loblolly sweetwood
Ocotea leucoxylon · Lauraceae
loblolly sweetwood (Ocotea leucoxylon) is a perennial tree in the Lauraceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 11 and warmer, down to about 40°F.
At a glance
| Type | tree USDA |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 70 ft USDA |
| Bloom | May–June USDA |
| Flower color | Yellow USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 11 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | canopy Derived |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
Its cold limit is zone 11.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 70 ft, making it a large tree that will dominate its site.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of May through June. Flowers are yellow.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is dark green, coarse in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is spring. Its winter foliage is dense, which makes it useful for year-round screening.
What the site needs to provide
It needs at least 365 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 36 inches. Fertility requirement: medium.
Resilience and wildlife
Browsing animals find it highly palatable, so expect deer and rabbits to take an interest. Its fire tolerance is rated medium.
Role in a guild
Canopy. In a layered planting this is the tallest layer of a planting — it sets the light budget everything beneath it lives on. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Ocotea
- laurel espada Ocotea floribunda
- nemoca Ocotea moschata
- nemoca cimarrona Ocotea spathulata
Similar role and hardiness
- Alexandrian laurel Calophyllum inophyllum
- stinkingtoe Hymenaea courbaril
- mammee apple Mammea americana
- Sierran palm Prestoea acuminata
- Puerto Rico royal palm Roystonea borinquena
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol OCLE, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, browse palatability, cold stratification, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, resprout ability, root depth in, Type.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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