prove above the rolling prairies as hymns once rose from nineteenth - century revival tents , the aboriginal trees of Kansas provide sunshine and wind aegis for farmhouses and stock . They are intellectual nourishment sources for Kansas ' snort , wildlife , and in some cases , mass . Kansas ' trees can fill up the natural spring ’s landscapes with sweetness and color and set fall afire with white-livered , ruby-red and orange .
River Birch
The only birch rod growing as far south as Mississippi , river birch ( Betula nigra ) thrives along Kansas ' streams , riverbank and rising tide field . Noticeable for its leaning substance abuse and graciously spread crown with more or less droop ramification , river birch normally reaches 30 to 50 feet marvelous . Concealed beneath the tree diagram ’s exfoliating silver barque is a striking ruby-red - brown trunk .
River birch tree produce little green or brownish flowers in very former springiness followed by tan cone - mould yield . Birds and small mammals feed on its seeds . A rapid grower , it is disease- and plague - tolerant . set it in partially fly-by-night moist spots with neutral or somewhat acidic soil . protract drought is its unfit enemy . hold back until its sap flow ceases in the summer before pruning river birch rod .
White Oak
A goliath among Kansas native trees , white oak ( Quercus alba ) belongs to the beech family . Reaching 100 feet high , in well-disposed conditions white oak can live up to 600 years . A straight tree trunk and stocky horizontal branches spreading from 50 to 80 foot make white oak a favorite spectre tree for Kansas summers .
Male white oak produce blooms of yellow - green or cherry-red 2- to 4 - in catkins between May and June . Female prime are invisible . Acorns follow in late summer . White oak ’s fall foliation is deep red to maroon , and the leave stay on the tree diagram well into winter .
White oak tree ’s right ( brown ) acorn provender squirrel and diminished mammals . With proper preparation , they ’re also utile as a wilderness survival food , says the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center . Shell them and die and boil the nuts for between 15 and 30 minutes or until the water is brown . Place them in unclouded water and repeat until the weewee is no longer discolor . This cognitive operation removes the acorns ' tannic acid and acerb taste .
white-hot oaks grow unwarranted in Kansas ' bottom - lands and juiceless Natalie Wood . They care moist , well - drained acidic sand or loam and sunshine to part shade . old trees put up from disturbed roots .
American Basswood
Sometimes name bee tree , American basswood ( Tilia Americana ) is another of Kansas ' attractive wraith tree . Reaching up to 80 feet high with a 40 - foot counterpane , the tree have long , straight trunk and dense oval crown . The dark green heart - regulate leaves become yellow in fall .
Heavy 3 - column inch wide clusters of fragrant sensationalistic prime appear between April and June , attracting the bees responsible for the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ’s other name . Commercially available linden beloved , says the American Honey Board , tastes similar to mature yield .
Basswood like moist well - drain loam with a achromatic pH. Grass and basis covers battle in its heavy shade . Trees make attractive exclusive specimen . When switch off , however , their dais often spurt several new trunks and produce intact groups of mature trees .
