Northern Hackberry: Real Paleo Food
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Northern hackberries planted in a park.
Northern Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis) is a native deciduous tree common across much of the US and Canada. Though often referred to as a “junk tree” because of its lack of value as a timber product, hackberry is a beautiful, fast-growing tree that produces delicious fruit in late summer and fall. This underutilized wild edible is high in protein, vitamins, and minerals. And since it’s commonly planted in urban landscapes, it’s very easy to find!
Habitat and Range
In the wild, hackberry is found growing in floodplains, along river banks, and in open forests and forest edges. Its range extends from Quebec to Manitoba in Canada, and from the eastern US to Montana and south to Texas. However, hackberry is often planted in parks and boulevards as a shade tree, so it’s likely to be found outside this range. You may even find one in your own yard!
Description
The most distinctive part of the hackberry tree is the bark. It is dull brown/grey in color, and composed of corky ridges and warty protrusions. It kind of looks like someone took an axe or hatchet to the bark and hacked it up; which, by the way, is a great way to remember this key identification feature!
Bark of a young hackberry.
Bark of a mature hackberry.
Leaves of hackberry are alternate, 2 to 5 inches long, with an asymmetrical heart-shaped base. They taper to a long sharp point, and are finely serrated. Galls (warty protrusions created by bugs) are very common on the leaves, so much so that they can be used as an identification feature.
Hackberry leaves and fruits.
Hackberry leaf with galls.
The tree itself reaches heights of 60 to 100 feet when mature. The form of the full-grown tree is typically symmetrical, with a rounded crown.
Fruits appear in summer as small, green spheres, ¼ to ½ inch in diameter. They look like berries, but are technically “drupes”—fleshy fruits with single pits, like cherries or plums. Unlike cherries or plums, however, the pit of hackberries makes up the majority of the volume. They turn reddish-purple as they mature, eventually ripening to a dark purple-brown color in late summer and fall.
Similar Species
Netleaf hackberry (Celtis laevigata) grows in the western US, as far east as Idaho in the north and east to Louisiana in the south. The bark is less corky than that of northern hackberry, and the leaves are narrower with mostly smooth margins.
Dwarf hackberry (Celtis pumila) ranges from Ontario south through the central US, west to Texas and east to the coast. As its name implies, it’s a smaller tree or shrub, growing to 30 feet tall. The leaf margins are smooth or serrated only near the tip.
The fruits of both these species are edible just like those of northern hackberry. I have read a couple accounts that those of netleaf hackberry are sweeter, but I’ve never tasted them so I can’t say for sure!
Harvest and Preparation
Hackberries ripen in late summer or early fall, at which time the fruits reach a dark purple-brown color. The trees can be spotted from a long distance this time of year, because the foliage turns a beautiful yellow color. They are often among the first trees to turn.
The fruits of hackberry can hang on the tree until spring. If it was a bountiful season, you are more likely to find fruits later in the year, as there is less pressure from foragers (animal and human alike.) I have seen them on the tree as late as June of the following year! Due to their low moisture content, they don’t ferment on the branches and are safe to eat. Just be aware that insects also eat them, and you’re more likely to find withered husks of hackberries later in the year, from which insects have eaten the flesh.
Hackberry fruits at the ideal stage for eating.
A hackberry tree with fruit remaining in winter.
You may need a step stool or ladder to harvest the fruits, but if you find the tree growing in an open area, the branches will likely be low enough that you can reach them from the ground.
Before I explain how to eat hackberries, I want to talk a bit about the anatomy of the fruit. As I mentioned earlier, the berry-like fruit is actually a drupe, more commonly known as a stone fruit. This means it has more in common with peaches or apricots than blueberries or raspberries. The outside of a hackberry is covered by skin, followed by a thin layer of flesh, and in the center a fairly large pit. The pit consists of a hard shell which encases the edible kernel.
The kernel of a hackberry, encased by a hard shell.
The flesh makes up a very small portion of the fruit, and the kernel is highly nutritious. Therefore, when eating hackberries, crunch through the entire fruit, including the pit! The shell is quite hard, so it may feel like you’re going to break your teeth; but for most people it’s fine. However, if you have delicate teeth or dental work, you should probably mash them up in a mortar and pestle, grain grinder, or high-powered blender instead. This will produce a sticky product similar in consistency to ground dates, which can be formed into energy bars for quick and easy sustenance. While the flavor is very good, the texture can take some getting used to, due to the grittiness from the hard shell. If that turns you off to hackberries, never fear! You can make a delicious nut milk with none of the gritty quality. See Sacred Strawberry for an example of a hackberry milk recipe.
When compared to other fruits, hackberry is high in protein, fat, and minerals—precisely because of the pit. In fact, it has a long history of nourishing humans; remains of hackberry fruits have been found in Paleolithic caves! Also, the taste is delicious: the flesh is sweet and fig-like, while the seed is nutty. The texture is quite dry, more like a prune than a cherry or peach. It’s actually one of my favorite fruits! I love crunching on them when walking through parks. While hackberries are delicious right off the tree, you can also add them to porridge for extra sweetness and texture.
Share the Bounty
Presumably I’ve given you a bit of appreciation for this ordinary “junk tree!” Start looking for the distinctive bark now, and if you’re lucky, you may find some fruits remaining on the tree. And show your friends! Since this tree is so common, there’s plenty to go around!
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