34 Gorgeous Flowering Trees For Arkansas

If you’ve just moved to Arkansas and are looking to plant some beautiful flowering trees in your garden, you’re in luck! Known as the Natural State, Arkansas is home to a wide variety of stunning flowering trees that produce vivid blooms in pretty colors. Read on to learn about the best flowering trees for Arkansas!

Arkansas is blessed with abundant beauty and varying wilderness. It encompasses mountainous landscapes, caverns and caves, bubbling springs of hot water, river valleys, lakes, forests, and bayous. The rugged Ozarks region in its Northwest has limestone caves and hiking trails with an abundance of trees with varying foliage and habitats.

With a humid subtropical climate, warm, humid summers, and mild winters, the Natural State grows numerous attractive flowering trees that thrive in full sun. If you’re living in Arkansas, you can plant many trees and shrubs as accent, understory, and centerpiece for your lawns. These evergreen or deciduous trees will produce breathtaking blooms that will elevate the beauty of your garden.

Common flowering trees grown in Arkansas include Downy Serviceberry, Tulip Poplar, Alternate Leaved Dogwood, Red Haven Peach, American Smoke Tree, Chinese Parasol Tree, Flowering Ash, and more. It has a wide range of small trees that you can grow as shrubs as well as large, dense trees that you can easily grow as single flowering specimens in your yard.

So, without further ado, let’s explore the 34 gorgeous flowering trees that you can grow in Arkansas!

1. Downy Serviceberry

  • Amelanchier arborea
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 15-30 ft
Downy Serviceberry
Dan Mullen Downy Serviceberry

Downy Serviceberry is a small- to medium-sized deciduous tree that you can also plant as a shrub. It features innumerable drooping clusters of lightly aromatic white flowers. It bears tiny, rounded, black, or dark purple berries. This tree has oval green leaves that turn orange, red, and yellow in fall. It thrives in full sun or part shade and well-drained, acidic soils. 

2. Red Haven Peach

  • Prunus persica redhaven
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 12-15 ft
Prunus persica.
Forest and Kim Starr Prunus persica.

It’s a dynamic, fast-growing peach tree that features abundant fragrant pink blooms. It also bears abundant medium-sized yellow fruits with bright red patches. This tree has a rounded crown with upward-reaching branches decorated with lanceolate dark green leaves. It prefers full sun and well-drained, slightly acidic, moist soils. 

3. Tulip Poplar

  • Liriodendron tulipifera
  • Flowering in: Late Spring and Early Summer
  • Height: 70-90 ft
Liriodendron tulipifera
Crusier Liriodendron tulipifera

Tulip Poplar is a deciduous tree with a pyramid-shaped crown or an arching dome-shaped habitat. It produces yellowish-green and orange, fragrant, cup-shaped flowers that attract birds and bees. It also features large, 8-inches long, tulip-shaped leaves. This tree thrives in rich, moist, well-drained soils and prefers full sun over part shade. 

4. Alternate Leaved Dogwood

  • Cornus alternifolia
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 30 ft
Cornus alternifolia argentea
peganum Cornus alternifolia

Also known as Pagoda Dogwood, Alternate Leaved Dogwood is a striking accent plant with horizontally winding, up-turned branches that create a layered, tiered habitat. It features abundant tiny white or pale-yellow flowers that give way to bluish fruits and stunning red-purple fall foliage. It prefers to grow in cooler, acidic, moist soils in a shaded location. 

5. Yellowwood

  • Cladrastis kentukea
  • Flowering in: Late Spring to early Summer
  • Height: 80 ft
Yellowwood. Cladrastis kentukea
karen_hine Yellowwood. (Cladrastis kentukea)

Yellowwood is a striking deciduous tree with a wide-spreading, rounded habitat with upward-reaching branches. It produces large, pendant-shaped bunches of intensely fragrant blooms that cascade from its round canopy. It has yellow-green pinnate leaves that turn yellow in fall. This tree prefers to grow in full sun and fertile, well-drained soils. 

6. Flowering Dogwood

  • Cornus florida
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 25 ft
Cornus florida.
H. Zell Cornus florida.

Native to eastern North America and northern Mexico, Flowering dogwood grows along the outskirts of pine forests in Florida and the eastern US. It produces tiny ornamental white flowers that bloom from pink bracts. It features green leaves the turn purplish-red in the fall. This versatile tree thrives in rich, well-drained soils and partial shade.  

7. American Smoke Tree 

  • Cotinus obovatus
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 20-30 ft
American Smoketree
Jim Linwood American Smoketree

Native to Tennessee, Kentucky, and northern Alabama, American Smoke Tree is a beautiful upright tree with a decorative, multi-trunked bark. It features an open crown with spreading branches adorned with soothing blue-green leaves that turn flaming red and orange in fall. It features ethereal clusters of purple and pink flowers. This drought-tolerant tree prefers stony, well-drained soils and full sun. 

