Best Trees for Zone 5: Shade Trees, Flowering Trees, Evergreens, and Fruit Trees

USDA zone 5 covers winter lows of -10F to -20F. That’s most of New England, the Great Lakes states, the northern Plains, and Rocky Mountain valleys. If you live in zone 5, you need trees that handle brutal winters and hot summers without flinching.

The good news: some of the best trees in North America are native to zone 5. Sugar maples, red oaks, white pines, and serviceberries evolved here. They don’t need coddling. The bad news: half the trees you see in magazines and on garden shows won’t survive your first winter.

Here’s what to plant, what to skip, and how to keep everything alive.

Best shade trees for zone 5

Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)

The iconic New England shade tree. Sugar maples produce the best fall color of any tree, period. Yellow, orange, and red, sometimes all on the same branch. Hardy to zone 4. Grows 60-75 feet tall with a 40-50 foot spread. Moderate growth rate.

The catch: sugar maples hate road salt. Don’t plant one within 50 feet of a salted road or driveway. They’re also susceptible to verticillium wilt and tar spot. And never prune in spring because the sap bleeds heavily.

For a deeper look at maple varieties, see our types of maple trees guide.

Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra)

One of the faster-growing oaks. Reaches 60-75 feet tall and wide with russet-red fall color. Hardy to zone 3. Tolerates salt and air pollution better than sugar maple, making it a stronger choice for properties near roads.

The one non-negotiable rule: prune only during dormancy (November through February). Red oaks are highly susceptible to oak wilt, which spreads through pruning wounds during the growing season.

Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa)

The toughest oak for zone 5. Hardy to zone 3. Tolerates alkaline soil, clay, drought, and Midwest conditions that kill lesser trees. Grows 70-80 feet tall and wide with massive, spreading limbs. The Morton Arboretum calls it the most drought-tolerant oak. If you have space for a big tree that will outlive your grandchildren, plant a bur oak.

Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)

Arborists call this “one tough tree.” Hardy to zone 2. Tolerates drought, salt, pollution, wind, clay, wet soil, and alkaline conditions. Grows 40-60 feet tall at a fast clip. It’s not the prettiest tree (the bark looks warty, and witch’s broom causes cosmetic twig clusters), but nothing kills it. Birds eat the persistent berries through winter.

If you need a tree that survives anything zone 5 throws at it, hackberry is the answer.

Thornless Honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos f. inermis)

Lacy compound leaves cast filtered shade that actually lets grass grow underneath. Most shade trees create dense shade that kills lawns. Honeylocust doesn’t. Salt tolerant, drought tolerant, fast growing to 40-70 feet. The tiny leaflets decompose quickly in fall, so you barely need to rake.

Plant seedless, thornless cultivars only. The species type has 3-inch thorns and messy seed pods.

Kentucky Coffeetree (Gymnocladus dioicus)

Hardy to zone 3. Essentially pest-free (no serious insects or diseases). Tolerates salt, drought, and alkaline soil. Bold architectural branching structure that looks dramatic against winter skies. UMN Extension recommends the ‘True North’ cultivar (male, no messy pods).

The downside: slow growing. And it’s one of the last trees to leaf out in spring, leaving your yard looking bare while the neighbors’ maples are already green. Patience required.

Best flowering trees for zone 5

Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis)

Rose-pink flowers smother bare branches in early May, before leaves emerge. One of the first trees to bloom in spring. Grows 20-30 feet tall. Hardy to zone 4. The flowers appear directly on the branches and even the trunk. Nothing else looks like a redbud in bloom.

Short-lived (20-25 years), but worth every year. For more spring bloomers, see our spring flowering trees guide.

Star Magnolia (Magnolia stellata)

The most cold-hardy magnolia. White, fragrant, star-shaped flowers in March or April, before leaves. Compact at 15-20 feet. Hardy to zone 4. Starts blooming at age 2-3 years.

The risk: early blooms get frosted in some zone 5 springs. Plant the ‘Royal Star’ cultivar for better frost resistance, and position it on the east or south side of a building for wind protection. Avoid north-facing exposures.

Prairifire Crabapple (Malus ‘Prairifire’)

Disease resistance should be your first consideration when choosing a crabapple. The Morton Arboretum ranks ‘Prairifire’ as excellent against all four major crabapple diseases (scab, fire blight, rust, mildew). Dark crimson-pink flowers in mid-spring. Reddish-purple new foliage. Small persistent fruit feeds birds through winter. 20 feet tall and wide. Hardy to zone 4.

Other proven cultivars: ‘Adirondack’ (12-18 ft, white) and ‘Lancelot’ (8-10 ft, white) for small yards.

