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The dichotomous
tree key is a tool to identify the station trees by looking at
specific identification traits and then making a choice between two
options.
This first
section of the key is for spring, summer and fall. Click
here
to skip to the winter dichotomous tree key. Clicking on any
terms shown in
blue will take you to the
illustrated glossary.
Tree Key for
Spring, Summer and Fall
1A.
Does the tree bear
small fleshy soft CONES and do the leaves hug the twig and are
SCALE-like?
CLUE: These trees are called CONIFERS and most are
EVERGREEN.
Are the needle-like LEAVES dark green and
cones (if present) pale, berry-like and AROMATIC when crushed?
Eastern Redcedar, Juniperous virginianus
1B. Does the tree have
leaves that are flat, somewhat broad, thin, and generally shed
annually?
CLUE: These trees are called broadleaf and most are
DECIDUOUS and bear a variety of
FRUIT and
FLOWERS.
GO TO 2.
2A. Are leaves
SIMPLE
(One BLADE attached to a stalk or
PETIOLE)?
GO TO 3.
2B. Are the leaves
COMPOUND (more than 1
BLADE attached to a single stalk or
PETIOLE)?
GO TO
9
3A. Are the leaves
CHORDATE (heart shaped) with
PALMATE veins and broad as they are
long?
Eastern Redbud,
Cercis canadensis
3B.
Are the leaves not
as above (heart-shaped)?
GO TO 4.
4A. Do the twigs have
obvious corky wings and are leaf veins
PINNATE in a
CHEVRON pattern and is leaf
rough below with a DOUBLY
SERRATE
MARGIN, and
ASYMMETRIC base?
Winged Elm,
Ulmus alata
4B. Are the leaves and
bark not as above? GO TO 5.
5A. Are the
leaves 4-6 inches long with pointed tips, waxy, glossy upper
surface, and pale green below? Are they 2-3 inches wide with smooth
MARGINS and a
broad flat MIDRIB? Is bark dark and deeply grooved into thick square
plates?
Persimmon,
Diospyros
virginiana
5B. Are the leaves and
bark not as above? GO TO 6.
6A. Are the leaves
yellow-green, 15 cm long with 11-15 pairs of
PINNATE veins in a
CHEVRON
pattern? Are MARGINS
DOUBLY SERRATE? (Undersides are often hairy)
Eastern Hophornbeam,
Ostrya virginiana
6B. Are the leaves not
as above. GO TO 7.
7A. Are the leaves
PALMATE with broad-toothed edges and have 3-4 lobes separated by
broad shallow SINUSES? (This tree has bark high on the tree
that is peeling in an irregular pattern revealing light-colored underbark.)
American Sycamore,
Platanus occidentalis
7B. Are the leaves and
bark not as above? GO
TO 8.
8A.
Are the leaves
SIMPLE, oblong-lanceolate (oblong with both ends somewhat
pointed), 4-6 inches long, bright green above, pale and
PUBESCENT below, broadly
toothed along margin with large GLAND-tipped teeth.
Chinquapin Oak,
Quercus muehlenbergii
Are the leaves and
bark not as above? GO
TO
8B.
8B.
Are
leaves
SIMPLE,
do they resemble a Turkey foot in shape,
5-9 inches long, dark green and smooth above, pale yellow or gray
and PUBESCENT below, with 3-7
lobes and SINUSES almost to the
MIDRIB, base of leaf "U" shaped.
Southern Red Oak,
Quercus falcata
Are the leaves and
bark not as above? GO
TO
9.
9A. Are the leaves
PINNATELY
COMPOUND and
OPPOSITE to each other?
GO TO 10.
9B. Are the leaves
PINNATELY
COMPOUND and
ALTERNATE on the twig?
GO TO 11.
10A. Are the dark green
leaves 8-12 inches long with 5-9 (usually 7) leaflets that are 3-5
inches long? Are their MARGINS
ENTIRE or finely
TOOTHED with
forward teeth and prominent veins? The undersides of the leaves are
often PUBESCENT.
SAMARAS are pointed at the tip, and
the seeds are only partially
enclosed by the wings.
White Ash,
Fraxinus americana
10B. Are there 5-11
SERRATE
LEAFLETS (typically 9) each with an
OBLIQUE base and found
on a slender RACHIS?
SAMARAS if present are
boat-paddle shaped with blunt tips. Seed is completely
enclosed by the wing.
Blue Ash,
Fraxinus Quadrangulata
11 A & B. These leaves
should be PINNATELY
COMPOUND, each with a
TERMINAL
LEAFLET. Leaves
ALTERNATE along the twig. Leaflets are
TOOTHED, oval in shape
with pointed tips and may be AROMATIC when crushed.
