We have started doing posts with recommendations for trees for different parts of the world. In this post, we will focus on the United States since it is so vast and encompasses so much!
The United States has varying hardiness zones, as defined and illustrated by the USDA. A hardiness zone is a geographically defined location in which certain plant life is capable of growing and thriving. It takes into account climate, as well as minimum and maximum temperatures in a given region. We have separated the states geographically according to hardiness zones, and general temperatures. For reference and clarity, you can also search on your own for your specific state hardiness zone.
Hardiness Zones by State
Zones 3-5
Minnesota, Wisconsin
Zones 3-6
Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Colorado, Idaho, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine
Zones 5-6
West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Kansas, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont
Zones 6-7
New Jersey
Zones 5-9
New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Oregon, Washington, California, Texas, Arizona
Zones 6-8
Tennessee, Virginia, Oklahoma, Delaware, Washington DC, Maryland, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina
Zones 8-10
Louisiana, Florida
Top Ten Popular Trees to Plant in the U.S. with a Bios Urn®
Any of the below trees can be planted using a Bios Urn®! Some may be easier to grow than others and have less processes involved. If you are curious about how to grow one of the below options, let us know here.
The U.S is home to a number of wonderful tree species, and while this list is by no means exhaustive, it can serve as a general guide for native or common tree species. Most of the U.S falls in between zones 5-9. Here are the top 10 options we have chosen which encompass nearly all zones in the U.S, and are beautiful to boot!
Red Maple
(Acer rubrum) – Red maple is one of the most common trees in the United States. Its leaves turn a bright red color. It can comfortably grow in many sites, like dry zones and wetlands.
Sugar Maple
(Acer saccharum) – Famous for its emblematic representation on Canada´s flag, this tree is both sweet and beautiful.
American basswood
(Tilia americana) – This tree dawns flowers which attract hordes of bees and other pretty insects. It is known also as the ¨humming tree,¨ for its magnetic effect.
Ponderosa Pine
(Pinus Ponderosa) This tree is integral to forests on the west coast. It is active and present in over 65% of all western forests.
Loblolly Pine
(Pinus taeda)– This beautiful pine can be planted anywhere from Texas to New Jersey.
Sweetgum
(Liquidambar styraciflua)– It can grow in many zones and regions, including dry and wet areas.
Flowering Dogwood
(Cornus florida) – Flowering dogwood a beautiful flowering tree that is commonly see across North America.
Douglas Fir
(Pseudotsuga menziesii) – This teetering giant can grow to a huge height, and is surpassed only by the redwood! It grows well on most and dry sites and zones.
Quaking Aspen
(Populus tremuloides) – While the Red Maple tends to be the most populous, the Aspen is widely distributed in the U.S. It plays an important part in maintaining a diverse forest ecosystem.
White oak
(Quercus alba) A majestic and beautiful Oak tree. The acorns which stems from this Oak tree are valuable to wildlife, and nearly 200 kinds of birds and mammals feeds off of them.
Popular Tree Choices by State
- Alabama: Tulip Poplar
- Alaska: Cedar
- Arizona: Cypress
- Arkansas: Oak
- California: Crape Myrtle
- Colorado: Colorado Blue Spruce
- Connecticut: Dogwood (Pink)
- Delaware: Dogwood (White)
- Florida: Crape Myrtle
- Georgia: Dogwood (Pink)
- Hawaii: Koa
- Idaho: Oak
- Illinois: Oak
- Indiana: Red Maple
- Iowa: Oak
- Kansas: Red Maple
- Kentucky: Weeping Willow
- Louisiana: Crape Myrtle
- Maine: Red Maple
- Maryland: Flowering Cherry
- Massachusetts: Oak
- Michigan: Red Maple
- Minnesota: Red Maple
- Mississippi: Oak
- Missouri: Weeping Willow
- Montana: Oak
- Nebraska: Red Maple
- Nevada: Pine
- New Hampshire: Sugar Maple
- New Jersey: Flowering Cherry
- New Mexico: Pine
- New York: Red Maple
- North Carolina: Dogwood (Pink)
- North Dakota: Oak
- Ohio: Dogwood (Pink)
- Oklahoma: Oak
- Oregon: Dogwood (White)
- Pennsylvania: Dogwood (White)
- Rhode Island: Dogwood (Pink)
- South Carolina: Red Maple
- South Dakota: Weeping Willow
- Tennessee: Oak
- Texas: Red Maple
- Utah: Flowering Cherry
- Vermont: Sugar Maple
- Virginia: Red Maple
- Washington: Weeping Willow
- West Virginia: Red Maple
- Wisconsin: Red Maple
- Wyoming: Colorado Blue Spruce
Interested in another region? Find out our recommendations for your country in our articles covering different regions of the world:
Europe
South America
Canada
South Africa
Asia
Australia & New Zealand
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Which species do you suggest for Hawaii?
