Web site\<[http://plants.usda.gov](http://plants.usda.gov/)\> or the
Plant Materials Program Web site
\<[http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov](http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov/)\>

*The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in
all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national
origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual
orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases
apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require
alternative means for communication of program information (Braille,
large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA\'s [TARGET
Center](http://www.usda.gov/oo/target.htm) at 202-720-2600 (voice and
TDD).*

*To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA, Director, Office of
Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence
Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice or
TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.*

*Read about [Civil Rights at the Natural Resources Convervation
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