**Leaf Identification Chart — Free Tree Key by Shape & Arrangement**

> Free leaf identification key for 43 common North American and European trees. Filter by arrangement, simple or compound, margin and shape.

Source: https://orvik.app/tools/leaf-identifier/ · updated: 2026-09-03

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Plants & trees

# Identify a tree by its leaf

A botanical key asks four questions in a fixed order, and they matter far more than the leaf outline everyone starts with. **Are the leaves opposite or alternate on the twig? Is each leaf one blade or several leaflets? Is the edge smooth, toothed or lobed?** Answer those three and most trees are already down to a handful. Shape comes last.

Entries **43** Filters **5** Updated **2026-09-03** Cost **Free, no account**

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Arrangement on the twig

Look at where leaves attach. Opposite trees are a short list — memorise it.

Alternate — staggered Opposite — in pairs Whorled — three or more per node In bundles or clusters

Simple or compound

A leaflet has no bud at its base; a leaf does. That is how you tell.

Simple — one blade Pinnately compound — leaflets in rows Twice compound — feathery Palmately compound — from one point Needles Flat scales

Edge of the blade

Smooth, no teeth Toothed or serrated Lobed along a central line Lobed from one point, like a hand Wavy

Overall shape

Oval or elliptical Heart-shaped Long and narrow Triangular Fan or star Mitten or variable

Other clues

Milky sap when torn Smells when crushed Thorns or spines Silver or white underside Stays green in winter Hairy or fuzzy

Showing all 43 trees

1. ### White oak Quercus alba Five to nine deep lobes with rounded tips and no bristles, pale grey-green above and whitish beneath. Rounded lobes place it in the white oak group; bristle tips would make it a red oak. Size Leaf 12–22 cm Where Eastern North America. Confused with Every other oak. The bristle test splits the genus in half and is completely reliable. In the record 47,555 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Aug · most distinctive in December · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2879737)

2. [Identifying oaks by leaf](https://orvik.app/plants/identify-oak-tree-by-leaf/)

3. ### Northern red oak Quercus rubra Seven to eleven shallow lobes, each ending in several sharp bristle tips, with sinuses that cut less than halfway to the midrib. Dull green above, paler below. Size Leaf 12–25 cm Where Eastern and central North America; widely planted in Europe. In the record 226,793 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in November · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2880539)

4. [Oak leaf identification](https://orvik.app/plants/oak-leaf-identification/)

5. ### Pin oak Quercus palustris Five to seven bristle-tipped lobes with very deep U-shaped sinuses cutting almost to the midrib, giving a skeletal outline. Lower branches droop, which nothing else in the genus does. Size Leaf 8–16 cm Where The eastern US Midwest, and the most planted street oak in Europe. In the record 147,819 georeferenced records · half of them Aug–Oct · most distinctive in December · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/8313153)

6. ### Live oak Quercus virginiana An oak that does not look like one: small, leathery, unlobed evergreen leaves with rolled-under edges and a fuzzy grey underside. Acorns are the only obvious clue it is a Quercus. Size Leaf 5–12 cm Where The US coastal South from Virginia to Texas. In the record 9,706 georeferenced records · half of them Jan–Jun · most distinctive in December · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2878092)

7. ### Sugar maple Acer saccharum Five palmate lobes with smooth-sided sinuses that are U-shaped at the base and no small teeth along the lobe edges. The Canadian flag leaf. Opposite arrangement confirms the genus. Size Leaf 8–15 cm Where Northeastern North America. Confused with Norway maple, whose leaf is wider than long and bleeds milky sap from the cut leaf stalk. Snap the stalk — it is the definitive test. In the record 59,528 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in October · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189859)

8. [Maple leaf identification](https://orvik.app/plants/maple-leaf-identification/)

9. ### Red maple Handle with care Acer rubrum Three to five shallow lobes with V-shaped notches between them and irregular teeth along the edges, silvery beneath, on red leaf stalks and red twigs. Size Leaf 6–10 cm Where The most abundant tree in eastern North America. Risk Wilted red maple leaves are lethally toxic to horses. A storm-broken branch in a paddock is an emergency. In the record 133,130 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in October · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189883)

10. ### Silver maple Acer saccharinum Five deeply cut lobes with narrow sinuses reaching most of the way to the base and a brilliantly silver-white underside that flips up in the wind before rain. Size Leaf 8–16 cm Where Floodplains across eastern North America; widely planted. In the record 95,335 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in October · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189837)

11. ### Norway maple Acer platanoides Broad five-lobed leaf, wider than it is long, with each lobe drawn out into a fine bristle point — and a bead of milky sap at the cut end of the leaf stalk. That sap is the identification. Size Leaf 10–18 cm, wider than long Where Native to Europe; invasive across the northeastern United States. In the record 1,034,483 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jul · most distinctive in June · mostly from Germany [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189846)

