Sassafras

Red/orange fall color is excellent. Leaves have three separate shapes: ovoid, tri-lobed, or mitten-shaped (left or right). Mature trees tend to have fewer lobed leaves.

Subject to laurel wilt disease.  Please be careful not to move firewood or dead wood around.  Best not planted in areas where laurel wilt is present.



A relatively small tree that often forms thickets. Best used in informal settings.

Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.



Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Like other members of this family, sassafras trees are threatened by the spread of the redbay ambrosia beetle and the laural wilt fungus it carries. Mildly toxic, especially the bark.

Birds consume fruit.

Dry sites. Dry mesic forests.

• Aroma, fragrance, Fall color, Interesting foliage
• Larval food for spicebush butterfly(Papilio troilus), tiger swallow-tail(papilio glaucus), palamedes butterfly (Papilio palamedes).
• Flowers attract pollinators.