Sassafras
Sassafras albidum
About it
- Kind
- Trees · Perennial
- Family
- Lauraceae
- Mature size
- to 45 ft × 32.5 ft
- Hardiness zones
- Zones 4–9
- Sun
- Full sun
- Spacing
- 288 in apart
- Soil depth in a pot
- At least 24 in
- Water
- About every 4 days
ⓘ We don't know this plant's soil pH and feeding needs yet.
When to plant
We don't have planting times for Sassafras yet.
Planting partners
No cited companion planting notes for Sassafras yet.
Safety for pets and children
- Cats No information in our sources
- Dogs No information in our sources
- Horses No information in our sources
- Children No information in our sources
"No information" means our sources do not say, not that the plant is harmless. A non-toxic listing is not a reason to let anyone eat a plant.
Pests and diseases
No pest or disease notes for Sassafras yet.
Check the label and your local extension service before using any product.
Where this comes from
- annual growth in NC State Extension ↗ Inside the fast band (>24) and implies about 22 years to the height below, which is how a pioneer species of this size is described
- category NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Plant Type lists Shrub and Tree; filed as tree, and its Habit/Form includes Multi-stemmed, which is why it can read as either
- climate requirement NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox USDA Plant Hardiness Zone: 4a-9b
- edible NC State Extension ↗ The Toolbox records both facts and they pull opposite ways: "Teas and drinks are made from the roots ... The leaves are dried and ground to make file powder", and a Poisonous entry whose toxic principle is safrole in the bark, "shown to be a weak carcinogen in experimental animals". Recorded false: the app must not put a harvest on the schedule for a part the same page warns about. The uses are recorded here rather than lost
- family npgsweb.ars-grin.gov ↗ GRIN page: Sassafras albidum (Nutt.) Nees
- growth rate NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Growth Rate: Rapid
- life cycle NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Life Cycle: "Perennial, Woody"
- mature height in NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Height: 30 ft - 60 ft; midpoint 45 ft
- mature spread in NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Width: 25 ft - 40 ft; midpoint 32.5 ft
- min soil depth in NC State Extension ↗ Derived by 0039's method and banded by mature height; not published for this species
- space requirement NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox "Available Space To Plant: 24-60 feet"; low end, as a minimum. Rows equal plants
- species NC State Extension ↗
- sunlight NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Light: Full sun and Partial Shade; the brighter of the two
- water frequency days NC State Extension ↗ Handbook ch. 11's twice-a-week establishment watering, rendered as every 4 days. Generic to newly planted trees and shrubs