Serviceberry (Amelanchier spp.)

A true four-season tree. White flowers in early spring (among the first to bloom). Edible purple-black berries in summer that taste like blueberries. Red-orange fall foliage. Smooth gray bark in winter. Native. Hardy to zone 2. Grows 15-25 feet tall.

Serviceberry is one of the most underplanted trees in zone 5. It does everything well and asks for almost nothing. Available in multi-stem or single-trunk forms.

Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida)

Zone 5 is the northern edge of dogwood’s range. It works in zone 5b with a sheltered location (afternoon shade, wind protection, acidic soil). White or pink bracts in spring, red berries and burgundy fall color. 20-40 feet tall. Anthracnose (Discula) is a serious disease concern. Consider hybrid dogwoods (Cornus x rutgersensis) like ‘Stellar Pink’ for better disease resistance.

Best evergreens for zone 5

Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus)

The fastest-growing conifer for zone 5. Adds 2-3 feet per year. Soft, blue-green needles in clusters of five. Hardy to zone 3. Grows 50-80 feet tall. Makes an excellent screen, windbreak, or specimen. One of the easiest conifers to transplant and establish.

Not salt tolerant. Susceptible to white pine blister rust (choose resistant cultivars). Needs acidic, well-drained soil. Not for heavy clay. For more on pine tree problems, we have a dedicated guide.

Norway Spruce (Picea abies)

Dense pyramidal form with attractive weeping branches. One of the fastest-growing spruces at 2+ feet per year when young. Hardy to zone 3. Grows 40-60 feet tall. Excellent for windbreaks and privacy screens. Tolerates both acid and alkaline soils.

Concolor Fir (Abies concolor)

UMN Extension recommends concolor fir as a better alternative to Colorado blue spruce. Same soft, blue-tinted needles with a citrusy fragrance. Better long-term health (blue spruce develops fungal problems after 15-20 years). Hardy to zone 3. Drought tolerant once established.

Colorado Blue Spruce (Picea pungens)

The iconic silvery-blue Christmas tree shape. Hardy to zone 2. Tolerates alkaline soil, clay, and dry sites. 30-60 feet tall. The honest caveat: blue spruce increasingly struggles with cytospora canker and needle cast diseases as it matures. Many look spectacular for 15-20 years, then decline. UMN Extension specifically recommends concolor fir instead for new plantings. If you already have a blue spruce, enjoy it. If you’re planting new, consider concolor fir.

Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana)

Native. Hardy to zone 2. Tolerates heat, salt, drought, wind, and nearly any soil type. Dense columnar form makes an excellent windbreak or screen. Persistent blue berries feed cedar waxwings through winter. Don’t plant near apple trees or crabapples (alternate host for cedar-apple rust).

American Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis)

The most popular hedge plant in the northern US. Dense, narrow pyramidal form. Hardy to zone 3. Tolerates heavy, wet soils that most evergreens hate. Dozens of cultivars from 4-foot dwarfs to 60-foot specimens.

The problem: deer devour arborvitae. In areas with deer pressure, either cage them, spray repellent religiously, or plant Green Giant arborvitae instead (which has some deer resistance). For more on Emerald Green arborvitae specifically, we have a dedicated guide.

Best fruit trees for zone 5

Apple Trees

Zone 5 is prime apple country. The University of Minnesota breeding program has developed some of the best cold-hardy varieties, all hardy to zone 4 or colder:

Honeycrisp is the star. Extremely juicy and crisp. Harvest late September. Stores 7+ months. If you plant one apple tree in zone 5, make it Honeycrisp (but you’ll need a second variety for pollination).

Haralson is the workhorse. Late September harvest. Stores 4-5 months. Excellent for pies and cooking.

Zestar! ripens in late August, giving you the earliest harvest. Stores only 6-8 weeks, so eat them fresh.

You need at least two different varieties within 100 feet for cross-pollination. Any two varieties that bloom at the same time will work. For pruning advice, see our apple tree pruning guide. For compact varieties, check our dwarf apple tree guide.

Tart Cherry Trees

Tart cherries are more cold-hardy than sweet cherries, which struggle in zone 5. All of these are self-fertile (no second tree needed):

North Star grows only 10 feet tall. Perfect for small yards. Dark red fruit. Hardy to zone 4.

Meteor reaches 14 feet. Heavy crops of bright red cherries. Hardy to zone 4.

Evans is the hardiest, surviving zone 3 winters. Large bright red fruit on 15-foot trees.

Sweet cherries (Bing, Rainier) are not reliably hardy in zone 5. If you want cherries, plant tart varieties.

