Portal:Trees

The Trees Portal

Common ash (*Fraxinus excelsior*), a deciduous broad-leaved (angiosperm) tree

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, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only plants that are usable as lumber, or only plants above a specified height. Wider definitions include taller palms, tree ferns, bananas, and bamboos.

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 trees reaching several thousand years old. Trees evolved around 400 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. Flowering plants have their seeds inside fruits, while conifers carry their seeds in cones, and 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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Ficus obliqua, Milton, New South Wales

Ficus obliqua, commonly known as the small-leaved fig, is a tree in the family Moraceae, native to eastern Australia, New Guinea, eastern Indonesia to Sulawesi and islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Previously known for many years as Ficus eugenioides, it is a banyan of the genus Ficus, which contains around 750 species worldwide in warm climates, including the edible fig (Ficus carica). Beginning life as a seedling, which grows on other plants (epiphyte) or on rocks (lithophyte), F. obliqua can grow to 60 m (200 ft) high and nearly as wide with a pale grey buttressed trunk, and glossy green leaves.

The small round yellow fruit ripen and turn red at any time of year, although ripening peaks in autumn and winter (April to July). Known as a syconium, the fruit is an inverted inflorescence with the flowers lining an internal cavity. Ficus obliqua is pollinated by two species of fig wasp—Pleistodontes greenwoodi and P. xanthocephalus. Many species of bird, including pigeons, parrots and various passerines, eat the fruit. The range is along the east coast from Queensland, through New South Wales in rainforest, savanna woodland, sclerophyll forest and gallery forest. It is used as a shade tree in parks and public spaces, and is well-suited for use as an indoor plant or in bonsai. All parts of the tree have been used in traditional medicine in Fiji. (Full article...)

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Did you know? -

The 1995 official White House Christmas tree

... that President Bill Clinton said he would personally pay the bill to keep the National Christmas Tree (pictured) lit during the government shutdown resulting from disagreements on the 1996 federal budget?
... that global precedence is the tendency to see the forest, and not the trees?
... that the mistletoe species Amyema congener of eastern Australia can grow on non-native peach, plum and pear trees?
... that foliage from the Australian rainforest tree Grevillea baileyana was used in the floral arrangements handed to medal winners at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney?
... that most of the habitat of the vulnerable tree Eucalyptus benthamii has disappeared under Warragamba Dam or been cleared?
... that the inspiration for the Paustian House in Copenhagen came to architect Jørn Utzon while he was walking through a forest of beech trees?
... that Washington was the second largest tree of its kind until its collapse in 2005?

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Adansonia digitata in Tanzania

Adansonia is a genus of medium-to-large deciduous trees known as baobabs (/ˈbaʊbæb/ or /ˈbeɪoʊbæb/). The eight species of Adansonia are native to Africa, Australia, and Madagascar but have also been introduced to other regions of the world, including Barbados, where several of the baobabs there are suspected to have originated from Africa. Other baobabs have been introduced to Asia. A genomic and ecological analysis further suggests that the genus itself originated from Madagascar.

The generic name Adansonia honours Michel Adanson, the French naturalist and explorer who provided the first detailed botanical description and illustrations of Adansonia digitata. The baobab, however, is also known as the "upside down tree," a name attributable to the trees' overall appearance and historical myths. Baobabs are among the most long-lived of vascular plants and have large flowers that are reproductive for a maximum of 15 hours. The flowers open around dusk with sufficiently rapid movement that is detectable by the naked eye. The fruits are large, oval to round and berry-like, and hold kidney-shaped seeds in a dry, pulpy matrix. (Full article...)

