1. Seeing the Forest
and the
Trees
A brief overview
Nevin Dawson
Forest Stewardship Educator
Wye Research and Education Center

2. Outline
 The Trees
 ID
 Physiology and ID
 Tree ID outdoors
 Tree ID indoors
 The Forest
 Forest Ecology
 Forest Stewardship
 Forest Threats and Management: EAB case study
 Invasive Plants

3. Tree ID
 Different species have different appearance
 Different species have different needs
 Different species have different response to
management
 Different species have different growth habits
 Different species have different uses for both
humans and wildlife

4. Tree ID
 Dichotomous Key
1. Is it brown or red?
 If brown go to 2
 If red go to 3
2. Can you hold it in your hand?
 If yes go to 4
 If no go to 5
…
4. Is it electronic?
1. If yes, than it’s your cell phone
2. If no, it’s your wallet

5. Tree ID
Broadleaf/deciduous/hardwood/angiosperm or
conifer/evergreen/softwood/gymnosperm?
Red maple
(Acer rubrum)
White pine
(Pinus strobus)

6. Tree ID
 Needle: long or scales?
Virginia pine
(Pinus virginiana)
Eastern redcedar
(Juniperis virginiana)

7. Tree ID
 Needles: single or in bundles?
Eastern hemlock
(Tsuga canadensis)
White pine
(Pinus strobus)
Virginia pine
(Pinus virginiana)
Loblolly pine
(Pinus taeda)
Eastern white pine
(Pinus strobus)
Shortleaf pine
(Pinus strobus)

8. Tree ID
 Twigs/leaves: Alternate or opposite or whorled?
Whorled
(few; e.g.
Catalpa)
Alternate
(most)
Opposite
(MADCAP Horse)

9. Tree ID
 Leaf: simple or pinnate compound or palmate
compound?

10. Tree ID
 Leaf: entire/smooth or dentate or serrate?

11. Tree ID
 Leaf: obovate or ovate or lanceolate or cordate?

12. Tree ID
 Leaf: Glacous or pubescent or waxy?

13. Tree ID
 Chambered pith: yes or no?
Black walnut
(Juglans nigra)

14. Tree ID
 Leaf scar: 1, 3, or many bundles?

15. Tree ID
 Lenticels: yes or no?

16. Tree ID
 Fruit: nut or drupe or samara or cone?
Flowering dogwood
(Cornus florida)
Red maple
(Acer rubrum)

17. Tree ID
 Form: overstory or shrub?

18. Tree ID
 Bark: scaly or shaggy or smooth?
Flowering dogwood
(Cornus florida)
Shagbark hickory
(Carya ovata)
American beech
(Fagus grandifolia)

19. Tree ID
 Search for “Virginia Tech leaf key” online
 Dichotomous key
 Multi-chotomous key

20. Tree ID
 Apps
 Leaf Snap
 VTree
 Audubon
 Tree Doctor
 Field guides
 Audubon
 Peterson
 Apps
 Software

21. Tree Anatomy and
Physiology
 Anatomy
 Nutrient and Water Flow
 Hormones
 Nutrition

24. It’s True!

26. Early Wood v. Late Wood

27. Stoma

28. Tree Morphology and Crown Form
 Apical dominance
 Hormone translocation
 Growth promoters
 Auxin (IAA: indole-3-acetic acid)
 Gibberellic Acid (GA)
 Cytokinins
 Inhibitors
 Abscisic acid (AA)
 Ethylene

30. Essential Elements
 Nutrients considered
essential if
 Plant cannot complete its life
cycle without it
 Its part of a molecule of
some essential plant
constituent

31. Essential Elements
 Macronutrients
(>1000 ppm)
 Nitrogen
 Often limiting factor
 Phosphorus
 Potassium
 Calcium
 Magnesium
 Sulfur
 Micronutrients
 Iron
 Manganese (can be
toxic)
 Zinc
 Copper
 Boron
 Molybdenum
 Chlorine

32. Summary
 Trees are complex
organisms that
communicate internally
and externally
 Variation both within and
between species
 An understanding of how
trees work can help you
manage them

33. Forest Management

34. Forestry as Art and Science
Science: knowledge covering general truths especially as obtained
and tested through the scientific method and concerned with the
physical world and its phenomena (Merriam-Webster)
 Pinchot as America’s first forester
 Founded conservation movement:
sustainable use v. exploitation
 Founded Society of American Foresters 1900
50 accredited degree programs
 US Forest Service
 Created 1891
 Manages for the “greatest good”

35. Forestry as Art and Science
Art: Skill that is attained by study, practice, or observation; Skill
arising from the exercise of intuitive faculties (American Heritage)
 Infinite variation in interaction of trees and
resources
 Too complicated to quantify completely
 Thus the Art

36. Forest Ecology

37. The Dynamic Natural Area:
Principles of Succession
1. Natural areas change over time, whether or not you
do anything to them.
2. You can accelerate the process of succession
3. Stop mowing and the natural process of succession
will eventually provide a forest.