Plum Trees

Plums are the most productive stone fruit for zone 5. Hybrid varieties like ‘Superior’ and ‘Alderman’ produce large, sweet fruit in mid-August. Hardy to zone 4.

Hybrid plums need cross-pollination. Plant ‘Toka’ as your pollinator. It pollinates nearly all hybrid plums.

European plums like ‘Mount Royal’ are self-compatible (no second tree needed) and excel at drying and preserving. For pruning technique, see our plum tree pruning guide.

Fast-growing trees for zone 5

Fast growth comes with trade-offs. Faster-growing species tend to have weaker, more brittle wood. In a zone 5 ice storm, that matters. They also tend to be shorter-lived (30-50 years instead of 100+ for oaks). But sometimes you need shade now, not in 20 years.

Eastern white pine adds 2-3 feet per year. The fastest screen tree for zone 5.

Thornless honeylocust grows 2+ feet per year with filtered shade that won’t kill your lawn.

Hackberry adds 1-2 feet per year and tolerates every adverse condition.

Tuliptree (Liriodendron tulipifera) grows 2-3 feet per year and reaches 70-90 feet. Distinctive tulip-shaped flowers in late spring. Marginally hardy in zone 5a (safer in zone 5b). Needs consistent moisture.

Heritage river birch (Betula nigra ‘Cully’) grows 1.5-2 feet per year with gorgeous peeling bark. Hardy to zone 4. Resists bronze birch borer, unlike paper birch, which is being devastated by that pest across zone 5. If you want birch, plant Heritage.

For more options, see our fast-growing trees guide and fast-growing evergreen trees guide.

Trees to avoid in zone 5

Crape myrtle. The most common “I saw it on vacation” mistake. Hardy to zone 6-7 at best. In zone 5, it dies to the ground most winters. If it survives at all, it regrows as a shrub.

Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora). Hardy to zone 7. The evergreen foliage can’t handle -10F. It’s not close.

Japanese maple (Acer palmatum). Most varieties are hardy only to zone 5b-6. Borderline in zone 5. Leaf out early and get hammered by late frosts. If you must try one, pick a sheltered south-facing spot and accept that some winters will cause dieback.

Silver maple (Acer saccharinum). Technically hardy to zone 3, but the Morton Arboretum warns against planting them. Weak wood drops branches in every ice storm. Aggressive roots invade sewer pipes and crack foundations. Fast growth, but you’ll spend more on storm cleanup and plumber visits than the tree is worth. See our list of trees to never plant for more cautionary tales.

Bradford pear (Pyrus calleryana). Splits apart in ice storms. Invasive across the eastern US. Many states are banning sales. Not recommended.

Austrian pine (Pinus nigra). Was commonly planted in zone 5 but is now devastated by Diplodia tip blight disease across the Midwest. Plant eastern white pine or concolor fir instead.

Zone 5 planting tips

Plant in fall when possible. Mid-August through mid-October gives roots time to establish before the ground freezes. The Morton Arboretum recommends fall planting for most zone 5 trees. Spring (April through May) is the backup window, and it’s preferred for slow-to-establish species: magnolias, tuliptrees, dogwoods, ginkgo. See our seasonal planting guide for detailed timing.

Wrap trunks for winter. Newly planted trees need trunk wrap for at least the first 2 winters to prevent sunscald. Thin-barked species (cherry, crabapple, honeylocust, linden, maple) need 5 winters of protection. Sunscald happens when south-facing bark heats up on sunny winter days, then freezes at night, splitting the bark open. Install wraps in fall. Remove after the last spring frost.

Mulch heavily. Apply 3-4 inches of wood chip mulch around new trees. Pull mulch 6 inches from the trunk (no volcano mulching). Mulch moderates soil temperature, prevents frost heaving, and reduces moisture loss.

Water before freeze-up. Soak the root zone deeply in October before the ground freezes. Evergreens especially need full hydration going into winter because they lose moisture through needles all season. A TreeGator watering bag makes deep watering easy during fall establishment. For a complete first-year schedule, see our watering guide for new trees.

Know your salt exposure. If you’re planting near a salted road or driveway, choose salt-tolerant species: hackberry, honeylocust, bur oak, Kentucky coffeetree, or eastern red cedar. Salt-sensitive trees like sugar maple and white pine will decline within a few years of roadside salt spray.

Test your soil pH. Zone 5 soils vary wildly. New England tends acidic. The Midwest often runs alkaline. Oaks and pines prefer pH 5.5-6.5. Honeylocust, hackberry, and bur oak handle pH 7+. A $15 soil test from your county extension office tells you what you’re working with. For help getting your new tree established, check our tree planting guide and mklibrary.com’s tips for beginning landscapers.