Summer Tree ID Made Easy Sanford S. Smith, Ph.D. (“Sandy”) Extension Specialist Natural Resources and Youth Education School of Forest Resources Penn State Cooperative Extension

Tree ID, why? Diagnosis Management Right ___ Fun

Tree ID Year ‘round

What can we use? Sometimes –Leaves –Flowers –Fruit All times (almost) –Bark –Location –Shape –Size –Smell –Taste – TWIG!!!!

Leaf Terminology

blade leaf midrib petiole stipule bud stem Simple Leaf rachis leaflet petiolule bud Compound Leaf

Leaf Types

Broad and flat *shallow, wide “v” sinuses in this Red Maple

Needles

Scale & awl-like

Leaf-type Comparison

Leaf Arrangement

Alternate

Opposite

Whorled

Leaf Arrangement Comparison

Leaf Structure

Compound Leaflet Arrangements Palmately Compound EvenPinnate Bipinnately Compound

Leaf margins Dentate EntireDouble serrate Lobed Serrate

Ex) Silver Maple

Leave the Leaves!

Fruit types Achene Acorn (nut) Double and Single Samara Nut Legume Capsule Pome Drupe Berry

Tree Shapes Branches: PendulantAscending Willow White Oak

Parts of a twig Buds (scales, size, arrangement) Leaf scars (shape, size, vascular bundle scars) Stipule scars (presence, size) Lenticels (visibility) Pith (cross section shape & longitudinal appearance)

Pith types

Bud Types

Identification Time

Tree ID with a Key to the Leaves One decision at a time

Identification keys Dichotomous key –most common type of key –simplistic and complex use –one decision at a time –On-line example

4-H Summer Key to PA Trees Direct Online Link: Summerkeyfortrees.pdf

Leaf Terminology blade leaf petiole bud stem Simple Leaf rachis leaflet petiolule bud Compound Leaf

Leaf Arrangement Comparison

Opposite Branching: “MAD Horse” Maples, Ashes, Dogwoods, Horsechestnuts

Lets practice!

Hint: opposite

Red Maple Acer rubrum *sinus: wide and shallow

Red Maple

Hint: opposite

Sugar Maple Acer saccharum *sinus: U shaped

Sugar Maple

White Oak Red Oaks = lobed, round margins = lobed, pointy margins includes: Pin, Burr, Scarlet, Penn, Black, Northern Red

Hint: alternate

Northern Red Oak Quercus rubra * many Oaks similar to Red Oak, all pointy leaves. White Oak has lobed leaves

Northern Red Oak

Hint: opposite

Horse Chestnut Aesculus hippocastanum

Horse Chestnut

Eastern Hemlock Tsuga canadensis

Eastern Hemlock *PA State Tree *has two white lines on each leaflet

Hint: lvs. alternate, sap not milky

Black Locust Robinia pseudoacacia

Black Locust

Hint: opposite

Flowering Dogwood Cornus florida

Flowering Dogwood * leaves wavy, wrinkled * prominent veins

White OakRed Oak

Hint: alternate

White Oak Quercus alba * only Oak with no points, rounded lobes

White Oak

Hint: alternate

American Beech Fagus grandifolia

American Beech * smooth gray bark, names engraved

(one bundle joined by a small papery sheath at base)

Eastern White Pine Pinus strobus * 5 needles for 5 five letters in the word “white”

Eastern White Pine

Clue: alternate, sap not milky

Bitternut Hickory Carya cordiformis

Bitternut Hickory

Hint: opposite

White Ash *opposite arrangement *”MAD Horse” – Maple, Ash, Dogwood & Horsechestnut

Hint: alternate / hairy

Yellow Birch Betula alleghaniensis

Yellow Birch *horizontal grain on bark (on Birch & Cherry trees)

Hint: alternate/hairy Sweet (Black) Birch ID Slide

Sweet (Black) Birch Betula lenta

Sweet (Black) Birch

Eastern Redcedar Juniperus virginiana

Eastern Redcedar

Hint: lvs. alternate, rough, and hairy

American Elm Ulmus americana

American Elm

Hint: 3 lvs. shown, alternate

Sassafras Sassafras albidum

Sassafras

Hint: lvs. alternate

Sweetgum Liquidambar styraciflua

Sweetgum

Hint: lvs. alternate, milky sap in leaf stalk

Norway Maple Acer platanoides

Norway Maple

Hint: leaves do not have stalks

Balsam Fir Abies balsamea

Balsam Fir

Norway Spruce Picea abies

Norway Spruce

Balsam Fir Norway Spruce Fir versus Spruce

Hint: lvs. alternate, not hairy, margins have fine teeth; leaf stalks have glands. (Single leaf) (Branch)

Black Cherry Prunus serotina

Black Cherry *Horizontal bark: Birch & Cherry trees

Hint: lvs. alternate, sap not milky, leaves hairy

Black Walnut Juglans nigra

Black Walnut

American Larch Larix laricina

American Larch

Hint: lvs. alternate

Yellow-poplar Liriodendron tulipifera

Yellow-poplar

Hint: lvs. alternate, milky sap

Smooth Sumac Rhus glabra

Smooth Sumac

Prepared by Paul Roth, Former Research Assistant, Rance Harmon, Former Extension Associate, and Sanford Smith, Forest Resources Extension Specialist, The Pennsylvania State University, School of Forest Resources & Cooperative Extension Acknowledgements Idea development and review: Jason Hall, Sandra Insalaco, and Cecile Stelter – Service Foresters – Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry Review: James Finley, The Pennsylvania State University School of Forest Resources & Cooperative Extension Images provided courtesy of Virginia Tech & The University of Wisconsin. Line art courtesy of The Pennsylvania State University College of Agricultural Sciences and the Pennsylvania 4-H Program Reference s Common Trees of Pennsylvania, Department of Conservation & Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees Eastern Region, Knolph, Alfred A. Inc Virginia Tech Dendrological Web Page, University of Wisconsin, botanical images, Textbook of Dendrology. Harlow, Harrar & White McGraw-Hill Book Company Manual of Woody Landscape Plants. Dirr. Penn State is committed to affirmative action, equal opportunity, and the diversity of its workforce. © The Pennsylvania State University, 2009

Sanford S. Smith (“Sandy”)

Penn State is committed to affirmative action, equal opportunity, and the diversity of its workforce