Portal:Trees

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In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are usable as lumber or plants above a specified height. In wider definitions, the taller palms, tree ferns, bananas, and bamboos are also trees.

Trees are not a monophyletic taxonomic group but consist of a wide variety of plant species that have independently evolved a trunk and branches as a way to tower above other plants to compete for sunlight. The majority of tree species are angiosperms or hardwoods; of the rest, many are gymnosperms or softwoods. Trees tend to be long-lived, some reaching several thousand years old. Trees evolved around 370 million years ago, and it is estimated that there are around three trillion mature trees in the world currently.

A tree typically has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground by the trunk, which typically contains woody tissue for strength, and vascular tissue to carry materials from one part of the tree to another. For most trees the trunk is surrounded by a layer of bark which serves as a protective barrier. Below the ground, the roots branch and spread out widely; they serve to anchor the tree and extract moisture and nutrients from the soil. Above ground, the branches divide into smaller branches and shoots. The shoots typically bear leaves, which capture light energy and convert it into sugars by photosynthesis, providing the food for the tree's growth and development.

Trees usually reproduce using seeds. Flowers and fruit may be present, but some trees, such as conifers, instead have pollen cones and seed cones. Palms, bananas, and bamboos also produce seeds, but tree ferns produce spores instead.

Trees play a significant role in reducing erosion and moderating the climate. They remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store large quantities of carbon in their tissues. Trees and forests provide a habitat for many species of animals and plants. Tropical rainforests are among the most biodiverse habitats in the world. Trees provide shade and shelter, timber for construction, fuel for cooking and heating, and fruit for food as well as having many other uses. In much of the world, forests are shrinking as trees are cleared to increase the amount of land available for agriculture. Because of their longevity and usefulness, trees have always been revered, with sacred groves in various cultures, and they play a role in many of the world's mythologies. (Full article...)

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Acer rubrum, the red maple, also known as swamp maple, water maple, or soft maple, is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern and central North America. The U.S. Forest Service recognizes it as the most abundant native tree in eastern North America. The red maple ranges from southeastern Manitoba around the Lake of the Woods on the border with Ontario and Minnesota, east to Newfoundland, south to Florida, and southwest to East Texas. Many of its features, especially its leaves, are quite variable in form. At maturity, it often attains a height around 30 m (100 ft). Its flowers, petioles, twigs, and seeds are all red to varying degrees. Among these features, however, it is best known for its brilliant deep scarlet foliage in autumn.

Over most of its range, red maple is adaptable to a very wide range of site conditions, perhaps more so than any other tree in eastern North America. It can be found growing in swamps, on poor, dry soils, and almost anywhere in between. It grows well from sea level to about 900 m (3,000 ft). Due to its attractive fall foliage and pleasing form, it is often used as a shade tree for landscapes. It is used commercially on a small scale for maple syrup production and for its medium to high quality lumber. It is also the state tree of Rhode Island. The red maple can be considered weedy or even invasive in young, highly disturbed forests, especially frequently logged forests. In a mature or old-growth northern hardwood forest, red maple only has a sparse presence, while shade-tolerant trees such as sugar maples, beeches, and hemlocks thrive. By removing red maple from a young forest recovering from disturbance, the natural cycle of forest regeneration is altered, changing the diversity of the forest for centuries to come. (Full article...)

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... that the Paget Marsh Nature Reserve in Bermuda has been called the "best surviving example of native cedar, palmetto (pictured), and mangrove forests", yet at one point the island lost 99% of its cedar trees?
... that a canopy walkway connects seven tree tops in Ghana's Kakum National Park?
... that the ivory curl tree can grow 30 m (100 ft) tall in its natural rainforest habitat?
... that the trumpet tree, a fast-growing tree native to the American tropics, is considered one of the hundred worst invasive alien species in the world?
... that the installation of an artificial Christmas tree in Brussels prompted an online petition against it with 25,000 signatures?
... that a white oak tree with a trunk circumference of over 26 feet (7.9 m) grew near Wolf Run until it was cut down in 1852?
... that the blue nuthatch (pictured) protects its corneas from falling debris when prospecting on trees by contracting the bare skin around its eyes – an adaptation apparently unique to the species?

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Lukens c. 1890

Theodore Parker Lukens (October 6, 1848 – July 1, 1918) was an American conservationist, real estate investor, civic leader, and forester who believed that burned over mountains could again be covered in timber which would protect watersheds. Lukens collected pine cones and seeds of different types and conducted experimental plantings on the mountain slopes above Pasadena, California. His perseverance earned him the name "Father of Forestry."

Lukens established Henninger Flats tree nursery, which provided seed stock for an estimated 70,000 trees.

