Here are the important tree markers to look for in opposite ranked species with photo examples from Josh Sayer's Winter Trees and Shrubs site:
Ash (Fraxinus spp.) -
- Shield-shaped leaf scar.
- Tall, pointed bud.
- No stupules.
- Pitchfork-like limb tips.
- Long and narrow clustered winged seed.
- Continuous bundle scars inside leaf scar looks like "smiley face".
- Paired winged key seeds.
- Red buds and new red stems on red maple.
- Bark is generally gray but variable in form.
- Crescent shaped leaf scar with three bundle scars.
- Terminal bud is is egg-shaped and slightly larger than lateral buds.
- Stipule scars absent.
- Clove-shaped terminal flower bud.
- "Square plated" bark.
- Leaf scar encircles twig.
- Remnant "raisin" seed.
- Leaf buds inconspicuous.
- Stipule scars are absent.
- Stout twigs over a quarter inch.
- Large, rounded, seed capsule, often spiny.
- Remnant leaf palmately compound.
- Brown seed with gray scar at base (looks like a "buck's eye".
- Leaf scars large and triangular.
- Bundle scars arranged in three groups near the corners of the triangle.
...Josh Sayer's Winter Trees and Shrubs - White Ash Example
...Ash Twig Photo
...Ash Twig and Fruit Photo
...Ash Limb Tips Photo
...The Common Ashes
Maple (Acer spp.) -
...Josh Sayer's Winter Trees and Shrubs - Red Maple Example
...Maple Twig Photo
...Maple Fruit Photo
...Red Maple Bark Photo
...The Common Maples
Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida) -
...Josh Sayer's Winter Trees and Shrubs - Flowering Dogwood Example
...Dogwood Bud, Fruit, Twig Photo
...Dogwood Bark Photo
...The Flowering Dogwood
Buckeye (Aesculus spp.) -
...Josh Sayer's Winter Trees and Shrubs - Buckeye Example
...Buckeye Fruit Photo
...The Common Buckeyes