8. Pasture Hawthorn

  • Crataegus spathulata
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 15-20 ft
Crataegus spathulata
Eric Hunt Crataegus spathulata flowers.

Pasture Hawthorn is a small deciduous tree with large thorns and slender branches. It produces white flowers and bright red, edible fruit. It features bluish-green toothed leaves that turn red and orange in the fall. It’s an adaptable tree that can grow in various soil types in full to partial sun. 

9. Green Hawthorn/Southern Hawthorn

  • Crataegus viridis
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 36-72 ft
Green Southern Hawthorn Crataegus viridis
David J. Stang Green/Southern Hawthorn (Crataegus viridis)

Green Hawthorn is a medium-sized, robust, ornamental tree with unique thorns and a wide, rounded to pyramidal habitat. It produces white flowers that give way to persistent red fruits. It has beautiful fall foliage that features deep red and purple leaves. It thrives in full sun and is adaptable to urban environments. 

10. Chinese Parasol Tree

  • Firmiana simplex
  • Flowering in: Mid-Summer, Late Summer, and Early Fall
  • Height: 40-50 ft
Firmiana simplex
KENPEI Firmiana simplex

Chinese Parasol Tree is a medium-sized deciduous tree with exceptionally large, 12 inches long, lobed, bright green leaves and a thin bark. It produces clusters of yellow-green flowers that are up to 20 inches long. It also produces attractive seed pods in the fall when its leaves turn blazing yellow. This exotic-looking tree prefers to grow in full sun and well-drained soils. 

11. Flowering Ash

  • Fraxinus ornus
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 36-72 ft
Flowering Ash Fraxinus ornus
Jean-Pol GRANDMONT Flowering Ash (Fraxinus ornus)

Flowering Ash is an attractive, medium-sized, deciduous tree with a dense rounded or oval crown and a short trunk. It produces showy, fragrant white flowers that grow in clusters above its light bluish-green, cascading foliage that turns reddish-purple and yellow-burgundy in fall. This deer-resistant tree thrives in full sun and organically rich, moist, well-drained soils. 

12. Carolina Silverbell

  • Halesia carolina
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 30 to 40 ft
Halesia carolina.
Meneerke Bloem Halesia carolina.

Carolina Silverbell is an ornamental understory tree with a broad, rounded, deciduous habitat. It produces eye-catching clusters of two to five bell-shaped, hanging, white flowers. It features ovate, finely toothed, dark yellowish-green leaves, and pale green fruits. This low-maintenance tree grows in organically rich, moist, acidic, well-drained soils and full sun or part shade. 

13. Two-Wing Silverbell/Snowdrop

  • Halesia diptera
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 20-30 ft
Halesia diptera
Wendy Cutler Halesia diptera

Two-Wing Silverbell is a deciduous shrub with a rounded habitat and striking clusters of two to seven bell-shaped, gleaming white flowers. The blooms give way to two-winged pale green fruits. Two-Wing Silverbell features oval, finely toothed, mod-green leaves the turn yellow in fall. This low-maintenance tree thrives in moist, organically rich, acidic, well-drained soils and full sun or part shade. 

14. Rose of Sharon

  • Hibiscus syriacus
  • Flowering in: Late Summer to Fall
  • Height: 8-12 ft
Hibiscus syriacus.
Salicyna Hibiscus syriacus.

Rose of Sharon is an exotic deciduous shrub with a vase-shaped crown. It produces large, showy, red, pink, blue, or white blossoms with noticeably protruding stamens. Rose of Sharon has broadly ovate pale yellow-green to medium green leaves. This drought-tolerant tree prefers to grow in adequately moist, well-drained soils and full sun to part shade. 

15. English Holly

  • Ilex aquifolium
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 10-40 ft
Ilex aquifolium
Leonora (Ellie) Enking Ilex aquifolium

English Holly is a large, bushy, evergreen shrub with rich, purple twigs and tiny, shiny, spiny leaves with broad, creamy-white edges. It produces abundant tiny white flowers, which give way to numerous bright red berries. This tree thrives in full sun to part shade and a wide variety of well-drained soils. 

16. Golden Rain Tree

  • Koelreuteria paniculata
  • Flowering in: Summer
  • Height: 30-40 ft
Koelreuteria paniculata
H.Zell Koelreuteria paniculata

Golden Rain Tree is an elegant, medium-sized, deciduous tree with open branches and a rounded crown of pinnate, feathery, pinkish-purple leaves that mature into bright apple-green foliage, which turns golden-yellow in fall. It produces long clusters of stunning rich yellow flowers. This low-maintenance tree loves to grow in full sun and dry to medium, well-drained soils. 

