Oaks
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Fig. 11 White Oak
Fig. 12 Red Oak |
Botanists and dendrologists
consider oaks in two major groups: the white oaks and the red or black
oaks. The major distinction between the two is most obvious in the
leaves. Many kinds of tree leaves, including many oaks, have deeply
wavy edges. The inset or coved-in part is called the sinus, and the
projecting part is called the lobe. White oak leaves have rounded
lobes and red or black oaks have predominantly pointed, or so-called
bristle-tipped, lobes.
White oak and red oak acorns
have different characteristics, too. Some differences are visible and
some are more physiological. One feature that’s visually
distinguishable is that the white oak acorns’ cups tend to be warty,
whereas those of the red oak group tend to be scalier. The main
physiological difference is that white oak acorns mature in one season
and are ready to sprout when they fall. Although this physiological
difference is not as obvious as the leaf differences, there are
instances of white oaks having a heavy fall seed crop and an abundance
of new seedlings, with acorns still attached, sprouting under a parent
tree.
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Fig. 13 Black Oak twig with buds
Fig. 14 Black Oak twig with leaves
and acorns
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The black oak, as well as the
northern red oak, serves well to represent the red oak group. These
oaks have the characteristic clustered buds at the twig tips, a
feature that typifies oaks in general. The buds tend to be conical in
shape and are, of course, alternate on the twig as are the lower pair
of leaves in the red oak illustration. (Because the buds and leaves
are more crowded at the twig tip, the alternate pattern can be
obscured but it is definitely still there.)
Beech
The American beech is a
smooth-barked tree with simple, elliptical leaves. The side veins
coming off of the leaf’s central vein extend out to the leaf margin
and end in a tooth or small bristle tip.
Note that the American Beach
tree is afflicted with a condition called beech bark disease. The
disease is caused by a fungus and results in disfigurement of the bark
to the point of, in severe cases, rough bark that may look more like
that of an oak than a beech.
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Fig. 15 American Beech twig
with fruit and seeds |
Yellow Poplar
The yellow poplar, sometimes
called tulip poplar or tulip tree because of its flowers, is not a
true poplar. True poplars are in the willow family and the tulip
poplar is in the magnolia family. The yellow poplar has distinctively
shaped simple leaves—suggesting maple leaves that have been clipped
off with a pair of scissors—and conspicuous tulip-like flowers.
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Fig. 16 Yellow Poplar twig with
leaves |
Fig. 17 Yellow poplar leaves and
flowers |
American
Sycamore
Although not directly related to
maples, the sycamore has fairly large maple like-leaves. The buds are
cone shaped and tend to jut out from the twig. The sycamore’s
bark—blotched with brown and white—is probably its most distinguishing
feature and is recognizable from a distance, even from a vehicle while
traveling. Dendrologists consider the sycamore a bottomland tree
since its typical habitat is along the floodplain of streams and
rivers.
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Fig. 18 American Sycamore twig with leaves and fruit
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Fig. 19 American Sycamore twig
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Black Cherry
Black cherry has simple,
finely-toothed leaves. They are oblong or oval with pointed tips.
Flowers, and later the fruits, are borne in oblong clusters.
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Fig.
20 Black Cherry twig with leaves and flowers
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Basswood
American Basswood is another
tree with simple, toothed leaves. Unlike the black cherry, basswood
leaves are more rounded and tend to be lopsided at the base. The
flowers, then fruits, develop on a stem that extends from the base of
a long and narrow, leaf-like bract.
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Fig. 21 American Basswood
twig with leaves and fruit |
