How to identify the most common tree species in winter

There is not much to discover in the city in winter - or is there? If you take a winter stroll through the streets of the city, you will be able to see which trees stand along the way, even in the cold season. In winter, the leaves of deciduous trees are missing, so you have to look more closely. The appearance of the buds and the quality of the branches and trunk can also be used to determine the type of tree. In this text, we explain the most important characteristics and describe the most important urban trees. With a little practice and an eye for detail, your next winter walk can become a botanical excursion.

The Bark and Lenticels

Another important characteristic of deciduous trees in winter is the condition of the trunk, branches, twigs and the bark. The bark is the visible and outer part of the stem and the roots, made up of dead tissue and cortex. Some species, such as the red beech, have a very smooth bark. In addition to the taxture of the bark, lenticels on the bark of the trunk and on younger branches and twigs can be a useful identification feature. Lenticles are pores in the cortex that allow the cortical tissue to breathe. Their number, size and occurrence are characteristic of certain species and genera and are therefore useful for species identification.

The characteristics of the most common deciduous trees in the city

Linden

The Small-leaved lime (Tilia cordata) is a particularly popular urban tree. The shoots of the linden are 4 to 6 mm long, short and egg-shaped. They have 2 to 3 red to burgundy-coloured scales, which can appear slightly greenish in the shade. The lowermost one usually reaches half the height of the bud. The twigs of the Small-leaved lime are bare and brownish red. They can be greenish in the shade and have numerous lenticels. The bark of the Small-leaved lime is grey and very smooth when it is young, but later it becomes brownish-black and increasingly striated. The trunk is often surrounded by what is known as stumpshoots. This term describes newly formed branches at the base of the trunk. Another characteristic of the linden is its fruits, which remain on the tree during the winter. The fruits are small, roundish capsules.

Maple

Maple trees are popular urban trees. The Norway maple (Acer platanoides) is often planted in cities. The buds of the Norway maple have 4 to 6 burgundy scales, which can be greenish only on young shoots or in the shade. The terminal bud is 8 to 12 mm long and short-egg-shaped, and relatively broad and elongated. The side buds are smaller, flattened and lie close to the branch. The twigs of the Norway maple are olive to dark brown or sometimes grey with bright, elongated lenticels. The trunk of the Norway maple is smooth when young. Later it develops a fine, longitudinally rippled, grey or dark grey bark.

Oak

In towns, the Common Oak (Quercus robur) is the most commonly planted tree. The short, round, oval-shaped buds of the Common Oak are usually more pointed than those of other species. They also have few edges and are about 1.5 times as long as they are thick. Another characteristic is the knotty arrangement of the main branches, which is particularly noticeable in winter when there is no foliage. The branches are bare. Young trees may have a rather smooth bark at first. However, a deeply grooved, longitudinally striped, light-grey to grey-brown bark soon develops. The characteristic feature of the stalked oak is its stalked cones, which distinguish it from most other oaks. They are up to 3.5mm long and initially green, then brown.

Plane tree

Another common urban tree is the plane tree. The London plane (Platanus acerifolia) is a hybrid, also a transitional form of various plane species. The species does not have a distinct terminal bud, but only lateral buds with rounded edges and a stumpy shape. Each bud is covered by a single bud scale. In contrast to many other species, the buds of the Ahornblättrige Platane are not arranged opposite to each other but alternate. In addition, the buds at the end of the branches are up to 10 mm larger than those at the base of the branch. The twigs have an olivine to reddish brown colour. Older twigs may be grey to grey-brown. There are many roundish, light ochre lenticels on the twigs. A characteristic of the species and the genus is that the bark peels away from the trunk in large slabs, creating a mottled pattern. The fruits of the Ahornblättrige Platane are globules that remain on the tree in winter.

Chestnut

The Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) is usually easy to recognise, even in winter, by its large, egg-shaped, reddish to dark-brown, very sticky buds. The terminal bud is about 2 cm larger than the lateral bud. Horse chestnuts can grow to a height of 25 m and develop broad, spreading crowns with overhanging branches as they age. These thick, grey-brown, drooping branches make them easy to spot from a distance, even in winter. The bark of young trees is smooth and light brown and later becomes scaly, forming smaller and larger slabs.