17. Crape Myrtle

  • Lagerstroemia
  • Flowering in: Summer and Spring
  • Height: 35 ft
Lagerstroemia indica Crape myrtle
Forest and Kim Starr Lagerstroemia indica – Crape myrtle

Also called the “lilac of the South,” Crape Myrtle produces huge clusters of long-lasting, attractive pinkish-purple blooms. This tree has an attractive trunk and lush, deciduous leaves that are excellent at providing shade. It thrives in well-drained, moist soils and full sun. You can grow it as a medium-sized tree or a large shrub with thick foliage. 

18. Tulip Tree

  • Liriodendron
  • Flowering in: Late Spring and Early Summer
  • Height: 70-90 ft
Tulip Tree
Michiel Thomas Tulip Tree

The Tulip Tree is a tall and stately deciduous tree with a pyramidal habitat that becomes oval-rounded in maturity. It produces tulip-shaped, yellowish-green flowers that have an orange base. The blooms give way to cone-shaped fruit. This tree features glossy, bright green, four-lobed foliage. It prefers to grow in organically rich, acidic, moist, well-drained soils and full sun. 

19. Big Leaf Magnolia

  • Magnolia macrophylla
  • Flowering in: Late Spring to Early Summer
  • Height: 30 ft
Magnolia macrophylla leaves and flower
Soil-Science.info Magnolia macrophylla leaves and flower.

Big Leaf Magnolia is a pyramidal tree that develops a spreading, rounded habitat. It features huge, obovate-oblong, paint brush-shaped, green and silvery-gray leaves. It produces showy, fragrant, large white flowers with a rose-purple base. The blooms give way to spherical, cone-like, red fruits. This tree thrives in full sun to part shade and organically rich, moist, well-drained loams. 

20. Prairie Crabapple

  • Malus ioensis
  • Flowering in: Mid Spring to Late Spring
  • Height: 20 ft

Also known as Prince Georges, Prairie Crabapple is a dense, upright, deciduous tree with a rounded habitat. It produces deep rose-pink buds that bloom into clusters of fragrant, pale pink, double flowers. It features jagged green leaves that turn red and orange in fall. This tree prefers to grow in full sun and moderately fertile, well-drained soils. 

21. Empress Tree

  • Paulownia tomentosa
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 40 ft
Empress Tree
trekr Empress Tree

Native to Eastern Asia, Empress Tree is a fast-growing, invasive tree with brittle wood and a dense crown that provides ample shade. It produces huge, upright clusters of tube-like, fragrant, pale violet flowers that can grow up to 3 inches long. This drought-hardy tree thrives in full sun and moist, deep, well-drained soils. 

22. Honey Mesquite

  • Prosopis glandulosa var. glandulosa
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 30 ft
Prosopis glandulosa
Joe Decruyenaere Prosopis glandulosa

Native to the southwestern United States and Mexico, Honey Mesquite is a small to medium-sized, invasive flowering tree. It has a rounded, crooked crown, drooping branches with feathery green foliage, and tiny, yellow-green fragrant flowers that grow in spike-like clusters. This cold-tolerant tree prefers to grow in full sun and fast-draining soils. 

23. Hortulan Plum

  • Prunus hortulana
  • Flowering in: Late Winter to Early Spring
  • Height: 29 ft
Prunus hortulana
JumpStory Prunus hortulana

Hortulan Plum is a deciduous tree that is native to the Midwest. It features long, lobed leaves with sharply pointed, bladed edges. It produces wide, five-petaled, white flowers that grow in clusters. It also bears yellow and red-colored fruits. This tree prefers to grow in moist soils and full sun to part shade. 

24. Perfumed Cherry

  • Prunus mahaleb 
  • Flowering in: Mid Spring
  • Height: 20-25 ft
Mahaleb cherry Prunus mahaleb
Andrey Zharkikh Mahaleb cherry (Prunus mahaleb)

Also known as Mahaleb Cherry, Perfumed Cherry is a robust, disease-resistant, and winter-hardy tree native to parts of Asia, Europe, and Africa. This deep-rooted tree features slender, upright-angled branches and small, ovate, serrated green leaves. It produces white flowers arranged in umbel-like clusters and small, thinly-fleshed, black fruit. This tree thrives in moisture-retentive, well-drained soils and full sun to partial shade. 

25. Callery Pear

  • Pyrus calleryana
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 30-50 ft
Callery Pear Pyrus calleryana
Frank Richards Callery Pear (Pyrus calleryana)

Native to Asia, Callery Pear is an ornamental, deciduous tree with long, shiny, thick, and waxy teardrop-shaped leaves with slightly toothed edges. It produces showy, malodorous, five-petaled white flowers that give way to rounded, greenish-brown fruit. This tree prefers to grow in full sun, but it can tolerate part shade. 

