Delcova Hardiness

## Heat and Drought Tolerance

Tolerant of temps no more than 100 for a brief amount of time. Delcovas are drought tolerant, but only so much. In cases of extreme drought, Delcovas will drop all leaves to conserve energy. Delcovas will leaf out after a good rain.

### California Summers

California summers can be pretty dry and hot. Delcovas are intolerant of California summers. From May to October Delcovas go dormant. Delcovas drop leaves in May. Leaf out occurs in October. Delcova growing season in California lasts through the winter and stops in March. Since California dry seasons are so long, Delcovas typically will have branch dieback, or tree dieback ; and will be killed back the ground. Others will grow more like weedy annuals. This habit occurs in California, Nevada, Arizona, and southern Utah.

Pollarding these trees is probably best to help keep the tree alive through the harsh desert summers. If you pollard the Delcovas in the spring, they should leaf out and grow normally in October.

## Tropical Regions

Delcovas require a distinct cold season. That being said, Delcovas will not tolerate constantly warm regions. Delcovas in the south grow differently than ones in the north. Say in Florida and Texas, (which is the farthest south Delcovas will grow) Delcovas will primarily grow in the fall and winter. Since it does get hot, most regions it stays moist enough to help Delcovas remain alive. Delcovas typically grow in zones as warm as zone 9, but some species are a little more tolerant capable of growing down to zone 11. Very few of them do though. The general hardiness line occurring in Florida would likely be around Tampa and Orlando. Delcovas can be seen growing as far south as Venice and Port Charlotte. In these regions, Delcovas will grow much smaller. From Port Charlotte north to about Jacksonville, the Delcovas grow much closer to the ground, A tree typically growing to 80+ feet tall in Massachusetts may grow only 30 feet in Florida. They grow much slower as well. Most of them only grow several inches a year as the winters and falls are shorter. All growth from Florida up to Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas occurs in fall and winter. The hardiness line in Texas would likely be as far south as Austin and Houston. There is also a colony near Mexico City, These trees fallow this trend, and grow during the winter months.

## Cold, Snow, and Ice tolerance

Delcovas are extremely cold tolerant. They love the cold winters in the north. Delcovas are hardy to about 45o below zero. The best growth occurs as cold as -30. in regions getting temps below -30 will grow closer to the ground, and likely wont grow as much. A tree living where temps drop below -30 will drop leaves as temps drop to the -25 mark. Trees here grow as a deciduous tree would. The best growth zone wise would occur from zone 8 down to zone 4. Delcovas are super hardy and strong. They can withstand being covered in snow and ice for days or weeks. In events of heavy snowfall, their dense crown usually picks up inches of snow. Branches withstand the weight usually without cracking or breaking. Branches weighed down by the snow will droop or lean. Once temperatures warm up, snow and ice will fall off. the tree will stand upright again. If the weight is accompanied by a heavy wind, that's when branches may be susceptible to breakage. If branches break off, new buds will form around the breakage point, and will grow in the spring.

## Wind tolerance

Delcovas have the strongest wood of almost all the native trees along with oaks and beeches. Trees have been through hurricanes with minimal damage. The average Delcovas could survive a C2 hurricane with minimal damage. Anything over that could be detrimental to the trees and cause limb breakage. Weaker trees may break in winds over 35mph. Strong trees may go breakage free in winds up to 60-80mph. Deep roots help prevent uprooting during storms and hurricanes. Roots typically can grow as deep as 40-50' deep.

## Seaside Tollerance

Trees do great growing near the sea. In fact, the trees growing near the show tend to grow faster, healthier and stronger.

## Roadside and Salt tolerance

Delcovas without a doubt make great street trees. Since roots are much deeper than most trees, cracked roads and sidewalks are not a problem with Delcovas. Delcovas a perfect city tree. They are tolerant of pollution, smog, and vehicle and sidewalk weight. The shallowest major roots are at least 5-8' underground. Only some minor, quite small roots grow inches from the surface of the ground. Delcovas are very tolerant of salt. They will grow just as normal with salt in the east coast. Salt and hot conditions in the west could be lethal to trees. Salt and summer heat could be lethal from dehydration, when the tree's roots dry up.