38. The Dynamic Natural Area:
Principles of Succession
4. Some plants need full sunlight: shade-intolerant
species. Others are able to get started in partial shade:
shade-tolerant species.
5. Different successional stages provide different wildlife
habitat, aesthetics, and recreation.
6. A small wooded lot may not contain every stage of
succession

39. Forestry Principles
 Tree size not directly
related to age
 Different tree species
require different conditions
 Trees grow at different
rates
 Compete for
resources
(i.e., sunlight,
water, and nutrients)
 Nature v. nurture
 Forests are
3-dimensional
25 years
25 years

40. Forestry Principles
 Trees reproduce either from seeds or sprouts
 Trees don’t live forever; dead trees valuable for wildlife
and soil
 No matter how you manage your land, but especially if
you practice passive management, invasive and exotic
species will inhabit it.

41. Forestland Goals

42. Forestland Goals
What could you manage a forest for?
• Oxygen
• Timber
• Wildlife
• Food production (consume/sell)
• Recreation
• Energy (burning)
• Energy conservation
• Water quality
• Carbon sequestration

43. Forestland Goals
 USDA Forest Service Forest Stewardship
Program Goal Categories
 Soil & Water
 Fish & Wildlife
 Recreation & Aesthetics
 Forest Products
 Passive Management

44. Forestland Goals
 Soil & Water
 Improve Riparian Buffer
 Plant Nitrogen-fixing trees

45. Forestland Goals
 Fish & Wildlife
 Create brush or rock piles
 Encourage growth of wildlife food trees
 Improve shelter opportunities by planting trees or
creating soft edge
 Improve water quality and conditions

46. Forestland Goals
 Recreation & Aesthetics
 Create or improve trails
 Create a campfire or camping area
 Improve opportunities for hunting or
wildlife watching
 Create or enhance a scenic view
 Plant trees that have brilliant fall color
or flowers
 Clean up natural areas damaged by
insects, disease, or storms

47. Forestland Goals
 Forest Products
 Timber
 Firewood for personal or others’ use
 Ginseng or other medicinal plants
 Grapevines for wreaths
 Shiitake mushrooms

48. Forestland Goals
 Passive Management
 Do-nothing approach
 Allow Nature to take its course
 Be aware of innate human influence
 Invasives/exotics
 Fire suppression
 Forest will change with or without your
intervention

49. Forestry as a Management Tool
 Once goals are set, plan out steps to reach them
 Three methods to affect change
 Plant trees/plants
 Remove trees/plants
 Do nothing

50. Forestry as a Management Tool
Plant trees/plants
 Change composition of forest
 Mast trees
 Flowering trees
 Timber trees
 Compensate for deer browse
 Spacing affects growth

51. Forestry as a Management Tool
Remove trees/plants
 Prune
 Remove non-essential branches
 Change growth pattern
 Produce clear wood for higher value
 Spray
 Change species composition
 Remove certain plant types
 Cut

52. Forestry as a Management Tool
Remove trees/plants
 Cut
 Thin
 Crop tree release
 Selection
 Single tree
 Group
 Shelterwood
 Seed tree
 Clearcut

53. Forestry as a Management Tool

54. Forestry as a Management Tool
Thinning
 Trees draw from a limited pool of resources
 Sun
 Water
 Nutrients
 Light is most limiting
 Remove worst trees (wolf trees) to increase
growth of best trees
 Sometimes incur cost now for increased profit
later

55. Forestry as a Management Tool
Thinning—Crop Tree Management
 Step 1: Identify your goals!
 Wildife, large trees, color, diversity, firewood, etc.
 Step 2: Define crop tree attributes
 Based on objectives
 Assessment will determine number
 Step 3: Mark crop trees in the woods
 Step 4: Remove (or kill) competing trees
 Can kill and leave or cut down for products

56. Forestry as a Management Tool
Thinning—Crop Tree Management

57. Questions?
Nevin Dawson
Forest Stewardship Educator
Wye Research and Education Center
ndawson@umd.edu 410-827-8056 x125