Tree Identification - Black Poplar

I originally identified this tree as a Beech, but as soon as I identified a real Beech I realised my mistake. It’s taken me a while to correctly identify this one, and I hope I’ve got it right this time!

Move over Beech, it is time to meet the Black Poplar – (Populus nigra). I have a prime example of this in my garden, although it will have to be felled soon as it is slowly succumbing to high winds.

The Black Poplar is a deciduous tree, and another native of the British Isles. It can grow up to 30 metres tall and often leans, giving it a distinctive shape.

Like the Beech, its twigs have alternating buds althoough the buds are shorter and stubbier than the Beech, and they grow more in the direction of the twig rather than outwards. Towards Spring catkins will also be evident.

Its bark is a mixture of grey and brown, and is thick and furrowed.

Whilst Poplar is a poor firewood, its timber is both light and tough and so used for a variety of purposes.

Tree Identification - Beech

I’d like to dedicate this post to Xalior since I know how much he is enjoying this series.

I got this one wrong The photos have been replaced with ones of an actual Beech, whilst you can find the original photos correctly identified as a Black Poplar.

As the (mighty) Scots Pine fades into the annals of the interweb, our attention is turned to the Beech – (Fagus sylvatica – meaning “Beech of forests”, imaginative lot these latin speakers…). I have a large number of these in my garden, with the majority former a border between my garden and the rest of my land.

The Beech is a deciduous tree, and a native of the British Isles. It can grow up to 40 metres (that’s over 130 feet) tall, although the large examples are in decline due to a combination of lowering water tables causing die back in some and high winds felling others.

Its twigs have alternating shoots, with long slender buds growing out from the twig. It’s leaves are glossy green on the top, and have plain edges.

Beech trees often keep their leaves long after others have fallen.

I’ll update with a photo of the leaves later in the year.

Beech bark is typically gray and smooth, and retains this appearance throughout the life of the tree.

Beech wood burns well when seasoned. Green Beech wood will burn, but not as well. As well as being a good firewood and for producing charcoal, the timber is used for furniture – although usually used for smaller components – and flooring.

Apparently the leaves make a “fine salad vegetable”, but they are better eaten in Spring than later in the year.

Beech nuts, best gathered in Autumn, are edible although tedious to peel. The kernels can roasted and ground to make a coffee substitute, or pressed to extract oil which can be used for salad dressings or cooking. Sawdust can be boiled, baked, mixed with flour and made into bread.

Tree Identification - Scots Pine

Last time it was the turn of the Silver Birch, this time it is the mighty Scots Pine – (Pinus sylvestris which means “pine of the woods”). I have a few of these in my garden.

A coniferous tree also common throughout the UK and native to northern Europe – in fact it is the only native British Pine. Its needles grow in pairs up to 8cm long and are slightly twisted.

It has a scaly bark.

Pine wood burns well, although it has a tendency to spit. Due to its high levels of resin it makes excellent kindling. Its wood is also commonly used for all manner of wood products.

The needles of a Pine tree make an excellent tea, which contains plenty of vitamin C. Pine trees can also be consumed in various other ways as described by Euell Gibbons in an excerpt from his book Stalking The Healthful Herbs.

Tree Identification - Silver Birch

It’s always best to tackle things in small pieces. It makes hard jobs simpler, and learning difficult subjects easier. As part of my efforts to improve my outdoor skills I decided to work on my tree identification skills which are currently, to be fair, pretty rubbish. Instead of spending hours swotting up I going to take a different approach.

Fortunately my garden has a quite a number of trees, with a fair number of different species. I’m going to take one tree at a time, identify it, research it and publish what I here along with some pictures. Following this process should help lock what I’ve learnt in my head and in time build up to a decent collection. I don’t intend to write either the authoritative or even a complete work on tree recognition, but if what I write helps others then that is an added bonus. I’m starting this effort now as I want to be able to identify the trees in both winter and summer. Once I’m done with my garden then I’ll move further afield.

First of all is the Silver Birch (Betula Pendula) – a stalwart of bushcraft and an easy identification. I thought I had a few of these in the garden but on closer inspection I have only one.

A deciduous tree common throughout the UK. Easily distinguished by its triangular (or more accurately rounded kite) shaped, serrated edged leaves and distinctive white/grey bark.

I’ll post a photo of the leaves when they come out. I know I could source an image from somewhere else, but that defeats the object somewhat.

In winter the hairless twigs have alternating buds and may have catkins – especially towards spring. On my example below the catkins are quite obvious, possibly as a result of the ridiculously mild minter we are having.

Birch wood burns quickly but gives out good heat and pleasant smell.

A diuretic can be concocted from the leaves, and in the spring the tree can tapped and sap extracted from the tree (although care must be taken not to ‘bleed’ the tree dry) which can be fermented into wine, drank neat, or – as recommended by Ray Mears – frozen into ice cubes and served with a good single malt.

See the bottom of this page for recipes for both the tea and wine.

The bark of a Silver Birch tree is extremely useful. It can be peeled off the tree like paper (do not take bark in a full circle around the tree though – this will ‘girdle’ the tree and eventually kill it) and is waterproof. Due to its flexibility it can be used to make a variety of objects from small containers right up to Canoes! The bark is also a wonderful aid to fire lighting and is amongst the best of the natural tinders.