12. ### Boxelder Acer negundo The only maple with compound leaves — three to five coarsely toothed leaflets, opposite on the twig, on green or purple-bloomed twigs. Winged maple seeds confirm it. Size Three to seven leaflets, 5–10 cm each Where Riverbanks and waste ground across North America. Confused with Poison ivy, which is also three leaflets. Poison ivy is alternate and a vine; boxelder is opposite and a tree. In the record 254,110 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jun · most distinctive in April · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189866)

13. ### White ash Fraxinus americana Opposite compound leaves with five to nine stalked leaflets, whitish beneath, on stout twigs with a leaf scar shaped like a smiling crescent under each bud. Size Leaf 20–30 cm, five to nine leaflets Where Eastern North America, though emerald ash borer has killed most mature trees. In the record 17,819 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in September · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3172327)

14. [How to identify an ash tree](https://orvik.app/plants/how-to-identify-an-ash-tree/)

15. ### Shagbark hickory Carya ovata Five leaflets — the top three much larger than the bottom two — with tufts of hair on the teeth, alternate on the twig. The bark peels in long loose strips, which is the faster identification from a distance. Size Leaf 20–35 cm, five leaflets Where Eastern North America. In the record 17,910 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3054296)

16. [Identifying hickory trees](https://orvik.app/plants/identify-hickory-tree/)

17. ### Black walnut Juglans nigra A very long compound leaf with 15 to 23 narrow toothed leaflets and a terminal leaflet that is often missing or stunted. Crushed leaves smell sharply of walnut husk and stain fingers. Size Leaf 30–60 cm, 15–23 leaflets Where Eastern and central North America. In the record 39,932 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in October · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3054357)

18. [How to identify a walnut tree](https://orvik.app/plants/how-to-identify-a-walnut-tree/)

19. ### Paper birch Betula papyrifera Small oval-to-triangular leaves with doubly toothed edges — large teeth with smaller teeth on them — on slender twigs, over chalk-white bark that peels in horizontal papery sheets. Size Leaf 5–10 cm Where Across the boreal and northern United States. In the record 28,894 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from Canada [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5332120)

20. [Birch tree identification](https://orvik.app/plants/birch-tree-identification/)

21. ### American beech Fagus grandifolia Neat oval leaves with straight parallel veins running to a small sharp tooth at the end of each one, glossy above. Dead leaves hang on all winter, pale and papery. Size Leaf 6–13 cm Where Eastern North America. In the record 90,676 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2882274)

22. ### American elm Ulmus americana Doubly toothed oval leaf with a strikingly lopsided base — one side of the blade starts noticeably lower on the stalk than the other. Rough as sandpaper on top. Size Leaf 7–15 cm Where Eastern North America, much reduced by Dutch elm disease. Confused with Hackberry, which shares the asymmetric base but has three main veins radiating from it and warty bark. In the record 45,426 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in March · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5361872)

23. [Elm tree identification](https://orvik.app/plants/elm-tree-identification/)

24. ### Hackberry Celtis occidentalis Lopsided base like an elm, but with three prominent veins fanning out from it and teeth only on the upper two-thirds of the blade. The bark is covered in corky warts. Size Leaf 6–12 cm Where Central and eastern North America. In the record 28,574 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in October · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2984481)

25. [Hackberry identification](https://orvik.app/plants/hackberry-tree-identification/)

26. ### American sycamore Platanus occidentalis Very large three- to five-lobed leaf, broader than long, with a hollow leaf stalk base that caps the bud. Camouflage-patterned bark flaking to white makes the tree unmistakable in winter. Size Leaf 10–25 cm Where Riverbanks across eastern North America; London plane is the street version. In the record 50,035 georeferenced records · half of them Feb–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152820)

27. [Sycamore identification](https://orvik.app/plants/sycamore-tree-identification/)

28. ### Tulip tree Liriodendron tulipifera Four lobes and a flat, notched top as if the tip had been cut off with scissors. No other North American tree has that outline, and it is decisive on its own. Size Leaf 8–20 cm Where Eastern North America. In the record 77,205 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jun · most distinctive in April · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152861)

29. ### Sweetgum Liquidambar styraciflua A five-pointed star with finely toothed edges, smelling resinous when crushed. Alternate arrangement separates it from maples, which are opposite and never star-shaped. Size Leaf 10–18 cm Where The US Southeast, north to Connecticut; planted worldwide. In the record 97,409 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in December · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152824)

30. ### American basswood Tilia americana Large heart-shaped leaf with a strongly lopsided base and coarse sharp teeth. Flowers hang from a strap-like pale bract, which is unique among northern trees. Size Leaf 10–20 cm Where Eastern North America; the European lime is its close relative. In the record 59,524 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in October · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152042)

31. ### Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides A broad triangle with coarse curved teeth on a flattened leaf stalk, so the leaves flutter and rattle in the slightest breeze. Size Leaf 7–15 cm Where Riverbanks across central and eastern North America. In the record 36,424 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jul · most distinctive in April · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3040232)

