State Tree and Flower Chart | State Trees | State Tree Facts and Trivia
Each of the 50 states and several United States territories have designated an official tree and flower. Many of the state flowers are actually trees as well -- some states have chosen the same species as state tree and as state flower. All of the state trees, except the Hawaii state tree, are native to the state in which they are designated. Many of the state flowers are from other parts of the world and were chosen because of their beauty or importance, not because they represent the natural flora of the state they represent. Some states have designated a state wildflower, as a symbolic native species.
The Latin names you see here may be different from those you may have seen before due to changes in plant nomenclature; we have chosen to list the current valid botanical name. Where more than one accepted common name exists, the common name in the legislation has been listed.
Here's a quiz question for you: One state lists a state flower that is not a flower at all. Do you know which state that is? Scroll to the bottom for the answer.
State | Type | Name | Latin Name | Year of Legislation |
---|---|---|---|---|
Alabama (AL) | Tree | longleaf pine | Pinus palustris | 1997 |
Flower | camelia | Camellia japonica | 1959/1999 | |
Alaska (AK) | Tree | Sitka spruce | Picea sitchensis | 1962 |
Flower | forget-me-not | Myosotis alpestris subsp. asiatica | 1917 | |
Arizona (AZ) | Tree | palo verde | genus Parkinsonia | 1954 |
Flower | saguaro cactus blossom | Carnegia gigantea | 1931 | |
Arkansas (AR) | Tree | pine | genus Pinus | 1939 |
Flower | apple blossom | Malus domestica | 1901 | |
California (CA) | Tree | coast redwood | Sequoia sempervirens | 1937/1953 |
giant sequoia | Sequoia giganteum* | |||
Flower | California poppy | Eschscholzia californica | 1903 | |
Colorado (CO) | Tree | blue spruce | Picea pungens | 1939 |
Flower | Rocky Mountain columbine | Aquilegia caerulea | 1899 | |
Connecticut (CT) | Tree | white oak | Quercus alba | 1947 |
Flower | mountain laurel | Kalmia latifolia | 1907 | |
Delaware (DE) | Tree | American holly | Ilex opaca | 1939 |
Flower | peach blossom | Prunus persica | 1895 | |
District of Columbia (DC) | Tree | scarlet oak | Quercus coccinea | |
Flower | American Beauty rose | Rosa 'American Beauty' | ||
Florida (FL) | Tree | cabbage palmetto | Sabal palmetto | 1953 |
Flower | orange blossom | Citrus sinensis | 1909 | |
Georgia (GA) | Tree | live oak | Quercus virginiana | 1937 |
Flower | Cherokee rose | Rosa laevigata | 1916 | |
Hawaii (HI) | Tree | candlenut tree, kukui | Aleurites moluccana | 1959 |
Flower | pua aloalo | Hibiscus brackenridgei | 1988 | |
Idaho (ID) | Tree | western white pine | Pinus monticola | 1935 |
Flower | syringa mock orange | Philadelphus lewisii | 1931 | |
Illinois (IL) | Tree | white oak | Quercus alba | 1973 |
Flower | purple violet | genus Viola | 1908 | |
Indiana (IN) | Tree | tulip poplar | Liriodendron tulipifera | 1931 |
Flower | peony | Paeonia lactiflora | 1957 | |
Iowa (IA) | Tree | oak | genus Quercus | 1961 |
Flower | wild prairie rose | Rosa arkansana | 1897 | |
Kansas (KS) | Tree | eastern cottonwood | Populus deltoides | 1937 |
Flower | sunflower | Helianthus annuus | 1903 | |
Kentucky (KY) | Tree | tulip poplar | Liriodendron tulipifera | 1994 |
Flower | goldenrod | Solidago canadensis var. scabra | 1926 | |
Louisiana (LA) | Tree | baldcypress | Taxodium distichum | 1963 |
Flower | magnolia | Magnolia grandiflora | 1900 | |
Maine (ME) | Tree | eastern white pine | Pinus strobus | 1945 |
Flower | eastern white pine tassel and cone | Pinus strobus | 1895 | |
Maryland (MD) | Tree | white oak | Quercus alba | 1941 |
Flower | black-eyed Susan | Rudbeckia hirta | 1918 | |
Massachusetts (MA) | Tree | American elm | Ulmus americana | 1941 |
Flower | mayflower | Epigaea repens | 1918 | |
Michigan (MI) | Tree | eastern white pine | Pinus strobus | 1955 |
Flower | apple blossom | Malus domestica | 1897 | |
Minnesota (MN) | Tree | red pine | Pinus resinosa | 1945 |
Flower | pink and white ladyslipper | Cypripedium reginae | 1893 | |
Mississippi (MS) | Tree | magnolia | genus Magnolia | 1938 |
Flower | magnolia | Magnolia grandiflora | 1952 | |
Missouri (MO) | Tree | flowering dogwood | Cornus florida | 1955 |
Flower | hawthorn | genus Crataegus | 1923 | |