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General images

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

Image 1A young red pine (Pinus resinosa) with spread of roots visible, as a result of soil erosion (from Tree)
Image 2The General Sherman Tree, thought to be the world's largest by volume (from Tree)
Image 3Olive trees in Pakistan (from Trees of Pakistan)
Image 4Diagram 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 5Lepidodendron, an extinct lycophyte tree (from Tree)
Image 6Temperate rainforest in Tasmania's Hellyer Gorge (from Forest)
Image 7Buds, leaves and reproductive structures of white fir, Abies alba (from Tree)
Image 8Spiny forest at Ifaty, Madagascar, featuring various Adansonia (baobab) species, Alluaudia procera (Madagascar ocotillo) and other vegetation (from Forest)
Image 9Priest 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 10An avenue of London planes (Platanus × hispanica) in a garden in Belgium. (from Tree)
Image 11A forest near Vinitsa, North Macedonia (from Forest)
Image 12Share of forest area in total land area, top countries (2021) (from Forest)
Image 13Since 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 14Even, 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 15World production of selected forest products (from Forest)
Image 16Recently stripped cork oak (Quercus suber) (from Tree)
Image 17The Amazon rainforest alongside the Solimões River, a tropical rainforest. These forests are the most biodiverse and productive ecosystems in the world. (from Forest)
Image 18Fraxinus excelsior (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)
Image 19People trees, by Pooktre (from Tree)
Image 20Sugar maple (Acer saccharum) tapped to collect sap for maple syrup (from Tree)
Image 21Redwood 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 22Tall herbaceous monocotyledonous plants such as banana lack secondary growth, but are trees under the broadest definition. (from Tree)
Image 23Dormant buds of ash, Fraxinus excelsior (from Tree)
Image 24Garibaldi Provincial Park, British Columbia (from Forest)
Image 25Common ash (Fraxinus excelsior), a deciduous broad-leaved (angiosperm) tree (from Tree)
Image 26Neem tree at Sant Nenuram Ashram (from Trees of Pakistan)
Image 27Casentinesi Forests, Italy (from Forest)
Image 28Buttress roots of the kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra) (from Tree)
Image 29Informal upright style of bonsai on a juniper tree (from Tree)
Image 30Northern beech (Fagus sylvatica) trunk in autumn (from Tree)
Image 31Proportion and distribution of global forest area by climatic domain, 2020 (from Forest)
Image 32A section of yew (Taxus baccata) showing 27 annual growth rings, pale sapwood and dark heartwood (from Tree)
Image 33Latex collecting from a rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) (from Tree)
Image 34Alnus glutinosa (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)
Image 35Conifers in the Swabian alps (from Tree)
Image 36Wind dispersed seed of elm (Ulmus), ash (Fraxinus) and maple (Acer) (from Tree)
Image 37Proportion of forest in protected areas, by region, 2020 (from Forest)
Image 38Broadleaf forest in Bhutan (from Forest)
Image 39The Daintree Rainforest (from Tree)
Image 404000 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 41Buds, leaves, flowers and fruit of pedunculate oak, Quercus robur (from Tree)
Image 42Selling firewood at a market (from Tree)
Image 43Burned forest on Thasos (from Forest)
Image 44Cracked thorny skin of a Aesculus tree seed (from Tree)
Image 45Forest in the Scottish Highlands (from Forest)
Image 46Trees in art: Weeping Willow, Claude Monet, 1918 (from Tree)
Image 47Roof trusses made from softwood (from Tree)
Image 48European larch (Larix decidua), a coniferous tree which is also deciduous (from Tree)
Image 49Share of land that is covered by forest (from Forest)
Image 50Yggdrasil, the World Ash of Norse mythology (from Tree)
Image 51Palms and cycads as they might have appeared in the middle Tertiary (from Tree)
Image 52Rowan tree in Wicklow, Ireland (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)
Image 53Form, leaves and reproductive structures of queen sago, Cycas circinalis (from Tree)
Image 54Yellow cassia, an ornamental tree with yellow flowers (from Tree)
Image 55Latvian Pine Forest in Ķegums Municipality (from Forest)
Image 56Malus sylvestris (from List of trees of Great Britain and Ireland)