1. Tree Identification
John Ross

2. Tree Identification ISA Certified Arborist
Study guide for the Arborist Certification exam of the International Society of Arboriculture.
Presented by
John Ross
Burditt: Conroe, Texas

3. Plant Classification Plant Classification (taxonomy) Kingdom (Plant)
Phylum (Vascular plants or not)
Class (Angiosperms; di or monocotyledons
Gymnosperms have “naked seeds”)
Order
Family (Similar characteristics)
Genus (Closely related, Quercus)
Species (THE individual plant)

4. Plant Nomenclature Plant Nomenclature (naming of plants)
Common names vs. Latin names
Genus and species…. Quercus stellata
Varieties & cultivars… var. & ‘Little gem’
Plant Morphology (appearance of tree parts)
Branching structure (alternate, opposite, whorled)
Leaf type (simple or compound)
Leaf margins, apices & bases

5. Plant Morphology continued
Bud type and arrangement
Twig & pith characteristics
Seed types (acorn, samara, legume, etc.)
Bark characteristics (ex. hackberry “warts”)
Form & habitat
Flowers (ex. flowering dogwood)

7. Leaf Arrangement & “Parts”

8. Compound Leaf Types

9. Leaf Bases & Apices

10. Leaf Margins & Other Types

11. Buds & Twigs

12. Loblolly Pine Pinus taeda
Form: Open Spreading Crown
Grayish Coloring To Cone
3 (Occasionally 2) needles

13. Slash Pine Pinus elliottii
Form: Round Top Head
Carmel Coloring To Cone
2 and 3 needles

14. White ash Fraxinus americana
Single Samara
Opposite, pinnately compound
U Shaped Leaf Scar

15. Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvania
Opposite, pinnately compound
Single Samara
U Shaped Scar
Brown Tinged with Red, Slightly Furrowed or Ridged

16. Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides
Simple, Alternate, Triangular, Square Base, Coarsely Toothed
Prominent Lenticels, Triangular Leaf Scars
Male Catkins

17. American elm Ulmus americana
Alternate, Simple, Double Serrate, Oblique Base
Alternate, Inconspicuous Lenticels, Elevated semicircular Leaf Scars
Broad Flat-Topped Ridges, Deep Elliptical Fissures

18. Common hackberry Celtis occidentalis
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous, Serrate, Asymmetrical Base
Alternate, Numerous Pale Lenticels
Many Corky Ridges, Gray-Brown to Silver-Gray

19. Honeylocust Gleditsia triacanthos
Seed Pods
Alternate, Deciduous, Pinnate & Bipinnately compound
Irregular Shield-shaped Leaf Scars, Stout Thorns
Gray-brown to Black, Scaly Ridges, Deep Fissures

20. Boxelder maple Acer negundo
Opposite, Coarsely Serrate, Pinnately compound
Double Samara, Slightly Converging Wings
Scattered Pale Lenticels

21. Mulberry Morus spp. Cluster, Dark-red to Purplish
Gray-brown, Scattered Gray Lenticels
Catkins
Alternate, Simple,Deciduous, Toothed & Lobed

22. Bur oak Quercus macrocarpa
Acorn, Usually Solitary, Deep Bowl-shaped Cup, With conspicuous Fringe, Enclosing up to ¾ of the Nut
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous, 5 to 9 Lobed, Coarsely Toothed Terminal Lobe
Half Round Leaf Scars
Hairy Stalked Catkins

23. Eastern redbud Cercis canadensis
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous, Kidney Shaped, Heart Shaped or Flattened Base
Calyx Tube, Flower
Pod 2” – 3 ½”

24. Eastern redcedar Juniperus virginiana
Awl-shaped, Sharp-pointed, Spreading and Whitened
Scale-like in 4 ranks Giving Square appearance
Thin Reddish-brown Bark, Peels Off in Long Shred-like Strips

25. Sycamore Platanus occidentalis
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous, Wavy With Short or Long Tapering Teeth, Flat or Heart Shaped Base
Persistent Multiple Of Achenes Forming A Head 1” in Diameter
Bark Mottled By Large Plate-like Scales

26. Black walnut Juglans nigra
Alternate, Compound, Extremely Tapering At End, Toothed Along Margin
Born Singly Or In Pairs, Nut Has Hard Thick Shell
Many Raised Orange Lenticels, Large Shield Shaped Leaf Scars

27. Pecan Carya illinoensis
Alternate, Compound, Tapering At End, Toothed Along Margin
Ellipsoidal Nut,Thin Skinned Husk, 4-Winged From Base to Apex
Conspicuous Orange-brown Lenticels, Obovate Leaf Scars

28. Osage-orange Maclura pomifera
Alternate, Simple, Oval-pointed
Short Axillary Thorns, Triangular To Kidney Shaped Leaf Scars
Compact Cluster Of Green Oblong Firm Drupelets, Appearance Of A Green Orange
Broad Rounded Interlacing Ridges

29. Post oak Quercus stellata
Acorn, Occasionally In Pairs, Bowl Shaped Cup Enclosing 1/3 Of Nut
Half Round Bundle Leaf Scars, Pale Lenticels
Alternate, Deciduous, Usually Unequally 5-lobed

30. Live oak Quercus virginiana (or fusiformis)
40-50 Feet High, Branching Close To Ground Into A Few Massive Wide Spreading Limbs, Round Topped Crown
Alternate, Simple, Evergreen, Entire Margin
Acorn, In Clusters of 3 to 5, Top Shaped Cup Enclosing 1/3 of Nut

31. Black willow Salix nigra
30-40 Feet High, Clustered Stems Forming Broad Irregular Open Crown
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous, Lanceolate Shaped
Dark Brown to Black, Deeply Divided, Shaggy Scales on Old Trunks

32. Bur Oak
Test Tree #1
Bur oak

33. Common Hackberry Test Tree #2

34. Green Ash
Test Tree #3
Green ash

35. Mulberry
Test Tree #4
Mulberry

36. Eastern Cottonwood Test Tree #5

37. American Elm Test Tree #6

38. Eastern Redcedar Test Tree #7

39. Sycamore
Test Tree #8
Sycamore

40. Eastern Redbud Test Tree #9

41. Loblolly Pine
Test Tree #10
Loblolly Pine

43. Thank you
John Ross