However, such new cultivars as 'Delaware,' 'Independence' and 'American Liberty' are slowly becoming available. They have good Dutch elm disease resistance. They are dull green above and below and thin in texture. The fruit, ripe in the fall, is a berrylike drupe the size of a pea, purplish-black in color and hard. The bark appears eroded and gray in color.
Older trees appear as having corky ridges glued on a smooth bark.
A medium tall tree valuable for windbreak, shelterbelt and ornamental planting, it reaches a height of 40 feet. The hanging fruit is enclosed in a papery sac. The bark of the tree trunk is grayish-brown, roughened by flattened, elongate scales that are loose at the ends. A small native tree that can be used ornamentally, but rarely for shelter plantings. It needs sufficient moisture, similar to birch, a closely related genus.