The Ehretia anacua inherently lives in areas where there are thickets, woodlands, gulf prairies, and marshes (4).  The plant favors alkaline soils however it can occasionally survive in areas with clay and acidic sands (5).  As a seedling the sandpaper tree requires a relatively large amount of water, although shortly after the germination period the plant becomes very tolerant to little amounts of water including droughts (4).  Very few problems can occur regarding limited water, however if there is too much water and the soil isn’t able to drain, then the plant has the possibility of dying. If the plant starts to grow during the spring it is best to keep it away from the morning sun due to frost-tender however a majority of the time the sandpaper plant requires full sunlight (6).     

The propagation of Ehretia anacua is fairly simple; it can be grown from seeds, cuttings, suckers, or transplants (4).  The most successful germination rates come from seed stratification that has been in moist soil for thirty days at forty one degrees Fahrenheit (4).   If one were to plant anacua seeds they would want to gather these seeds during late summer when the fruit of the plant has turned to a beautiful orange color (4).