It would be insane to cut any tree down growing in wetlands. If it's growing there it's doing well so it is a wetland tree. Sweetgums, tulip trees and red maples are gorgeous trees! 6 or 7 acres is plenty to keep the trees that are already there. I would love to have that much land! I have a 1/4 wetland arboretum and have painstakingly planted tulip, sweetgum, red maple, etc.

Well I don't mean clear-cutting the swamp, besides even if I wanted to it would be impossible to get rid of all the sweetgums on my property. All the pine trees around the swamp area were harvested about 10-15 years ago and the trees by the creek were left in the open so alot are in horrible shape and there are alot of fallen trees too. I just want to get a bigger diversity of trees like you would in a natural undisturbed setting. Don't worry I had no intention of cutting down every tree in that area (I'd have to figure out someway of getting through a wall of Privethedge and Kudzu in order to do that)

What I learned last summer, my first summer after planting many trees, was that my yard didn't have enough shade; no big trees. The sun killed some of the baby trees and scorched / stunted others. It's too dry and burning hot for new baby trees to tolerate. They need at least a light shade canopy to grow and get established.

It was 94 on my deck today, March 16. The deck is raised and in direct south and western sun. There are currently 4 will-be-large deciduous trees on the adjoining patio but they haven't leafed yet, they're just babies now, and it's HOT already. Will have to start watering seriously heavily tomorrow.

I wish I had BIG sweetgum, tulip and red maple trees that would shade my new struggling saplings in this little swamp!

I did plant a bunch of willows and the prairie cascades are quickly growing enough to provide a little shade.

Don't cut down your healthy trees !!!

Aren't you under some wetland restrictions in your state? In MD I would be in big trouble if I cut down trees in my wetlands. All three of the kinds of trees you have are wonderful for fall color.

One thing I have noticed about myself is that my feelings about different kinds of trees change. For example, there was a time I didn't particularly like red maples, but now.... If you cut down these trees they are gone forever, and anything you plant will take a long time to grow. Maybe you can see about the possibilities of enhancing what you have by doing some selective thinning/pruning, etc. You can talk to your local state forest service or ag extension. You may have a real jewel there and not really know it yet.

--Spruce

I hope you don't cut down those trees! After losing thousands of trees to the hurricane, I especially appreciate every one of the big ones still left. You can always add native wetland trees to the mix. Sweet bay/magnolia virginiana, black gum/nyssa sylvatica, water tupelo/nyssa aquatica, bald cypress/taxodium distichum, Atlantic or Gulf white cedar/chamaecyparis thyoides, swamp cyrilla/cyrilla racemiflora, buckwheat bush/cliftonia monophylla, swamp holly/ilex amelanchier, large gallberry/ilex coriacea, dahoon holly/ilex cassine, possunhaw/viburnum nudum, small leaf viburnum/viburnum obovatum, swamp azalea/rhododendron serrulatum, and hobble bush/leucothoe axillaris are all trees and shrubs that grow in this area in swamps or creeks. Many of these grow on my property already, and I've added several of them to the bottom of the hollow.
Why add exotics when there are so many beautiful natives to choose from? Chinese privet and kudzu are both Asia exotics, as are Japanese honeysuckle, Japanese climbing fern, and Chinese tallow trees - they're all choking southeastern forests to death! You may get another one of these monsters started if you plant non-native plants.
Mail Order Natives in Lee, Florida, Woodlander's in Aiken, South Carolina, and Pine Ridge Gardens in London, Arkansas, are all wonderful mail-order nurseries that specialize in native plants - they're hard to find at local or home improvement store nurseries.
Sherry

Any reason why you choose Nyssa sinensis over Nyssa Sylvatica? I would make sure to plant Taxodium ascendens (Pond Cypress), and maybe Planera aquatica (Water elm).

I've planted 3 tiny nyssa aquatica, water tupelo, trees in a small crick, about 8" standing water a lot of the year. They were tubes from forestfarm.com and they're all 3 doing really well and getting leaves now.

For really waterlogged spots go with Nyssa Aquatica. Stunning fall color.

Can anyone tell me about Gleditsia aquatica, it looks very pretty from the pictures I've seen.

Alabamatreehugger: I was planning on having quite a few native Nyssas and then planting one or two Nyssa Sinensis just so I could have a large number of different wetland trees.

Also I mostly plant conifers because to my knowledge none are invasive. Other than conifers I usually plant trees from certain families that don't have a tendency to become invasive such as Aceraceae, Fagaceae, etc. I am fortunate enough to live about 30 minutes away from Nearly Native Nursery in Fayetteville so I am pretty much covered when it comes to native plants, so could you please help with exotics that could grow in a wetland area here?

Add some Overcup Oaks (Quercus lyrata) and Swamp Chestnut Oaks (Q michauxii) to the mix. Both are native to your area. Forget those exotics!

Water tolerant Trees/Shrubs: "You can plant direct into the soil at the bottom of the pond, as long as it is not more than 50-60cm deep water." (Resin GW Member)

If you go deeper, try to use small bare root plants that have not been grown in a container or in upland soil in a nursery for very long." (What a friend of mine has to say)

Here are trees for consideration. Many I do not know so hardiness nor adaptation to your climate I'm not able to comment upon.

Dax

Taxodium distichum, Nyssa aquatica, Salix, Carya aquatica, Forestiera acuminata, Planera aquatica, Nyssa ogeche, Itea virginica, Quercus lyrata, Larix species, Sycamore.

What misssherry said!

Also add Gordonia lasianthus, Cornus stricta, Magnolia virginiana & Persea palustris for sure.

Carpinus caroliniana, Celtis laevigata, Pinus serotina & Acer barbatum are nice for spots that are wet, but not always flooded.

Maybe Quercus laurifolia, Salix caroliniana, Vaccinium arboreum ...

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Forget those exotics!
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My gosh I couldn't agree more! There's a guy here in IL, zone 5b that has an arboretum and he's growing Albizia julibrissin. How that's makes any sense is beyond me!!

If you are looking for a eucalypt for damp areas, E. ovata and E. camphora come to mind (both called "swamp gum"). I don't know whether any of your nurseries stock them over there; also they might struggle a bit in your winter, but they would be worth a try.

Hi Phil,

They'd definitely struggle - or more accurately, drop dead - in USDA zone 7b. In that zone, plants need to be able to cope with severe winters down to about -20°C. Even the hardiest origins of E. niphophila would struggle to survive there.

Resin

Montezuma cypress (evergreen/semi-evergreen version of bald cypress) for the fun of it if you can find one. Next to impossible to find but why not?

FIRST LET ME SAY I'AM VERY UPSET WITH PEOPLE WHO FEEL THEY HAVE SOME KIND OF RIGHT TO MY PROPERTY YOU DID NOT PAY FOR IT YOU DO NOT PAY THE TAXES ON IT SO WHAT RIGHT HAVE YOU TO TELL ME WHAT TO DO WITH IT I PAYED FOR IT I PAY THE TAXES ON IT WHAT THE HE-- ABOUT MY RIGHTS AFTER ALL PEOPLE ARE SO RAPPED UP IN THEMSELEVES THEY CAN'T SEE THE FOREST FOR THE TREES IF I BUY A COW DO YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO MAKE ME BUTCHER IT NO!!!!! SO WHAT GIVES YOU THE DA-- RIGHT TO CONTROL MY LAND