Module 1: Fall Tree Identification
TreeStewardsOctober 16, 2018
Witch-hazel (Hamamelis virginiana)
Tools Needed for Tree IDGetting Ready:• Observation skills• What to observe?• How to observe?
• Use all your senses• Lines of Evidence
• Hand lens (10x)• Binoculars• Favorite field guide
WHY IDENTIFY TREES?• Enquiring minds want to
know …• To communicate to each
other about plants• To learn more
information about a plant
What is a Tree?
• Size: To be considered a tree, the plant must be at least 15 feet high when fully mature.
• Stem: Trees have one single woody stem that is the predominant support of the plant’s structure. This is known as its trunk.
• Diameter: A tree’s stem or trunk has a minimum 3-inch diameter at 4.5 feet above ground. The stem then has a full crown of foliage at the top.
• Perennial: Unlike certain shrubs or other plants, trees are present-year round.
“If you can walk under it, it’s a tree; if you have to walk around it, it’s a shrub.” – David Sibley
Types of TreesDeciduous or Broadleaf
Conifer or Needleleaf
Broad-leaved foliage (Angiosperms – Greek for
“covered seed”)
Angiosperm ovules produced within ovaries.
Fertilized ovule develops into the seed. Ovary
(and sometimes accessory material) develops
into fruit
Most broad-leaved and deciduous but some are
evergreen
Needle-like or scale-like foliage (Gymnosperms
– Greek for “naked seed”)
Uncovered seeds borne on scales of cones
Usually evergreen and cone-bearing, such as
pine, spruce, fir, juniper, redwood, cypress, and
hemlock
Sometimes deciduous and include broad-leaved
Ginkgo
Evergreen Trees/Softwoods
• Evergreen trees are those that keep their foliage year-round. • Evergreens have naturally adapted so that they do not need to shed
their foliage during the colder months to conserve water or prevent water loss. • Generally, evergreens are conifer trees, which have needle-like
foliage, but some evergreen trees may instead have flat, broad leaves. • Evergreen trees typically grow in colder climates, with hard or poor
soil
Deciduous Trees/Hardwoods/Broadleaf
• Deciduous trees shed their leaves during winter months. • Deciduous trees drop their foliage as a way to avoid having to use
water and nutrients to nourish their leaves in harsh conditions. • When deciduous trees drop their leaves, their foliage rots and nourishes the
soil to provide food for other plants and animal life.
Characteristics
Below are parts of the tree that should be looked at when identifying a tree are:• Flowers and Fruit• Leaves (shape, size, texture, color, arrangement, margins, lobes/sinuses)• Branches, stems, and buds• Trunk• Roots
Each part of the tree serves multiple, critical functions, and the relationship between a tree’s parts is symbiotic —one part can’t work without the others.
Characteristics - Again
Below are parts of the tree that should be looked at when identifying a tree are:• 5% - Leaves (shape, size, texture, color, arrangement, margins,
lobes/sinuses)• 15 % - Branches, stems, and buds• 60% - Trunk• 20% - Roots
Leaves
Functions allowing a tree to grow and thrive:• The most well-known function of tree leaves is to facilitate the
process of photosynthesis.• Leaves also offer shade, reduce wind force, keep the air cool and filter
out dust and other particles. • Leaves also act as a buffer for heavy rain drops by minimizing their
impact on the ground below. • Leaves allow for water evaporation and runoff through their “drip
tips.”
Abscission (leaf drop)
• Best leaf colour occurs when days are short and nights are cool• Chlorophyll pigment production decreases displaying other leaf
pigments:• Hidden pigments in the leaf:
• Xanthophylls – yellow• Beta-carotene – orange
• Anthocyanin: red and purple is created though synthesis from degraded chlorophyll
Deciduous Leaves - Fall
Yellow• Tulip Poplar• Hickory• Ginkgo• American beech• Cottonwood• Sassafras• Paw paw• Red bud• Catalpa
Red• Red Maple• Sugar Maple• Scarlet Oak• Winged Sumac• Sweetgum• Dogwood• Sourwood• Black gum
Leaves
• Broadleaf or other (scale or needle)• Simple vs. Compound• Leaf shape – tips, venation, and bases• Leaf margins• Leaf surfaces• Marcescent
ConiferLeaf-type Comparison
Needles
Blunt and flat
Scale & awl-like
(, ; . ��������������� / ,; B B 2 /,; 2; , /
,; / / ; , 3 3 3 3 , ,.3 /3 ;, .3 / 3, , , ;
� ,; 2 ; 1 , ; ., 3 / 1 ,; /2 . 2 3 , , / / 1 ;; / / ;
-6 (-, -, 6 �������� ���������� - - 6- . , - 1-�(-, -, 6 - - 6- -,� / - -, 6 6- 6 ,-,
) . �������������� � ..- . - .-� 2 - . . , .- ( ..
. -. , - -. - , .
() )����������
Leaf terminology
Simple Compound
���������� ��������
3 8 3
� 8 587. 9 7.37 987 9 3
355 2 8 85 5 , 78 55 8 7 5 2 9 .
Leaf - terminology(continued)
. ( 3 ����������� � 6 25 .2�) 3 -2 - 3 25 5. 33 36 . 6 2
36 . �( 25 66 .
) ( 5 ������������ � 3 .3 . -3 - 5 3 53� 55 5 5 5 , . . 3 5 , 3
.� 3 . 5. . 5 . 3
5 3 5 3- 5
( 35 �� ���������� ����� ( (5 73 ( 7 5 7. 73 3
(5 (5 7337. 3 7 7. 4 7 344
��������������������������
Leaf types
Simple
Compound
Leaf shapes
Leaf tips, venation, and bases
( 4 4 ) ��������� ��������� � ,) ,6 ) , ) , , , ) ., ) - 6
) , 6 .
( ) (�������������
LeafMargins
(���������
) (����������
Leaf surfaces
36
Stems
• They play the role of structural support for the leaves, fruits and flowers that the tree produces. • They are also the vessels that carry water from the soil to the leaves,
and the food from the leaves to the rest of the tree.• Additionally, branches store unused food that the tree will then use
later on, especially during dormant periods when the temperatures drop.
Branching Pattern
M A D Cap Horse
• M = Maple (Aceraceae)• A = Ash (Oleaceae)
• Ash, lilac, Forsythia, privet• D = Dogwood (Cornuaceae)
• (except alternate leaf dogwood)• Cap = Caprifoliaceae
• Viburnum, elderberry, honeysuckle• Horse = Hippocastanaceae
• Horsechestnut , buckeye
!