32. [Cottonwood identification](https://orvik.app/plants/cottonwood-tree-identification/)

33. ### Quaking aspen Populus tremuloides Small round leaves with fine teeth on a flattened stalk, trembling constantly, over smooth greenish-white bark. Grows in clonal stands where every tree turns colour on the same day. Size Leaf 4–8 cm Where The most widely distributed tree in North America. In the record 61,907 georeferenced records · half of them Jun–Aug · most distinctive in June · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3040215)

34. ### Black willow Salix nigra Long, narrow, finely toothed leaves that taper to a fine point at both ends, often slightly curved, on flexible twigs that snap cleanly at the base. Size Leaf 6–15 cm, very narrow Where Stream and pond margins across North America. In the record 16,544 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jun · most distinctive in April · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5372854)

35. [Willow tree identification](https://orvik.app/plants/willow-tree-identification/)

36. ### Black cherry Prunus serotina Glossy narrow leaf with incurved blunt teeth, a pair of small red glands where the blade meets the stalk, and a line of rusty hairs along the midrib underneath. Crushed twigs smell of almonds. Size Leaf 6–14 cm Where Eastern North America; invasive in Europe. In the record 288,858 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jul · most distinctive in May · mostly from the Netherlands [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3021850)

37. ### Flowering dogwood Cornus florida Opposite oval leaves with smooth edges and veins that curve forward to follow the leaf outline instead of running to the edge. Tear one gently and fine white latex threads stretch across the break. Size Leaf 7–15 cm Where The eastern United States. In the record 42,748 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–May · most distinctive in April · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3082240)

38. [Dogwood identification](https://orvik.app/plants/dogwood-tree-identification/)

39. ### Southern magnolia Magnolia grandiflora Thick, leathery, glossy evergreen leaves with a rusty felt underside and completely smooth edges. Huge cream flowers in early summer. Size Leaf 12–25 cm Where The US Southeast; planted worldwide in mild climates. In the record 19,648 georeferenced records · half of them Jan–May · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/9605163)

40. [Magnolia species and names](https://orvik.app/plants/magnolia-scientific-name/)

41. ### Northern catalpa Catalpa speciosa Enormous heart-shaped leaves in whorls of three, with smooth edges, followed by long bean-like pods that hang all winter. The pods make it identifiable at a hundred metres. Size Leaf 20–30 cm Where Native to a small midwestern range, planted across North America and Europe. In the record 9,623 georeferenced records · half of them May–Jul · most distinctive in June · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3172612)

42. ### Black locust Robinia pseudoacacia Compound leaves of rounded blue-green leaflets with smooth edges, and a pair of short sharp thorns at the base of each leaf stalk. Hanging white pea flowers in May. Size Leaf 20–35 cm, 7–19 leaflets Where Native to the Appalachians, naturalised across North America and Europe. In the record 496,561 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jul · most distinctive in May · mostly from France [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5352251)

43. ### Honey locust Gleditsia triacanthos Feathery twice-compound leaves of many tiny leaflets, and on wild trees vicious branched thorns up to 20 cm long growing straight out of the trunk. Size Leaf 15–20 cm, leaflets 1–3 cm Where Central North America; the thornless cultivar is a standard street tree. In the record 139,443 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2959443)

44. ### Red mulberry Morus rubra The leaves on one tree come in three shapes — unlobed heart, mitten with one lobe, and a three-lobed glove — all coarsely toothed, all bleeding milky sap when torn. Size Leaf 8–18 cm Where Eastern North America; white mulberry is naturalised everywhere. In the record 9,368 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jun · most distinctive in April · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5361886)

45. [Mulberry tree identification](https://orvik.app/plants/mulberry-tree-identification/)

46. ### Osage orange Maclura pomifera Glossy pointed oval leaves with smooth edges, milky sap, and a stout straight thorn at each node. The grapefruit-sized green brain-like fruit removes all doubt. Size Leaf 7–13 cm Where Native to Texas and Oklahoma, planted as hedgerow across the Midwest. In the record 28,756 georeferenced records · half of them Jul–Oct · most distinctive in November · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2984580)

47. [Identifying Osage orange](https://orvik.app/plants/identifying-osage-orange-trees/)

48. ### Sassafras Sassafras albidum Three leaf shapes on the same twig — plain oval, a mitten with one thumb, and a three-lobed glove — all with smooth edges, and all smelling strongly of root beer when crushed. Size Leaf 8–16 cm Where Eastern North America. Confused with Mulberry has the same shape trio, but its edges are toothed and its sap is milky. Sassafras edges are smooth and the smell is decisive. In the record 62,820 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jul · most distinctive in May · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3034002)

49. ### Eastern redbud Cercis canadensis Almost perfectly heart-shaped leaves with completely smooth edges and a papery texture, on zigzag twigs. Magenta pea flowers burst directly from the bare branches in spring. Size Leaf 7–12 cm Where Eastern and central North America. In the record 64,693 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–May · most distinctive in March · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5353583)

50. ### Horse chestnut and buckeye Handle with care Aesculus species Five to seven large toothed leaflets radiating from a single point like fingers, opposite on the twig. No other common tree has palmately compound leaves. Size Five to seven leaflets, 10–25 cm each Where Europe for horse chestnut; central and eastern North America for buckeyes. Risk The nuts are toxic to dogs, horses and people, and are eaten every autumn by children who mistake them for sweet chestnuts. In the record 429,086 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Jun · most distinctive in April · mostly from the United Kingdom [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189801)

51. ### Ginkgo Ginkgo biloba A flat fan with veins that fork repeatedly and never form a network, usually notched in the middle. Every leaf on the tree turns butter yellow and drops within a day or two. Size Leaf 5–8 cm wide Where A Chinese relict, now one of the most planted street trees in the world. In the record 60,681 georeferenced records · half of them Jun–Sep · most distinctive in November · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2687885)

52. ### Eastern white pine Pinus strobus Soft flexible blue-green needles in bundles of five — one for each letter of "white" — with long slender cones. Count the needles per bundle and the pine group follows. Size Needles 7–13 cm Where Northeastern North America. In the record 115,039 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5284982)

53. [Pine identification](https://orvik.app/plants/pine-tree-identification-by-bark/)

54. ### Red pine and Scots pine Pinus resinosa, P. sylvestris Needles in bundles of two. Red pine needles are long and snap cleanly when bent; Scots pine needles are short, twisted and blue-green, over orange upper bark. Size Needles 5–16 cm Where Northern North America and northern Eurasia. In the record 12,319 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Aug · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5285067)

55. ### Norway spruce Picea abies Stiff four-sided needles attached singly to little woody pegs, so a stripped twig feels rough and warty. Roll a needle between finger and thumb — a spruce needle rolls, a fir needle will not. Size Needles 1–2.5 cm Where Native to Europe, planted across northern North America. In the record 1,007,278 georeferenced records · half of them Jun–Aug · most distinctive in July · mostly from Sweden [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/5284884)

56. ### Balsam fir Abies balsamea Flat needles with two white stripes underneath, attached by a suction-cup base that leaves a smooth round scar. Cones stand upright on the branch and disintegrate rather than falling whole. Size Needles 1.5–3 cm Where Boreal North America. In the record 39,062 georeferenced records · half of them May–Aug · most distinctive in February · mostly from Canada [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2685383)

57. ### Eastern hemlock Tsuga canadensis Short flat needles of unequal length in two flat rows, each on a tiny stalk, with two white bands beneath — and a row of small needles lying upside down along the top of the twig. Size Needles 1–2 cm Where Eastern North America. In the record 64,784 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2687182)

58. ### Eastern redcedar and arborvitae Juniperus virginiana, Thuja occidentalis No needles at all — tiny overlapping scales pressed flat against flattened green sprays, aromatic when crushed. Redcedar carries blue berry-like cones; arborvitae carries small woody ones. Size Sprays 5–15 cm Where Old fields and limestone barrens across eastern North America. In the record 71,990 georeferenced records · half of them Jan–Jun · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2684391)

59. [How to identify a cedar](https://orvik.app/plants/how-to-identify-a-cedar-tree/)

60. ### Bald cypress Taxodium distichum Soft feathery needles in two flat rows that turn rust orange and fall in autumn — a deciduous conifer. Woody "knees" rise out of the water around the trunk. Size Needles 1–2 cm in flat sprays Where Southern US swamps and river bottoms. In the record 43,257 georeferenced records · half of them Apr–Aug · most distinctive in November · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2684191)

61. ### Douglas fir Pseudotsuga menziesii Soft flat needles radiating all around the twig from small raised bases, with pointed reddish buds like a beech. The cone settles it: three-pointed bracts stick out between the scales like the back legs and tail of a mouse. Size Needles 2–3.5 cm Where Western North America; planted for timber across Europe. In the record 164,367 georeferenced records · half of them Mar–Jul · most distinctive in February · mostly from the United States [check on GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/species/2685796)

62. [Identifying Douglas fir](https://orvik.app/plants/how-to-identify-a-douglas-fir/)

Nothing in this key matches every filter at once. That usually means one observation is
off — a colour read in shade, or a size guessed rather than measured. Clear the filter you
are least sure about and look again.

## Opposite or alternate, first and always

Leaf arrangement is the first question in every serious tree key, and it does more work than any other single character, because the trees with opposite leaves are a short and memorable list.

In eastern North America the mnemonic is **MAD Cap Horse**: Maple, Ash, Dogwood, Caprifoliaceae (the viburnums, honeysuckles and elderberries) and Horse chestnut. Add catalpa and paulownia, and that is very nearly the whole opposite-leaved tree flora of the region. Everything else — every oak, hickory, birch, beech, elm, cherry, willow, poplar, sycamore, magnolia and locust — is alternate.

So a tree with paired leaves has already been narrowed from several hundred candidates to about seven groups, before you have looked at the leaf itself. That is why the filter is at the top of this key.

Two cautions. Check arrangement on a strong healthy shoot, not on a stressed twig or a sucker, where it can go irregular. And look for pairs of *buds* rather than pairs of leaves in winter or on a browsed tree — buds keep the arrangement when the leaves have gone.

## Simple or compound: the mistake almost everyone makes

A compound leaf looks like a twig with several small leaves on it, and it gets counted as several leaves constantly. The consequence is severe: a walnut counted as simple leaves also appears to be opposite-leaved, and every subsequent step goes wrong.

The rule that settles it: **there is a bud in the angle where a leaf joins the twig, and no bud where a leaflet joins the leaf stalk.** Find the bud and you have found where the leaf begins. In autumn there is a second confirmation — the whole compound leaf drops as a unit, stalk and all.

Three compound patterns cover the common trees:

- **Pinnate** — leaflets in two rows along a central stalk: ash, hickory, walnut, black locust, sumac, boxelder.
- **Bipinnate** — that structure repeated, giving a feathery leaf of many tiny leaflets: honey locust, mimosa, Kentucky coffeetree.
- **Palmate** — leaflets radiating from one point like fingers: horse chestnut and the buckeyes, and essentially nothing else among common trees.

Palmately compound is worth memorising precisely because it is so rare. If leaflets fan out from a single point and the leaves are opposite, you are looking at an *Aesculus*, and you can stop.

## The oak question, answered in one look

More people ask about oaks than about any other genus, and the whole of North America's several dozen species split cleanly into two groups on one character.

*The white and red oak groups. The bristle character is reliable across the entire genus in North America.*

|  | White oak group | Red oak group |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Lobe tips | Rounded, no bristle | Pointed, with a fine bristle at the tip |
| Acorn maturity | One season | Two seasons |
| Acorn taste | Low tannin, edible after light leaching | Bitter, needs long leaching |
| Acorn cup interior | Hairless | Hairy |
| Wood | Pores plugged, watertight — barrels | Pores open, not watertight |
| Typical members | White, bur, swamp white, chestnut, post oak | Northern red, black, pin, scarlet, shingle, willow oak |

Some oaks are not lobed at all — live oak, willow oak and shingle oak have plain unlobed leaves — which is why the acorn is worth picking up. Any tree bearing an acorn is an oak, whatever the leaf looks like.

## The three trees with three leaf shapes

Sassafras, mulberry and, less famously, some poplars produce unlobed, one-lobed mitten and two-lobed glove leaves on the same branch. This is the single most common reason a beginner concludes they are looking at three trees.

Separating sassafras from mulberry takes two seconds. **Sassafras leaves have smooth edges and smell strongly of root beer** when crushed. **Mulberry leaves are coarsely toothed and bleed milky sap** from a torn stalk. Both are alternate, both grow in the same disturbed ground, and both are commonly misidentified as the other.

The general lesson matters more than the two species: **sample several leaves** before you decide on a shape. Leaves from a shaded interior branch are larger, thinner and less deeply lobed than leaves from the sunlit crown of the same tree; juvenile shoots and stump sprouts are often wildly atypical. Take a leaf from a normal branch in reasonable light, and take three of them.

## Conifers: count the needles

The evergreen groups are separated by how the needles attach, and each has a test you can do with your fingers.

- **Pines** hold needles in bundles wrapped in a papery sheath at the base. Count them: two, three or five. Eastern white pine has five; most hard pines have two or three.
- **Spruces** have single, stiff, four-sided needles that *roll* between finger and thumb, attached to small woody pegs that leave a twig rough after the needles fall.
- **Firs** have single flat needles that will not roll, attached by a suction-cup base leaving a smooth round scar, usually with two white stripes underneath. Their cones stand upright and fall apart on the tree.
- **Hemlocks** have short flat needles of unequal length in two flat rows, each on a tiny stalk, plus a row lying upside down along the top of the twig.
- **Douglas fir** is neither a true fir nor a spruce: soft flat needles all round the twig, sharply pointed reddish buds, and a cone with three-pointed bracts sticking out between the scales.
- **Junipers, cedars and arborvitae** have no needles at all on mature growth — scales pressed flat against flattened sprays, aromatic when crushed.
- **Larch and bald cypress** are conifers that drop their needles. A bare conifer in January is one of these, not a dead tree.

The old field mnemonic is worth the ten seconds: spruce is *square* and it *spins*; fir is *flat* and it does not.

## Photographing a leaf so it can actually be identified

Most failed identifications are failed photographs. Four shots cover it, and they take a minute.

1. **The whole leaf flat**, front-lit, on a plain background, with a coin or a hand for scale. If it is compound, include the entire leaf down to where it joins the twig.
2. **The underside.** Colour, hairs, and the vein pattern on the back separate several pairs that look identical from above — silver maple and red maple, white oak and swamp white oak.
3. **The twig,** showing at least two nodes so the arrangement is visible, plus buds and leaf scars.
4. **Bark, fruit and the whole tree.** Acorns, samaras, pods, cones and berries frequently settle in one glance what leaves cannot settle at all.

And note the location and the setting. A tree in a wet river bottom in Ohio and a tree in dry chaparral in California share no candidate list. Habitat is a filter this key does not have and a botanist uses constantly.

## What is in this key

43 trees: the common natives of eastern and central North America, the conifers of the north and west, and the introduced street trees you are most likely to be standing under in a city on either side of the Atlantic. That covers most of what people photograph and leaves out a great deal — the western hardwoods, the desert and subtropical floras, the willow and hawthorn complexes, and every shrub.

Willows, hawthorns, serviceberries and many oaks hybridise freely, and there are species pairs that a professional botanist will not separate from a leaf alone. Where that is true here, the entry names the group rather than pretending to a species. For anything that matters, photograph the leaf, twig, bark and fruit and post it to iNaturalist, where the identification is free and often arrives within a day.

## What the observation record shows

Every entry in this key that carries a scientific name is matched against

- [GBIF](https://www.gbif.org/), the
international register of biodiversity records, and against

- [iNaturalist](https://www.inaturalist.org/).
That puts a hard number behind 43 of the 43trees here:
**5,418,033 georeferenced records** across the 42 entries that resolve to a single species, spanning 21 families, the oldest of them collected in
1983. The snapshot was taken on 2026-09-04.

That evidence is not spread evenly, and it is worth knowing before you trust a narrow
result. The five best-recorded trees in this key hold 57%
of all the records between them: Norway maple alone accounts for
1,034,483, while Red mulberry has
9,368. A common thing is common in the data too, so
when a filter narrows to one frequent entry and one rare one, the frequent one is
usually the answer — and the record count is the quickest way to see which is which.
The same skew applies geographically: 39% of these
records come from the United States, so the key describes what is
reported there far better than it describes anywhere else.

### When these are actually reported

*Half of the 3,943,045 georeferenced records for these 42 trees fall in April–July alone. The bars are the raw share by month, which mostly measures when people go looking; the line divides each month by the baseline for every species in every Orvik key, so a value above 1.0 means these trees are reported more than the season alone explains, and it peaks in July. Source: GBIF, snapshot 2026-09-04.*

Half of every record for this group falls in April–July.
A raw month count measures two things at once — when the organism is about, and when
people are outdoors with a camera — and the second effect is large enough to give
almost anything a summer peak. The line on the figure divides each month by the
baseline for every species in every Orvik key, which answers a different question:
relative to when people record anything at all, when are these trees recorded?
Values above 1.0 are the months that belong to this group rather than to the season.
On that measure 28 of the 42trees here peak
outside the warm half of the year — Northern red oak, Douglas fir, Pin oak among them. Those are the ones a seasonal rule of
thumb gets wrong.

### Records behind each entry

Sorted by how much evidence exists, not by how likely you are to meet one. The peak
month is the effort-adjusted figure, and it is left blank wherever the sample is too
thin for the month-to-month wobble to mean anything.

*GBIF and iNaturalist record counts for the 43 named trees in this key,
 snapshot 2026-09-04. Rows above species rank aggregate everything beneath them and
 are not comparable with the rest. Free to reuse with a link to this page.*

| Entry | Accepted name | Rank | GBIF records | Research-grade | Half fall in | Peak, adjusted | Most reported from |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Norway maple | [Acer platanoides L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189846) | species | 1,034,483 | 145,657 | Apr–Jul | June | Germany |
| Norway spruce | [Picea abies (L.) H.Karst.](https://www.gbif.org/species/5284884) | species | 1,007,278 | 91,765 | Jun–Aug | July | Sweden |
| Black locust | [Robinia pseudoacacia L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/5352251) | species | 496,561 | 137,923 | Apr–Jul | May | France |
| Black cherry | [Prunus serotina Ehrh.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3021850) | species | 288,858 | 135,083 | Apr–Jul | May | the Netherlands |
| Boxelder | [Acer negundo L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189866) | species | 254,110 | — | Mar–Jun | April | the United States |
| Northern red oak | [Quercus rubra L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2880539) | species | 226,793 | 123,423 | May–Aug | November | the United States |
| Douglas fir | [Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco](https://www.gbif.org/species/2685796) | species | 164,367 | 89,698 | Mar–Jul | February | the United States |
| Pin oak | [Quercus palustris Münchh.](https://www.gbif.org/species/8313153) | species | 147,819 | 31,019 | Aug–Oct | December | the United States |
| Honey locust | [Gleditsia triacanthos L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2959443) | species | 139,443 | 77,965 | Mar–Jul | February | the United States |
| Red maple | [Acer rubrum L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189883) | species | 133,130 | 162,550 | Mar–Jul | October | the United States |
| Eastern white pine | [Pinus strobus L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/5284982) | species | 115,039 | 140,642 | Mar–Jul | February | the United States |
| Sweetgum | [Liquidambar styraciflua L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152824) | species | 97,409 | 116,114 | Mar–Jul | December | the United States |
| Silver maple | [Acer saccharinum L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189837) | species | 95,335 | 63,212 | May–Aug | October | the United States |
| American beech | [Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2882274) | species | 90,676 | 123,876 | Mar–Jul | February | the United States |
| Tulip tree | [Liriodendron tulipifera L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152861) | species | 77,205 | 105,618 | Apr–Jun | April | the United States |
| Eastern redcedar and arborvitae | [Juniperus virginiana L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2684391) | species | 71,990 | 122,953 | Jan–Jun | February | the United States |
| Eastern hemlock | [Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carrière](https://www.gbif.org/species/2687182) | species | 64,784 | 82,747 | Mar–Jul | February | the United States |
| Eastern redbud | [Cercis canadensis L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/5353583) | species | 64,693 | 111,805 | Mar–May | March | the United States |
| Sassafras | [Sassafras albidum (Nutt.) Nees](https://www.gbif.org/species/3034002) | species | 62,820 | 75,951 | Apr–Jul | May | the United States |
| Quaking aspen | [Populus tremuloides Michx.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3040215) | species | 61,907 | 80,099 | Jun–Aug | June | the United States |
| Ginkgo | [Ginkgo biloba L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2687885) | species | 60,681 | 46,232 | Jun–Sep | November | the United States |
| Sugar maple | [Acer saccharum Marshall](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189859) | species | 59,528 | 116,271 | May–Aug | October | the United States |
| American basswood | [Tilia americana L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152042) | species | 59,524 | 68,625 | May–Aug | October | the United States |
| American sycamore | [Platanus occidentalis L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3152820) | species | 50,035 | 96,662 | Feb–Jul | February | the United States |
| White oak | [Quercus alba L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2879737) | species | 47,555 | 83,064 | Apr–Aug | December | the United States |
| American elm | [Ulmus americana L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/5361872) | species | 45,426 | 78,701 | Mar–Jul | March | the United States |
| Bald cypress | [Taxodium distichum (L.) Rich.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2684191) | species | 43,257 | 64,368 | Apr–Aug | November | the United States |
| Flowering dogwood | [Cornus florida L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3082240) | species | 42,748 | 70,421 | Apr–May | April | the United States |
| Black walnut | [Juglans nigra L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3054357) | species | 39,932 | 85,701 | May–Aug | October | the United States |
| Balsam fir | [Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2685383) | species | 39,062 | 48,080 | May–Aug | February | Canada |
| Eastern cottonwood | [Populus deltoides W.Bartram ex Marshall](https://www.gbif.org/species/3040232) | species | 36,424 | 64,817 | Apr–Jul | April | the United States |
| Paper birch | [Betula papyrifera Marshall](https://www.gbif.org/species/5332120) | species | 28,894 | 51,283 | Mar–Jul | February | Canada |
| Osage orange | [Maclura pomifera (Raf. ex Sarg.) C.K.Schneid.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2984580) | species | 28,756 | 36,925 | Jul–Oct | November | the United States |
| Hackberry | [Celtis occidentalis L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2984481) | species | 28,574 | 47,957 | May–Aug | October | the United States |
| Southern magnolia | [Magnolia grandiflora L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/9605163) | species | 19,648 | 68,742 | Jan–May | February | the United States |
| Shagbark hickory | [Carya ovata (Mill.) K.Koch](https://www.gbif.org/species/3054296) | species | 17,910 | 41,288 | Mar–Jul | February | the United States |
| White ash | [Fraxinus americana L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3172327) | species | 17,819 | 66,604 | May–Aug | September | the United States |
| Black willow | [Salix nigra Marshall](https://www.gbif.org/species/5372854) | species | 16,544 | 31,183 | Mar–Jun | April | the United States |
| Red pine and Scots pine | [Pinus resinosa Aiton](https://www.gbif.org/species/5285067) | species | 12,319 | 26,645 | Apr–Aug | February | the United States |
| Live oak | [Quercus virginiana Mill.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2878092) | species | 9,706 | 38,577 | Jan–Jun | December | the United States |
| Northern catalpa | [Catalpa speciosa (Warder ex Barney) Warder ex Engelm.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3172612) | species | 9,623 | 33,647 | May–Jul | June | the United States |
| Red mulberry | [Morus rubra L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/5361886) | species | 9,368 | 23,880 | Apr–Jun | April | the United States |
| Horse chestnut and buckeye | [Aesculus L.](https://www.gbif.org/species/3189801) | genus | 429,086 | 226,651 | Apr–Jun | April | the United Kingdom |

This table is assembled from open data and is free to reuse with a link back to this
page. The snapshot behind every Orvik key is published as one downloadable file on the

- [open field data](https://orvik.app/data/) page, with each source's licence terms.

## Questions people ask about this

How do I tell if leaves are opposite or alternate?

Look at where the leaf stalks meet the twig. If two leaves join at the same point on opposite sides, it is opposite; if they stagger up the twig one at a time, it is alternate. Check a healthy shoot rather than a stressed twig, and use buds instead of leaves in winter. In eastern North America the opposite-leaved trees are essentially maple, ash, dogwood, horse chestnut, catalpa and the viburnum family — everything else is alternate.

Is this one leaf or several?

Find the bud. There is always a bud in the angle where a true leaf meets the twig, and never one where a leaflet meets the leaf stalk. Compound leaves also drop as a single unit in autumn. Getting this wrong is the most common beginner error, because it makes a walnut or an ash look like a twig full of small opposite leaves.

How do I tell a white oak from a red oak?

Look at the tips of the lobes. White oak group leaves have rounded lobes with no bristle; red oak group leaves have pointed lobes ending in a fine bristle. The acorns confirm it: white oaks mature in one season and have a hairless cup interior, red oaks take two seasons and have a hairy cup.

What tree has leaves shaped like a mitten?

Sassafras and mulberry both produce unlobed, mitten and three-lobed leaves on the same branch. Sassafras has smooth leaf edges and smells strongly of root beer when crushed; mulberry has coarsely toothed edges and bleeds milky sap from a torn stalk. Both are alternate and both grow in disturbed ground, so the smell and the sap are what separate them.

How do I tell a spruce from a fir from a pine?

Pines hold their needles in bundles of two, three or five wrapped in a papery sheath. Spruces and firs have single needles. A spruce needle is four-sided and rolls between your fingers, and leaves a rough peg on the twig; a fir needle is flat, will not roll, has two white stripes underneath and leaves a smooth round scar. Fir cones stand upright and fall apart on the tree; spruce cones hang down and drop whole.

Why do leaves on the same tree look different?

Sun and shade change leaf size, thickness and lobing considerably, so a leaf from a shaded interior branch can look like a different species from one in the crown. Juvenile shoots, stump sprouts and water sprouts are frequently atypical too. Take three leaves from a normal branch on a healthy part of the tree before you decide.

Can an app identify a tree from one leaf photo?

Often, and it is much more reliable if you give it more than the leaf. Photograph the leaf flat with something for scale, the underside, a twig showing two nodes so the arrangement is visible, and the bark or any fruit. Then check the suggestion against this key using the arrangement and compound tests, which are the two characters a photograph most often gets wrong.

## Still not sure? Point a camera at it

A filter narrows trees down to a shortlist. Orvik reads the photo itself and names the species, with the look-alikes ranked underneath so you can check the call yourself.

- [Get Orvik free](https://orvik.app/app/)

## Keep reading on Orvik

- [Identify a tree by its leaf](https://orvik.app/plants/identify-tree-by-leaf/)

- [Tree leaf identification](https://orvik.app/plants/tree-leaf-identification/)

- [Identify a plant by leaf shape](https://orvik.app/plants/identify-plant-by-leaf-shape/)

- [Oak leaf identification](https://orvik.app/plants/oak-leaf-identification/)

- [Maple leaf identification](https://orvik.app/plants/maple-leaf-identification/)

- [Identifying a tree by its bark](https://orvik.app/plants/how-to-identify-a-tree-by-bark/)

- [How to identify a tree](https://orvik.app/plants/identify-tree/)

- [Leaf names and parts](https://orvik.app/plants/leaf-names/)

## Other free Orvik tools

- [Is this plant poisonous to dogs or cats?](https://orvik.app/tools/plant-toxicity-checker/)
- [Identify a tree by its bark](https://orvik.app/tools/tree-bark-identifier/)
- [What wildflower is this?](https://orvik.app/tools/wildflower-identifier/)
- [What succulent is this?](https://orvik.app/tools/succulent-identifier/)
- [How old is this tree?](https://orvik.app/tools/tree-age-calculator/)
- [When do I start these seeds?](https://orvik.app/tools/seed-starting-calculator/)
- [Is that a butterfly or a moth, and which one?](https://orvik.app/tools/butterfly-moth-identifier/)
- [What animal made this track?](https://orvik.app/tools/animal-track-identifier/)

## Where the data comes from

- [USDA Forest Service — Silvics of North America, Vol. 2: Hardwoods](https://research.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/1548)
- [USDA PLANTS Database](https://plants.usda.gov/)
- [Arbor Day Foundation — tree identification guide](https://www.arborday.org/trees/whattree/)
- [iNaturalist — community identification](https://www.inaturalist.org/)
- [GBIF — Global Biodiversity Information Facility](https://www.gbif.org/)
- [iNaturalist](https://www.inaturalist.org/)

---

HTML version: https://orvik.app/tools/leaf-identifier/
Structured data for this site: https://orvik.app/api/v1/openapi.json · https://orvik.app/llms.txt
Free to quote and reuse with a link back to the source URL above (CC BY 4.0).