Montana (MT) | Tree | ponderosa pine | Pinus ponderosa | 1949 |
Flower | bitterroot | Lewisia rediviva | 1895 | |
Nebraska (NE) | Tree | eastern cottonwood | Populus deltoides | 1972 |
Flower | goldenrod | Solidago gigantea | 1895 | |
Nevada (NV) | Tree | singleleaf pinyon pine | Pinus monophylla | 1953 |
Tree | bristlecone pine | Pinus longaeva* | 1987 | |
Flower | sagebrush | Artemisia tridentata | 1917 | |
New Hampshire (NH) | Tree | paper birch | Betula papyrifera | 1947 |
Flower | purple lilac | Syringa vulgaris | 1919 | |
New Jersey (NJ) | Tree | northern red oak | Quercus rubra | 1950 |
Flower | violet | Viola sororia | 1971 | |
New Mexico (NM) | Tree | pinyon pine | Pinus edulis | 1949 |
Flower | yucca | Yucca glauca | 1927 | |
New York (NY) | Tree | sugar maple | Acer saccharum | 1956 |
Flower | rose | genus Rosa | 1955 | |
North Carolina (NC) | Tree | longleaf pine | Pinus palustris | 1963 |
Flower | flowering dogwood | Cornus florida | 1941 | |
North Dakota (ND) | Tree | American elm | Ulmus americana | 1947 |
Flower | wild prairie rose | Rosa arkansana | 1907 | |
Ohio (OH) | Tree | Ohio buckeye | Aesculus glabra | 1953 |
Flower | scarlet carnation | Dianthus caryophyllus | 1904 | |
Oklahoma (OK) | Tree | eastern redbud | Cercis canadensis | 1937 |
Flower | mistletoe | Phoradendron leucarpum | 1983 | |
Oregon (OR) | Tree | Douglas-fir | Pseudotsuga menziesii | 1939 |
Flower | Oregon grape | Berberis aquifolium | 1899 | |
Pennsylvania (PA) | Tree | eastern hemlock | Tsuga canadensis | 1931 |
Flower | mountain laurel | Kalmia latifolia | 1933 | |
Rhode Island (RI) | Tree | red maple | Acer rubrum | 1964 |
Flower | violet | Viola palmata | 1968 | |
South Carolina (SC) | Tree | cabbage palmetto | Sabal palmetto | 1939 |
Flower | yellow jessamine | Gelsemium sempervirens | 1924 | |
South Dakota (SD) | Tree | Black Hills spruce | Picea glauca var. densata | 1947 |
Flower | pasque flower | Anemone patens var. multifida | 1903 | |
Tennessee (TN) | Tree | tulip poplar | Liriodendron tulipifera | 1947 |
Flower | iris | Iris germanica | 1933 | |
Texas (TX) | Tree | pecan | Carya illinoinensis | 1919 |
Flower | Texas bluebonnet | genus Lupinus | 1901 | |
Utah (UT) | Tree | blue spruce | Picea pungens | 1933 |
Flower | sego lily | genus Calochortus | 1911 | |
Vermont (VT) | Tree | sugar maple | Acer saccharum | 1949 |
Flower | red clover | Trifolium pratense | 1895 | |
Virginia (VA) | Tree | flowering dogwood | Cornus florida | 1956 |
Flower | flowering dogwood | Cornus florida | 1918 | |
Washington (WA) | Tree | western hemlock | Tsuga heterophylla | 1947 |
Flower | coast rhododendron | Rhododendron macrophyllum | 1892 | |
West Virginia (WV) | Tree | sugar maple | Acer saccharum | 1949 |
Flower | rhododendron | Rhododendron maximum | 1903 | |
Wisconsin (WI) | Tree | sugar maple | Acer saccharum | 1949 |
Flower | violet | Viola sororia | 1949 | |
Wyoming (WY) | Tree | plains cottonwood | Poplus deltoides subsp. monilifera | 1947/1961 |
Flower | Indian paintbrush | Castilleja linariifolia | 1917 | |
Guam | Tree | ifil or ifit | Intsia bijuga | |
Flower | puti tai nobiu | Bougainvillea spectabilis | ||
Northern Marianas | Tree | flame tree | Delonix regia | |
Flower | plumeria | Plumeria rubra forma acutifolia | ||
Puerto Rico | Tree | silk-cotton tree | Ceiba pentandra | |
Flower | Puerto Rico hibiscus | Thespesia grandiflora | ||
U.S. Virgin Islands | Tree | no official tree | ||
Flower | yellow trumpetbush | Tecoma stans | 1934 |
* In the National Grove of State Trees we have chosen to grow this species when two or more different species qualify as the state tree.
Answer: Maine designated the white pine cone and tassel as its state flower. The pine cone is the female structure that bears the seeds, and the tassel is a smaller cone-like structure that produces pollen. Botanically, both the cone and tassel are not considered flowers, but are known as strobili. You could accurately say that Maine is the only state to have an official state strobilus. If you thought Oklahoma was the right answer, you are nearly correct. Mistletoe is a plant and is not a flower. It is, however, a flowering plant and bears true flowers, even though they are not showy.
Last Updated August 9, 2006 3:51 PM
URL = http://www.usna.usda.gov/Gardens/collections/statetreeflower.html