26. Rusty Blackhaw Viburnum 

  • Viburnum rufidulum
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 12-36 ft
Viburnum rufidulum
Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz Viburnum rufidulum

Rusty Blackhaw Viburnum is a small to medium-sized understory tree. It features lustrous, glossy bright green, ovate or elliptic leaves that turn beautiful shades of mauve, pink, and dark purple in the fall. It produces flattened or rounded clusters of white flowers that give way to fleshy, bluish-black fruits. This tree thrives in moist, well-drained soils and full sun. 

27. Ohio Buckeye

  • Aesculus glabra
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 40-60 ft
Ohio Buckeye Aesculus glabra.
Daderot Ohio Buckeye (Aesculus glabra).

Ohio Buckeye is a deciduous tree with a robust, rounded crown decorated with dense dark green leaves that turn orange and golden-yellow in fall. It produces greenish-yellow blossoms that bloom in small clusters. This hummingbird-attracting tree prefers to grow in adequately moist, well-drained soils and full sun or part shade. 

28. Forsythia

  • Forsythia europaea
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 8-10 ft
4000899 a close up of a yellow forsythia flower
Yay A close up of a yellow Forsythia flower

Also known as Golden Bell, Forsythia is an ornamental, deciduous shrub that is native to East Asia and Eastern Europe. It produces solitary, vivid, greenish-yellow salverform, star-shaped blooms that have four petals. It also features narrow, three-part, ovate, and petiole leaves. This tree needs at least 6 hours of full sun to bloom properly. It prefers to grow in organically rich, moist, well-drained soils. 

29. Bridal Wreath Spirea

  • Spiraea prunifolia
  • Flowering in: Summer
  • Height: 8 ft
White fence with blooming bridal wreath spirea shrub
White fence with blooming “Bridal Wreath Spirea” shrub
Yay

Bridal Wreath Spirea is an elegant and distinctive upright shrub with a cascading growth that is ideal for spacious gardens. It produces dense sprays of small, stunning white blooms that grow in clusters of three to six flowers. This tree prefers to grow in full sun and medium-moist, well-drained soils. 

30. Royal Star Magnolias

  • Magnolia stellata
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 15-20 ft
Star Magnolia.
Katja Schulz Star Magnolia (magnolia stellata)

Royal Star Magnolia is an attractive, small-sized, pest-resistant tree with oblong, glossy leaves and an excellent habitat. This deciduous shrub produces large, fragrant, star-shaped flowers that profusely cover its barren branches. Its blooms have a pale-yellow center and 25 to 30 uniquely extended, ribbon-shaped petals. This tree thrives in full sun to part shade and well-drained soils. 

31. Rising Sun Redbud

  • Cercis canadensis
  • Flowering in: Mid Spring
  • Height: 40-50 ft
Rising Sun Redbud
woodleywonderworks Rising Sun Redbud

Rising Sun Redbud is an attractive, multi-trunked tree with a rounded habitat and horizontal branches. It produces showy clusters of tiny magenta buds that bloom into stunning, long-lasting, rosy-pink blossoms. Redbuds features heart-shaped reddish leaves that mature into dark green summer foliage that turns bright canary yellow in the fall. This tree thrives in different degrees of sun exposure and most soil types. 

32. Rhododendron

  • Rhododendron
  • Flowering in: Late Winter to Early Spring
  • Height: 20 ft

Native to the Himalayas, Southeast Asia, and New Guinea, Rhododendron is an evergreen tree that features thick, leathery leaves. It produces scented, tubular to funnel-shaped blooms that appear in a wide variety of colors, including blue, white, yellow, scarlet, pink, and purple. It prefers to grow in light-dappled shade and moist, well-drained, acidic, rich soils. 

33. Camellia

  • Camellia japonica 
  • Flowering in: Spring
  • Height: 6-12 ft
Camellia japonica
Acabashi Camellia japonica

Camellia is a beautiful, evergreen, broad-leaved shrub with a compact, shapely habitat, and durable, glossy foliage. It produces stunning white or shaded pink and red blooms that come in many shapes, including semi-doubled, single, rose-form doubled, and peony form. Camellias prefer to grow in dappled light or full shade and well-drained, moist soils. 

34. Saucer Magnolia

  • Magnolia x soulangiana
  • Flowering in: Early Spring
  • Height: 30 ft
Saucer Magnolia.
Puddin Tain Saucer Magnolia.

Saucer Magnolia is a beautiful and versatile ornamental shrub. This deer-resistant plant can be grown as a standalone yard tree as well. It produces striking dark-purple buds that bloom into beautiful, fragrant, cup-shaped, six to ten inches long, pinkish-purple flowers. This tree thrives in full sun and evenly moist soil.