WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Celtis occidentalis, WUCOLS IV

How often to water common hackberry in California

In July in the Central Valley, established common hackberry in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days: about 55 gallons each time under a 10 foot canopy, about 19 gallons a week. Common hackberry is a long-lived deciduous shade tree from eastern North America. It usually grows 40 to 60 feet tall and wide, with deeply furrowed, corky bark. Tiny spring flowers give way to small purple fruits that birds and wildlife eat. It tolerates wind, urban conditions and many soils.

TreeRated for 5 of 6 zones

How often to water common hackberry, month by month

Your city
Canopy width
10 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for common hackberry and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area under the branches, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure canopy width

A tree with its canopy width marked across the widest branches and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the branches, from the tips of the outer leaves on one side to the tips on the other. A tape works, or pace it out.

Water the whole circle under the branches, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that circle.

A wider canopy means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While the tree is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 18 inches down under the canopy edge in a young tree's first summers calls for a long soak
  • Leaves wilting and yellowing early in late summer can indicate drought stress
  • Leaves scorching at the margins during a hot, dry spell can follow a dry root zone
  • Yellowing leaves and thinning crown over soil that stays soggy suggest root rot from overwatering
  • Sticky leaves with sooty black film point to woolly hackberry aphids, not a water problem

How to water it

  • Soak a broad ring from the trunk zone out past the branch tips with soakers or emitters
  • Wet the soil 18 inches to 2 feet down, then let the upper soil dry before the next soak
  • Plant in sun to part shade in well-drained soil, away from sidewalks where fruit drops
  • Mulch under the canopy rather than running turf to the trunk
  • Move the soaker ring outward as the crown widens

Through the seasons

Water a young hackberry deeply through its first few summers to build deep roots. Established trees handle dry spells but benefit from deep soaks in long, hot summers. It is deciduous and rests leafless through winter, when rain usually covers its needs near the coast and in the valley. On the north-central coast and in the Central Valley, WUCOLS rates common hackberry low water. South Inland, the high desert and the low desert each carry a moderate water rating. WUCOLS marks it as not suited to the south coast.

In pots

Common hackberry is a large tree and only suits a container for its first year or two. Keep a young tree in a deep pot of well-drained mix and water when the top few inches are dry, letting excess drain away. In hot weather, a pot may need water every day or two. Empty the saucer after watering. Once leaves drop in fall, water only to keep the root ball from drying out, and plant it out before roots circle.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
1.07gal per sq ft in JulyLow water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
6.84 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.761.52.33.00.16JAN0.26FEB0.43MAR0.61APR0.83MAY0.99JUN1.07JUL0.95AUG0.72SEP0.47OCT0.22NOV0.14DEC0.761.52.33.00.16JFM0.61AMJ1.07JAS0.47OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 1.07 in Jul, 6.84 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Common Hackberry: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.150.16–0.780.740.78
Feb0.210.26–0.870.930.93
Mar0.350.43–1.31.461.52
Apr0.470.61–1.611.891.95
May0.580.83–1.952.392.45
Jun0.640.99–2.292.852.79
Jul0.641.07–2.513.042.85
Aug0.60.95–2.332.792.6
Sep0.50.72–1.862.142.08
Oct0.350.47–1.331.461.49
Nov0.190.22–0.90.930.96
Dec0.120.14–0.680.650.68
Year4.86.84–18.4121.2721.08

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated low water in the Central Valley, like common hackberry. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Olive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyFig TreesFicus carica ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPomegranate TreesPunica granatumlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyEucalyptusEucalyptus polyanthemoslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPine TreesPinus canariensislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTexas Red OakQuercus buckleyilow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPortuguese OakQuercus faginealow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySoapbark TreeQuillaja saponarialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyNecklace TreeSophora affinislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBailey AcaciaAcacia baileyanalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySilver WattleAcacia dealbatalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGreen WattleAcacia decurrenslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes common hackberry, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water common hackberry in summer?

In July, established common hackberry in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days in the Central Valley and about every 9 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does common hackberry need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established common hackberry needs about 2.7 gallons a day under a 10 foot canopy and about 11 gallons a day under a 20 foot canopy. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for common hackberry change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates common hackberry separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, low water in the Central Valley zone, not suited to this region in the South Coastal zone, moderate water in the South Inland zone, moderate water in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, moderate water in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

What are the twiggy clusters in my hackberry?

Those are witches' brooms, dense clusters of contorted twigs. They are common on hackberry and do little harm. Prune them out if they bother you.

Why are my hackberry leaves bumpy?

Small bumps on the leaves are usually nipple galls made by tiny insects. They disfigure leaves but do not hurt the tree. No change in watering is needed.

Is hackberry messy?

The small fruits drop and can be a cleanup chore near sidewalks and patios. Birds and wildlife eat many of them. Plant it away from paving if that matters.

How big does common hackberry get?

Most trees reach 40 to 60 feet in height and spread, and some grow much taller. It has a straight trunk and an arching crown. Give it space as a shade tree.

Does hackberry handle wind?

Yes, it tolerates wind and urban conditions. Its wood is fairly weak, so storm damage can still occur. It does not do well with salty ocean exposure.

More plant watering guides

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Sources