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Scientific Name: Cercis canadensis

Common Name: eastern redbud

Native Range: Eastern North America

Zone: 4 to 8

Plant type & Form: Tree; often multi-trunked understory tree with a rounded crown that typically matures to 20-30’ tall with a slightly larger spread

Height: 20.00 to 30.00 feet

Spread: 25.00 to 35.00 feet

Bloom Time: April

Bloom Description: stunning pea-like rose-purple flowers which bloom profusely on bare branches in early spring (March-April) before the foliage emerges

Bark: can be reddish

Fruit: Flowers are followed by flattened leguminous bean-like dry seedpods (to 2-4” long) that mature to brown in summer. Each pod has 6-12 seeds. Pods may remain on the tree into winter

Leaf: Alternate, simple, cordate, broadly ovate to nearly orbicular, dull green to blue-green leaves (3-5” across) have a papery texture and are short pointed at the tip

Sun: Full sun to part shade

Water: Medium

Soil type & pH: average, medium moisture, well-drained soils

Maintenance: Low

Suggested Use: Street Tree, Flowering Tree, Naturalize

Tolerates: Deer, Clay Soil, Black Walnut

Identification notes: Look for hear shaped leaves and small brown pods

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

Scientific Name: Quercus alba

Common Name: white oak

Native Range: Eastern United States

Zone: 3 to 9

Plant type & Form: Tree; Pyramidal when young, but matures into a substantial tree with a wide-spreading, rounded crown.

Height: 50.00 to 80.00 feet

Spread: 50.00 to 80.00 feet

Bloom Time: May

Bloom Description: Yellowish-green

Bark: whiteish plating

Fruit: Fruits are oval acorns (to 3/4″ long) with warty-scaled cups.

Leaf: 4-9″ long; have 7 to 9 deep rounded lobes. Leaves emerge pinkish in spring, but mature to dark green.

Sun: Full sun

Water: Dry to medium

Soil type & pH: rich, moist, acidic, well-drained

Maintenance: Low

Suggested Use: Shade Tree, Street Tree

Tolerates: Drought, Clay Soil, Dry Soil, Shallow-Rocky Soil, Black Walnut

Identification notes: Loove for round lobe leaves and white, plating bark

Scientific Name: Acer platanoides

Common Name: Norway maple

Native Range: Northeastern Europe to Caucauses

Zone: 3 to 7

Plant type & Form: Tree with dense, symmetrical, rounded crown

Height: 40.00 to 50.00 feet

Spread: 30.00 to 50.00 feet

Bloom Time: March to April

Bloom Description: Yellow

Bark: grey and smooth when young. The bark is dark grey with shallow, intersecting ridges in a regular, often diamond-shaped pattern.

Fruit: Small yellow flowers in erect clusters (corymbs) appear in spring before the foliage. Flowers give way to paired seeds with horizontally spreading wings (samaras to 2” long).

Leaf: five sharply pointed lobes and resemble those of sugar maple. Leaf stems exude a milky sap when cut. Fall color is usually an unremarkable yellow

Sun: Full sun to part shade

Water: Medium

Soil type & pH:

Maintenance: Low

Suggested Use: Shade Tree, Street Tree

Tolerates: Drought, Air Pollution

Notes: Trees have escaped cultivation and naturalized in many areas of the northeastern and upper midwestern U.S.

Identification notes: Look for dark green leaves and regular bark

Hello,

This site is intended to help you learn to recognize common trees, shrubs and perennials in the Midwest. 

While many guides exist for identifying native species in an area (Often including common invasive species), there is not to our knowledge a guide that covers the broad range of native and non-native species that you will encounter in central Ohio.  Human inhabited landscapes include a wide range of native and non-native plants with diverse histories.  This guide is intended to help you familiarize yourself with this range of plants and better identify them.  Once you can identify a plant, there are a wide range of resources available to you to learn more about growth habits, history, care, etc.

This is currently a work in progress.  If you have a question or suggestion, please email mcgory.4@osu.edu.

Thank you very much to the many contributors to this website:

Jack Gruber

Molly McCahan

Ethan McGory

Annie Purcell

Jaime Schmotzer

Tameka Sims