He worked for the United States Forest Service and was acting supervisor of the San Gabriel Timberland Reserve and the San Bernardino Forest Reserve in 1906. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various tree-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Latex collecting from a rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) (from Tree)
Image 2Selling firewood at a market (from Tree)
Image 3Common ash (Fraxinus excelsior), a deciduous broad-leaved (angiosperm) tree (from Tree)
Image 4Sugar maple (Acer saccharum) tapped to collect sap for maple syrup (from Tree)
Image 5The General Sherman Tree, thought to be the world's largest by volume (from Tree)
Image 6A section of yew (Taxus baccata) showing 27 annual growth rings, pale sapwood and dark heartwood (from Tree)
Image 7Conifers in the Swabian alps (from Tree)
Image 8Buds, leaves and reproductive structures of white fir (Abies alba) (from Tree)
Image 9World production of selected forest products (from Forest)
Image 10Priest River winding through Whitetail Butte with lots of forestry to the east—these lot patterns have existed since the mid-19th century. The white patches reflect areas with younger, smaller trees, where winter snow cover shows up brightly to the astronauts. Dark green-brown squares are parcels (from Forest)
Image 11European larch (Larix decidua), a coniferous tree which is also deciduous (from Tree)
Image 12Temperate rainforest in Tasmania's Hellyer Gorge (from Forest)
Image 13Roof trusses made from softwood (from Tree)
Image 14Share of forest area in total land area, top countries (2021) (from Forest)
Image 15Buds, leaves, flowers and fruit of oak (Quercus robur) (from Tree)
Image 16Form, leaves and reproductive structures of queen sago (Cycas circinalis) (from Tree)
Image 17Since the 13th century, the Niepołomice Forest in Poland has had special use and protection. In this view from space, different coloration can indicate different functions. (from Forest)
Image 18Malus sylvestris (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)
Image 19Diagram of secondary growth in a eudicot or coniferous tree showing idealised vertical and horizontal sections. A new layer of wood is added in each growing season, thickening the stem, existing branches and roots. (from Tree)
Image 20Wind dispersed seed of elm (Ulmus), ash (Fraxinus) and maple (Acer) (from Tree)
Image 21Proportion and distribution of global forest area by climatic domain, 2020 (from Forest)
Image 22Buttress roots of the kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra) (from Tree)
Image 23Proportion of forest in protected areas, by region, 2020 (from Forest)
Image 24Cracked thorny skin of a Aesculus tree seed (from Tree)
Image 25Burned forest on Thasos (from Forest)
Image 26Trees in art: Weeping Willow, Claude Monet, 1918 (from Tree)
Image 274000 years old Cypress of Abarqu is the oldest tree in Iran and the second oldest tree in the world. (from List of trees of Iran)
Image 28A young red pine (Pinus resinosa) with spread of roots visible, as a result of soil erosion (from Tree)
Image 29Yggdrasil, the World Ash of Norse mythology (from Tree)
Image 30Forest in the Scottish Highlands (from Forest)
Image 31People trees, by Pooktre (from Tree)
Image 32Latvian Pine Forest in Ķegums Municipality (from Forest)
Image 33Dormant Magnolia bud (from Tree)
Image 34Even, dense old-growth stand of beech trees (Fagus sylvatica) prepared to be regenerated by their saplings in the understory, in the Brussels part of the Sonian Forest. (from Forest)
Image 35Alleé of London plane trees (Platanus × acerifolia) in garden (from Tree)
Image 36The Daintree Rainforest (from Tree)
Image 37Recently stripped cork oak (Quercus suber) (from Tree)
Image 38Spiny forest at Ifaty, Madagascar, featuring various Adansonia (baobab) species, Alluaudia procera (Madagascar ocotillo) and other vegetation (from Forest)
Image 39Northern beech (Fagus sylvatica) trunk in autumn (from Tree)
Image 40Olive trees in Pakistan (from Trees of Pakistan)
Image 41A forest near Vinitsa, North Macedonia (from Forest)
Image 42Lepidodendron, an extinct lycophyte tree (from Tree)
Image 43Tall herbaceous monocotyledonous plants such as banana lack secondary growth, but are trees under the broadest definition. (from Tree)
Image 44Palms and cycads as they might have appeared in the middle Tertiary (from Tree)
Image 45Alnus glutinosa (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)
Image 46Informal upright style of bonsai on a juniper tree (from Tree)
Image 47Neem tree at Sant Nenuram Ashram (from Trees of Pakistan)
Image 48Share of land that is covered by forest (from Forest)
Image 49Fraxinus excelsior (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)
Image 50Redwood tree in northern California redwood forest, where many redwood trees are managed for preservation and longevity, rather than being harvested for wood production (from Forest)
Image 51The Amazon rainforest alongside the Solimões River, a tropical rainforest. These forests are the most biodiverse and productive ecosystems in the world. (from Forest)
Image 52Broadleaf forest in Bhutan (from Forest)
Image 53Garibaldi Provincial Park, British Columbia (from Forest)
Image 54Rowan tree in Wicklow, Ireland (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)