11 A. Are the
LEAFLETS
in 5’s on stout RACHIS, 4 cm
PETIOLE, and
DOWNY on the underside?
Each leaf has a TERMINAL
LEAFLET and the bark flakes in long curling
plates?
Shagbark
Hickory,
Carya ovata
11B. Do the leaves have 7, 9, or 11
LEAFLETS and turn yellow in
autumn? Bark
not shaggy as above, but slate
gray to light gray, relatively smooth with tight interlacing ridges.
Bitternut Hickory,
Carya
cordiformis
Tree Key for
Winter
1A. Does the tree bear
small fleshy soft CONES and
the leaves hug the twig and are SCALE-like?
CLUE: these trees are called CONIFERS and most are
EVERGREEN
Are the needle-like leaves dark green and cones (if
present?) pale, berry
like and AROMATIC when
crushed?
Eastern Redcedar, Juniperous
virginianus
1B. Does the tree have
leaves that are flat, somewhat broad, thin, and generally shed
annually?
CLUE: These trees are called broadleaf and most are
DECIDUOUS and
bear a variety of FRUIT and
FLOWERS.
GO TO 2.
2A. Are the
BUDS
OPPOSITE each other?
GO TO 3.
2B. Are the buds not as
above? GO TO 4.
3A. Are the
BUDS
OBTUSE (rounded), broadly OVATE, 2 KEELED,
ACUTE,
HAIRY, black
in winter with stout SHOOTS that are often
GLABROUS after
blooming season. If present are the
SEEDS lance-shaped
SAMARAS with
pointed tips? Do the wings only partially enclose the seed?
White Ash,
Fraxinus americana
3B. Are the twigs
4-angled (square) with 4 corky narrow wings, becoming round in the 3rd
season with buds that are rounded, 6 mm, and slightly hairy? Is
bark gray with a diamond like pattern? If present, are seeds boat
paddle-shaped SAMARAS with blunt tips? Does the
wing
completely enclose the seed?
Blue Ash,
Fraxinus Quadrangulata
4A. Does the bark
flake in long curling plates? Are
TERMINAL BUDS
brown with 5-8 loose-fitting scales and 19-25mm long,
LATERAL BUDS
13mm long? Are BU D SCALES
IMBRICATE (overlapping)?
Shagbark
Hickory,
Carya ovata
4B. –
Is the bark not as
above? Are winter buds bright sulphur yellow,
VALVATE,
TERMINAL BUD 13mm long,
LATERAL BUDS 6mm long?
Bitternut Hickory,
Carya
cordiformis
5A. Is the bark
EXFOLIATING at the top of the tree in random paper thin patches
revealing light colored patches of underbark? Do twigs resemble a
zig zag?
American Sycamore,
Platanus occidentalis
5B. Are the bark and
twigs not as above?
GO TO 6.
6A. Are the shoots
slender, hairy in their first year and often with thick corky wings
after 3-4
years?
Winged Elm,
Ulmus alata
6B. Are the shoots and
twigs not as above?
GO TO 7.
7A. Are the small
dark alternate buds flattened in shape and
APPRESSED? Terminal
buds lacking? Are twigs zig-zag, slender,
GLABROUS gray to
reddish brown with orange
LENTICELS? Older bark is dark grey/black
and cracked into squares?
Persimmon,
Diospyros
virginiana
7B. Are the buds and
bark not as above? GO
TO 8.
8A. Is the bark
reddish-brown and broken into narrow APPRESSED plates that are shaggy
at their ends like Eastern Redcedar bark? Are young shoots light green and hairy? Are buds
6mm long, ACUTE,
bud scales finely striated with brown edges that contrast with light
green centers? Are leaves PERSISTENT in winter?
Eastern Hophornbeam,
Ostrya virginiana
8B. Are the bark,
shoots, and buds not as above?
GO TO 9.
9A. Are the twigs
slender with a zig zag pattern and no
TERMINAL BUD, while
LATERAL
BUDS are small, dark, APPRESSED and often
SUPERPOSED?
Eastern Redbud,
Cercis canadensis
9B. Are the twigs
not as above? Do the twigs have clusters of buds at the tips?
10A. Is
the bark light gray and thin with shallow fissures, forming
irregular squarish scales?
Chinquapin Oak,
Quercus muehlenbergii
11B. Is
the bark dark gray or blackish, divided by shallow fissures into
ridges? Is underbark visible in fissures orange?
Southern Red Oak,
Quercus falcata
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