Cold Weather Trees with Buttress Roots?

Question

Are there cold-weather trees with buttress roots which would grow well in the Northeast of the US?

csk · Accepted Answer · 2020-09-23 03:58:10Z

3

The Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) has buttress roots, and can survive in USDA zones 4-8.

answered Sep 23, 2020 at 3:58

csk

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Thanks, any others offhand? Or non-conifers in general? Also, do you know of any databases to look up things like trees with specific types of roots (buttress/aerial/etc) for specific zones like the north east?
– CoryG
Commented Sep 24, 2020 at 19:37
1

No others come to mind. Buttress roots seem to be more of a tropical phenomenon, and certainly most descriptions that come up when googling "buttress roots" refer to rainforests and/or the tropics. They seem most necessary in areas with lots of rain, to add new support when the soil washes away.
– csk
Commented Sep 24, 2020 at 21:43
1

Some beech trees have some impressive tangles of roots, although I've never heard them called buttress roots. You could have a look at some images and see if that fills the same aesthetic niche for you.
– csk
Commented Sep 24, 2020 at 21:46
Maine has a ton of rain, and I'm actually planning on using these in a very large (1-2 acre) marsh filtration system for a pond to give it a deeply wetland-like-without-the-bugs look - though that's definitely the issue I've run into as well while searching - buttress and aerial roots seem mostly confined to warmer/tropical climates - I assume due to the complex topology making them prone to breakage during frosts.
– CoryG
Commented Sep 25, 2020 at 4:32

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