Planer-tree
Planera aquatica
Found in river swamps where flooded (often to depths of 1-2 m) in the winter. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- About 50 feet
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Moist to standing water
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- March to April
- Fruiting season
- Spring
Not yet recorded · Spread
Recorded in 23 Alabama counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 126 animals.
- Baltimore OrioleIcterus galbula
- Barred OwlStrix varia
- Black VultureCoragyps atratus
- Brewer's BlackbirdEuphagus cyanocephalus
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- Carolina ChickadeePoecile carolinensis
- Common GrackleQuiscalus quiscula
- Eastern TowheePipilo erythrophthalmus
- Eastern Wood-peweeContopus virens
- Fish CrowCorvus ossifragus
- Great Crested FlycatcherMyiarchus crinitus
- Hermit ThrushCatharus guttatus
- Hooded WarblerWilsonia citrina
- Indigo BuntingPasserina cyanea
- Least FlycatcherEmpidonax minimus
- Lincoln's SparrowMelospiza lincolnii
- Northern ShovelerAnas clypeata
- Northern WaterthrushSeiurus noveboracensis
- Orange-crowned WarblerVermivora celata
- Orchard OrioleIcterus spurius
- Pileated WoodpeckerDryocopus pileatus
- Pine SiskinCarduelis pinus
- Purple GallinulePorphyrio martinica
- Red-bellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinus
Who uses this plant?
1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Planera
- Lochmaeus bilineataDouble-Lined Prominent
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Planera
- Aix sponsaWood Duck
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Ulmaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 6a–9b
- Soil pH
- Acidic to neutral
- Flower color
- Green
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Growth habit
- Single stem
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- Spring
- Fruit ends
- Spring
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “March to April” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Green” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Single stem” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Slow” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Hardiness · “Zones 6a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “About 50 feet” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- primary_flower_color · “green” · USDA PLANTS
- Soil · “Frequent standing water; Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Acidic to neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Planer Tree; Water Elm
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Alabama Plant Atlas
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- FloraQuest: South Central (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications