Learn How to Name That Tree June 3

This news release initially appeared on the website of the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences and was written by Kurt Knebusch.

 

MANSFIELD, Ohio — It pays to learn your trees, says a forestry specialist with The Ohio State University. And the school’s Mansfield campus in north-central Ohio is a great place to do it.

 

“Knowing how to identify your trees helps with diagnosing insect and disease issues,” said Kathy Smith, coordinator of Ohio State’s Ohio Woodland Stewards Program. “It also allows a landowner to better manage the tree. How much sunlight does it need to survive and thrive? Is it good for wildlife?”

 

On June 3, Smith and her colleague Jim Chatfield, a horticulture specialist with the university, will give a workshop on tree identification called Name That Tree. The stewards program is the sponsor.

 

The event is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. starting in 100 Ovalwood Hall on Ohio State’s Mansfield campus, 1760 University Drive. The agenda includes classroom sessions followed by outdoor practice on the 640-acre, mostly wooded campus.

 

 

A January Columbus Dispatch headline called the campus a “giant, green classroom.” For workshop-goers, that means there’s a “tremendous variety of tree species right at our fingertips,” Smith said.

 

“We can easily walk around and identify trees and shrubs such as bitternut, shagbark and shellbark hickory, white oak, red oak, pin oak, black gum, flowering dogwood, hemlock, beech, ironwood, and many more,” she said.

 

 

Registration for the workshop is $35, includes lunch and materials, and is needed by May 27. A mailable registration form can be downloaded at go.osu.edu/June3NameThatTree. Participants also can register online at go.osu.edu/June3NameThatTreeReg.