What makes a tree a tree?• Heights at least 4.5

meters (about 15 feet)• Single dominant

woody stem (trunk or bole)

• Capable of diameter growth

• Perennial plant (present at all seasons of the year)

What makes a shrub a shrub?

• Heights under 4.5 meters (less than 15 feet)

• Multi-stemmed• Capable of diameter

growth• Perennial plant

Conifers vs. Deciduous

Which is Which?

Characteristics of Conifers

• Needle shaped leaves• Seeds that develop

inside cones• Evergreen – green

year round• Gymnosperm, conifer,

softwood• Examples: pine,

spruce, hemlock, fir

Examples of conifers

Balsam fir Douglas fir

Fraser fir Scotch pine

Red pine

White pine

Conifer leaves

• Needle like • Scale like

Deciduous Tree Characteristics

• Broad flat leaves• Lose all leaves each

year in the fall• Angiosperm

(flowering plants), broadleaf, hardwood

• Examples: oak, maple, beech, aspen, ash

Deciduous examples

Red oak Red maple

Black locustWhitebirch

Crimson king

Honey locust

beech

Elm

Leaf Arrangement

alternate opposite whorl

Leaf TypeSimple vs. Compound

Leaf EdgeLobed , smooth, toothed?

Fruits & Seeds

Overall shape

SUGAR MAPLE

Sugar Maple leafs have 5 major points (or lobes);

Leaves do NOT have teeth, and have a more U-shaped pattern between lobes

Leaves are as wide as they are tall, unlike Oak leaves; Opposite leaves

RED MAPLE

Red Maple leafs have only 3 major points (or lobes), compared to 5 with sugar maples.

Leaves have fine teetch, and are V-shaped between lobes

‘Helicopter’ fruit in maple trees is called a samara

American Beech

Oval leaf with parallel, straight veins and big ‘teeth’

Unlike Ash, Beech leaves are NOT ‘opposite.”

Bark of beech trees is gray and smooth (look like an elephant’s leg)

RED OAK

Distinctive leave shape with 8 or more ‘lobes’ or leaf points

Leaves are taller than they are wide, unlike maple leaves

Oaks produce acorn fruits

Common tree in Vermont valleys, but less common in mountains.

WHITE ASH

Compound leaves are Opposite, oval-shaped and pointy, with no distinctive ‘teeth’ on the leaves

Tree structure is like a big stick-man (simple)

Grooved bark of mature trees is unique

WHITE BIRCH (PAPER BIRCH)

Leaves mostly triangular and pointy

Catkin fruit is long (like a worm)

White bark is a dead giveaway

Needles are much longer than spruce, and have an almost soft, fuzzy feel.

Each individual cluster of needles comes in bundles of 5 needles.

Whorls of branches that are spaced apart.

WHITE PINE

Needles completely circle the branch

Pointy needles are sharp and painful if you grab them. Diamond-shaped needles “roll” between your fingers.

Tree has a more rounded crown than balsam firs.

RED SPRUCE

The common X-mas tree

Needles are flat, of fairly uniform length and NOT sharply pointed.

Crown of the tree tapers to a point

BALSAM FIR

Short and flat needles compared to fir and spruce.

Needles dark green above with two dark lines on underside

Lacy silhouette of tree with no clear cone shape

HEMLOCK

YELLOW BIRCH

•Oval leave with ‘double toothed’ edge.• Broken stems (near leaves) smell like spearmint• Bark is yellow in color and more prone to ‘peeling’ than white birch

• Oval leaves with parallel, curvy veins & fine teeth• Underside of leaf often has orange hairs along stem.• Dark brown ‘potato chip’ bark

BLACK CHERRY

PIN CHERRY

• Bark is smooth with lots of ‘lenticel’ orange ovals• Small trees…rarely have diameters more than 4-6”• Leaves are finely toothed, but longer and more pointy than black cherry

STRIPED MAPLE

• Trunk has vertical green & gray stripes • Small trees (2-4” diameter)• Big dinner-plate sized leaves with 3 points and fine teeth

EASTERN HOPHORNBEAM

• Oval leaf with, medium sharp teeth and parallel veins• Distinctive bark with ‘vertical peeling’• Generally range from 4-10” in diamter (not huge)

Quaking Aspen (Trembling Aspen)

• Grayish White smooth bark• Leaves are small, ‘heart-shaped, with dull teeth; underside is lighter than the top• Leaves quake in the breeze,

Big-toothed Aspen

• medium-sized tree with smooth white/gray bark• It has rounded leaves with large teeth.

NORTHERN WHITE CEDAR

• Only Conifer tree that has needles like this• Medium sized tree• Thin bark sheds in long, narrow strips.

NORTHERN TAMARACK (LARCH)

• Only Conifer tree around that completely sheds its needles in the Fall (after they turn yellow)

• Needles spirally arranged and longer than spruce/fir/hemlock