PINE GROVE — Those wanting to know more about trees came to Sweet Arrow Lake County Park for a presentation Sunday.
About 25 people were there to take a walk in the woods for the Tree-mendous Winter Tree Identification Trek at the park. The event was sponsored by the Schuylkill County Conservancy in conjunction with the park.
“How do you identify trees without leaves?” Frank Snyder, service forester with the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Bureau of Forestry, asked.
He said the answer is found in examining all the clues the tree leaves behind, which involve looking at the branches, any fruit that might have fallen from the tree, scars and other telltale signs.
A tree scar is what is left after a leaf falls from a tree. He passed around twig of a tree that had what resembled a small “monkey face” on it.
“You have to use your imagination a little bit,” Snyder said.
Snyder provided examples of different twigs and identification information on the short hike around the park.
In Pennsylvania, there are four native trees that have opposite branching, meaning side branches grow directly opposite one another. There are excepts such as if a branch is broken. Maple, ash, dogwood and chestnut are the four native trees in the state with those types of branches, he said.
“Just by looking at twigs, you can eliminate a tree,” he said.
Holding a twig from a red maple tree, he said they are the most abundant tree in the state. Snyder also explained the difference between a tree and a shrub. He said a tree usually has one stem — or trunk — while a shrub has numerous ones.
Examining needles from a white pine, Snyder said it is the only tree with a bundle of five needles. He estimated the small evergreen tree was between 6 and 10 years old.
After a brief talk on tree basics, Snyder took the group on a walk through the melting snow to look at trees. Several people had guidebooks handy for the identification process.
Mike and Gloria Gaidos, Myerstown, Lebanon County, were among those on the trek. Gaidos said identifying the trees will help him while he is outdoors since he is a hunter.
“We’re outdoors people,” he said.
Tammy Erdman, 46, of Hegins, said she thought the event sounded interesting.
“I always want to be informed about my environment,” she said.
Jeff Klinger, 46, of Hegins, said he loves everything about trees and wanted to learn more about the beauty of nature.