Tree Identification
John Ross
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
jross@burditt.com
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)
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
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)
Leaf Arrangement & “Parts”
Compound Leaf Types
Leaf Bases & Apices
Leaf Margins & Other Types
Buds & Twigs
Loblolly Pine
Pinus taeda
Form: Open Spreading Crown
Grayish Coloring To Cone
3 (Occasionally 2) needles
Slash Pine
Pinus elliottii
Form: Round Top Head
Carmel Coloring To Cone
2 and 3 needles
White ash
Fraxinus americana
Opposite, pinnately compound
U Shaped Leaf Scar
Single Samara
Green ash
Fraxinus pennsylvania
Opposite, pinnately compound
Single Samara
U Shaped Scar
Brown Tinged with Red,
Slightly Furrowed or Ridged
Eastern cottonwood
Populus deltoides
Simple, Alternate, Triangular,
Square Base, Coarsely Toothed
Prominent Lenticels,
Triangular Leaf Scars
Male Catkins
American elm
Ulmus americana
Alternate, Simple, Double
Serrate, Oblique Base
Alternate, Inconspicuous
Lenticels, Elevated
semicircular Leaf Scars
Broad Flat-Topped Ridges,
Deep Elliptical Fissures
Common hackberry
Celtis occidentalis
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous,
Serrate, Asymmetrical Base
Alternate, Numerous Pale
Lenticels
Many Corky Ridges, GrayBrown to Silver-Gray
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
Boxelder maple
Acer negundo
Opposite, Coarsely Serrate,
Pinnately compound
Double Samara, Slightly
Converging Wings
Scattered Pale Lenticels
Mulberry
Morus spp.
Cluster, Dark-red
to Purplish
Alternate, Simple,Deciduous,
Toothed & Lobed
Catkins
Gray-brown,
Scattered Gray
Lenticels
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
Hairy Stalked Catkins
Half Round Leaf
Scars
Eastern redbud
Cercis canadensis
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous, Kidney Shaped, Heart
Shaped or Flattened Base
Calyx Tube, Flower
Pod 2” – 3 ½”
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
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 Platelike Scales
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
Pecan
Carya illinoensis
Alternate, Compound, Tapering At
End, Toothed Along Margin
Ellipsoidal Nut,Thin Skinned Husk, 4Winged From Base to Apex
Conspicuous Orangebrown Lenticels, Obovate
Leaf Scars
Osage-orange
Maclura pomifera
Alternate, Simple, Oval-pointed
Broad Rounded Interlacing Ridges
Short Axillary Thorns,
Triangular To Kidney
Shaped Leaf Scars
Compact Cluster Of Green
Oblong Firm Drupelets,
Appearance Of A Green Orange
Post oak
Quercus stellata
Alternate, Deciduous, Usually
Unequally 5-lobed
Acorn, Occasionally In Pairs,
Bowl Shaped Cup Enclosing 1/3
Of Nut
Half Round Bundle Leaf
Scars, Pale Lenticels
Live oak
Quercus virginiana (or fusiformis)
Alternate, Simple,
Evergreen, Entire Margin
Acorn, In Clusters of 3 to 5, Top
Shaped Cup Enclosing 1/3 of Nut
40-50 Feet High, Branching Close
To Ground Into A Few Massive
Wide Spreading Limbs, Round
Topped Crown
Black willow
Salix nigra
Alternate, Simple, Deciduous,
Lanceolate Shaped
Dark Brown to Black, Deeply
Divided, Shaggy Scales on Old
Trunks
30-40 Feet High, Clustered
Stems Forming Broad Irregular
Open Crown
Bur Oak
Test Tree #1
Common Hackberry
Test Tree #2
Green Ash
Test Tree #3
Mulberry
Test Tree #4
Eastern Cottonwood
Test Tree #5
American Elm
Test Tree #6
Eastern Redcedar
Test Tree #7
Sycamore
Test Tree #8
Eastern Redbud
Test Tree #9
Loblolly Pine
Test Tree #10
Thank you
John Ross