Hello John, since Hawaii has such a unique flora, we do recommend using native species to respect the local environment 🙂 We can assist you with some possible options you can find within Hawaii.
Let us know your exact location and the kind of trees you are interested in, and we can send some info
Maui. Close to sea level
What tree is best for Scotland, near Glasgow and Edinburgh
Hi Christine 🙂 We just sent you an email with some tree options for your location.
I am very interested in the Bio Urn and would like to purchase one for my husband and I, what is the base price?
I am very interested in purchasing the Bios Urn for my husband and I, what is the base price?
This is such a very good idea and would eventually eliminate the need for cemeteries!
I hope that many more people will be receptive to this way of continuing life!
I grew up in New Hampshire. It would be nice to have my ashes created into one of your bio urns. I would like the tree to be something that could supply food for the deer in the forest. Could I arrange to have myself cremated, have my ashes used to support the eco system in this way? Would a crab apple tree be easily sustained in the wild? Do you have a better suggestion for a type of tree that might feed the deer?
Also, is it legal to plant this bio urn tree in New Hampshire? Do you know if it could be planted on New Hampshire public land? If you do not know can you direct me to where I could find this information?
Hi Deborah! Great question. We would be happy to provide locations in NH which allow for planting the Bios Urn. We would recommend a tree suitable to the planting zone, and which is more low maintenance if you are not going to be tending to it.
Uh, where’s New Jersey?
Oh wow you are totally right! And the first person to flag this up. Thank you! New Jersey is mentioned further below in the Loblolly Pine section, however it doesn´t currently appear in the list of States. We will update this asap! Please check in again in about a week!
I live in Minnesota as do my children. Are there recommended places to put the Bio Urn in Minnesota .?
I would love a list of good trees for Minnesota. I am interested in the urn that ” takes care of itself? ( so to speak) What is the price?
THank you so much, Bette Davis
Thank you for your message Bette! We have sen you an email with further information
What trees would you recommend for West Virginia?
Thank you for your message Pam! We have sen you an email with further information on recommendations
What kind of small tree could be planted in a large container in Fresno, CA?
Hello Dawn, thank you for reaching out. The Hardiness Zones there is 9b. Even though you would not be planting directly in the soil, we would still recommend opting for a local native tree or plant species. We would always advise checking with a local gardening supplier or horticulturist for information on native tree species in your area if you aren´t sure, as this ensures better tree health and growth.
If you chose a normal tree, once your tree has grown to an appropriate size, we do recommend planting it somewhere natural, such as a forest, or backyard, because trees will only grow in accordance to the volume of their soil. Technically, a tree will reach adequate size within 12-18 months. You can transplant the tree earlier or later. The time period to do so will also depend on the seeds you choose to use.
You can also chose to plant a dwarf tree or smaller tree and leave it in the container indefinitely. If you decide to plant a dwarf tree, it´s growth will be controlled, but it may still never reach it´s potential size inside the container and may need transplanting depending on how it´s doing.
Some ideas for where you live would be Citrus trees of all kinds — most commonly lemons, limes, kumquats, oranges and tangerines — which can be grown in large containers. Edible Fig (Ficus carica) or Olive (Olea europaea) are other fruit-bearing options. You could also look at Palo Verde (Parkinsonia spp.) or Sweet Bay (Laurus nobilis).
Let us know if we can help with anything else!
Thank you!
If we wanted to do lilacs, do you recommend starting from a cutting or seeds for the biourn?
Dear Katelyn,
Thank you for reaching out to us and for your interest in the Bios Urn®, we are very grateful.
