Winter Tree Identification

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Winter Tree Identification
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Evergreens (Conifers)
Leaves are needles or scalelikeLeaves stay on
Tree year roundFruit is a coneSap has
antifreeze
Deciduous
Leaves are flat with veinsLeaves fall off tree
in autumnFruits vary
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How to Identify Conifers

• Are leaves needle or scalelike?
• Are needles in a bundle or do they grow singly?
• How many needles are in a bundle?
• Do leaves fall off in autumn?

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Scalelike Leaves
Eastern red cedar
Northern white cedar
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Needles in Bundles
Jack Pine
Eastern White Pine
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Single Needles
Colorado blue spruce
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Opposite Leaves
Leaf Arrangement in Deciduous Trees
Alternate Leaves
Whorled Leaves
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Trees with Opposite Leaves

• MAD Horse Buck (and Viburnum)
• Maple
• Ash
• Dogwood
• Horse Chestnut
• Buckeye
• Viburnum

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Trees with Alternate Leaves

• Everything else
• Oak
• Beech
• Hickory
• Aspen
• Elm
• Hackberry
• Etc.

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Simple vs. Compound
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Twig Anatomy
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Maple (Acer sp.) Twigs/Buds
Sugar Maple
Silver Maple
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Maple (Acer sp.) Bark
Sugar Maple
Silver Maple
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Ash (Fraxinus sp.) Twigs
Black Ash
White Ash
Green Ash
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Ash (Fraxinus sp.) Bark
White Ash
Green Ash
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Ohio Buckeye (Aesculus glabra)
Peanut Butter Colored Large Bud
Hexagonal Pith
Opposite Leaf Scars
Light Gray Bark
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Black Walnut (Juglans nigra)
Fruit
Chambered Pith
Bud and Leaf Scar (Monkey Face)
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Birches (Betula sp.)
Mature bark of River Birch
Bark of Paper Birch
Young bark of River Birch
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Hickories (Carya sp.)
Shagbark Hickory
Bitternut (or Yellow-bud) Hickory
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Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa)
Whorled Leaf Scars
Bark
Fruit
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Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)
Bud Hairy Pseudoterminal Bud Angled
Warty Bark in Young Trees
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American Beech (Fagus grandifolia)
Spiky Fruit
Smooth, Silvery Bark
Bud Long, Narrow Cigar
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Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)
Fruit
Bud One Scale
Distinctive Flaky Bark
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Cottonwood (Populus deltoides)
Blocky Bark
Bud Imbricate Scales, Shiny and Large
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Basswood (Tilia americana)
Bud Smiling Shark
Mature Bark Deep Fissures Young Bark Smooth
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Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
Paired Thorns on Twig
Bark Deep Fissures
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Oaks (Quercus sp.)
White Oak
Red Oak
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Black Cherry (Prunus serotina)
Young Bark (horizontal lenticels)
Mature Bark
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Field Guides and Resources
Trees of Wisconsin website http//www.uwgb.edu/bio
diversity/herbarium/trees/tree_intro01.htm