The Forestry Forum

Can anyone recommend to me a good tree i.d. book for here in the northeast usa?  I have: The Tree Identification Book by George W.D. Symonds, which is good, not great.  I like that it has good descriptions, and pictures of young, mature, and old barks on trees.  And I have National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees (Eastern Region) by Elbert L. Little, which is also good, not great.  I like that it's pictures are in color, it lists uses of trees in the back part and has a sketched picture of what the tree grows like without leaves.   

"Trees of North America" by Brockman

Thanks.  Do you have it?  One problem I have with the ones I have, is the bark looks different in the picture than it does in real life!  There are trees I can identify well in real life, but in the book it's hard to tell!

I have it, but I have found there is no good way to show bark in a photo as the pic has to be so small.

Best is to have a lot of practice so all bark on all trees doesn't just look all the same.
Over time, the differences start to shake out.. and then it is just frustrating as heck when old bark on some species starts to look just like young bark on other species.

Gets confusing... but can be done.

Yes.  I need to spend more time on learning different species.  Would love a book that has pictures of what the log would look like squared into a cant, so can see the butt and the grain, as that is how I am trying to ID most of the times.