Welcome to the Forest Biology and Dendrology Educational Sites at Virginia Tech

Our photo use policy:

  • You are welcome to use the photos as long as it is always for nonprofit uses.
  • Please give us credit when possible!
  • Links to our pages are welcome, web addresses are generally stable.
  • Copyright is retained by the photographers.
  • For further information, contact John Seiler

Dendrology - Fact Sheets for Tree Identification

What's Blooming in Montgomery County?

  • Virginia Street Tree Selector It is planting season, and you have some nasty soil... see what you could be growing!
  • The Meanings of Scientific Names "I hate Latin names" They can be fun, informative, and offer id hints. Find out what they mean...
  • Fall Color Why do trees change color? Is it going to be a "good" color year? Find explanations here or browse this section by Latin or common names for fall color pictures of your favorite trees.
  • ID Keys Do you have a leaf or twig and no idea what species it is? Try our key and figure it out by simply answering the questions and matching your sample to the pictures. You can also try the interview - input everything you remember and get a list of possible matches.

This site contains tree identification information specific to Forestry 2324, Dendrology Lab at Virginia Tech.  The site also has fact sheets for identifying approximately 875 trees commonly found in the United States with color pictures for all of them.  You can search for your tree by name or browse the entire list.  If you have a tree related question visit Dr. Dendro and we will do our best to answer you.  We also have links to many other tree identification sites from across North America.
Forest Biology
The Forest Biology at Virginia Tech Class Homepage contains links to related forest biology sites, a chance to "Ask Dr. Dendro" a question about trees and forests, and the Electronic Textbook.  The textbook is a highly interactive Shockwave program that runs over the internet.  It contains information on tree structure, physiology, reproduction, variation, growth regulators, dormancy, and forest communities.  It also provides an extensive glossary and interactive quizzing.
FORSite
This site provides large amounts of information and interactive exercises on trees and forests. Here students can learn about the basics of forestry equipment, how a tree grows, how to identify and measure trees, and about the forest community. Since forest ecosystems are so complex, yet so critical to the overall health of the earth, forest scientists spend large amounts of time investigating how they function. FORSite contains brief descriptions of recent critical investigations you may be familiar with. At any point in your study of trees and forests you can interact directly with technical experts in the College of Natural Resources. 

Woody Plants in North America -- A 3 CD Set Available From Kendall/Hunt Publishing -- call 1-800-228-0810 for ordering and availability information. ISBN #: 0-7575-2365-X

Woody Plants in North America describes 860 trees, shrubs, and vines that are native or ornamentally introduced to North America. It is a great reference and teaching aid for students and professionals in forestry, horticulture, biology and natural resources.

Forest Biology and Ecology for Educators

Offered summer 2008. This a 10 week graduate course covering the basics of tree growth, tree identification (80 commonly occurring species), forest ecology, and natural resource management. The class is primarily aimed at public school biology educators but would be of interest to anyone desiring advanced knowledge about trees and forests. All material is relevant to teaching the Virginia Standards of Learning. Course content will be on CD's and the class managed over the internet. All testing is done on-line.

Fishburn Forest Maps

360° Panoramas

For fun and demonstration purposes. These panoramas put you on location. Enjoy!

Our Production Team:

John Seiler
jseiler@vt.edu
John Peterson
jopeters@vt.edu