Yes, the Bios Urn® works with any kind of seed or seedling. Literally no exceptions! You can also elect to use a seedling, or sprout instead of a seed. Or some people also chose to plant a flower, a plant, or a bush instead of a tree, just like you are thinking of doing.
You can grow Lilacs from seed, although homeowners rarely start the from seed. Growing from seed takes time and patience, it may have to wait three to five years to see the first lilac blossoms. Nowadays, growing Lilacs from seed is a task left to horticulturalists and garden supply stores.
From what we know, with a lilac or any other similar plant, propagating them from cuttings is the most common practice. You should take several cuttings to increase your chance of success and also read up on how best to plant them and when.
Let us know if we can help with anything else!
What flowering tree would work well in Tamp, Fl zone 10?
Hello Marni! Here are some suggestions: American Elder, American Redbud, Crapemyrtle (Crape Myrtle) and Kanzan Cherry. For the U.S., we find this website very useful to provide tree recommendations based on your zip code (we have no commercial relation with them, we just find the tool very informative): https://www.arborday.org/trees/index-choosing.cfm?TrackingID=404
Let us know if we can help with anything else!
What trees are best for Northern California on the coast? We are building a home in Mendocino~
Hi Amanda,
Thank you for reaching out and your interest in the Bios Urn. The zip code for Mendocino seems to be 95460, which means that you are in hardiness zones 9-9. If so, here are just a few suggestions: American Elder, American Elder, American Hazelnut, American sweetgum, Anna apple tree.. We find this website very useful to provide tree recommendations based on your zip code (we have no commercial relation with them, we just find the tool very informative): https://shop.arborday.org/nursery
Let us know if we can help with anything else!
What species would grow best in North Dakota?
Hi Alicia,
Thank you for reaching out and your interest in the Bios Urn. First you would need to work out the hardiness zone based on your zip code, which you can do here: https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/
For tree and plant suggestions based on your hardiness zone, we find this website very useful to provide good recommendations (we have no commercial relation with them, we just find the tool very informative): https://shop.arborday.org/nursery
Let us know if we can help with anything else!
I’m going to be planting my brother with a white oak seed. What time of year would be best to do this?
Thank you for contacting us Kelly. We really appreciate your interest in Bios Urn®. We would like to extend ourselves to you, and offer our deepest condolences. We are so honored that will use a Bios Urn® for your brother, and plant him into a tree. And what a majestic tree he will become! Here are our tips for planting an Oak tree seed: https://urnabios.com/oak-tree-symbolism-planting-instructions-bios-urn/
Let us know if there is anything else we can help with!
Just for your information, Palo Duro Canyon State Park in Texas, does not allow the planting of anything. So, we are going to scatter some of her ashes there and keep some to plant a tree somewhere else.
Thank you so much for sharing this information Kristina, we are very sad to hear that planting something natural is not allowed there 🙁 Maybe they will come round in the future. Thank you again and take care
Could you plant a Redwood tree in Tennessee?
Dear Peggy. Thank you so much for your interest in the Bios Urn, we really appreciate it. Tennessee hardiness zones range from 5b to 8a. if you enter your zip code here, you will see the specific one for when you live in Tennessee: https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/
The redwood tree (Sequoia sempervirens) is hardy to USDA zones 7 to 10.
When in their ideal habitat along the California to Oregon coasts, which includes coastal fog throughout the year, they can grow 3 to 5 feet per year. The species contains the largest trees in the world, and they can live for thousands of years, it is a magical tree species.
Let us know if we can help with anything else!
Can I be an Avocado tree in Tucson, AZ? I’d like to keep on giving and always be at parties.
Hi Sharon! Thank you for reaching out and your interest in Bios Urn. The hardiness zone is between 8 and 9b in that area. Generally, avocado trees need lots of moisture and nutrients from the soil. Because of the specific growing requirements for avocado trees, you won’t find them in most of the United States. They only grow in the U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 8 through 11, so this is line with your area, but apparently they don’t thrive in them https://www.happysprout.com/inspiration/avocado-zone-planting/#:~:text=Generally%2C%20avocado%20trees%20need%20lots,don't%20thrive%20in%20them.