Sessions Woods Tree Identification Trail Guide

Black Birch White Oak Red Oak which are available in fall and winter. Deer eat the Betula lenta Quercus alba Quercus rubra twigs and foliage. Witch hazel oil, distilled from This deciduous tree (sheds all of its White oak is a deciduous This large deciduous tree is common at the bark of the twigs, is used to make an extract leaves each fall) grows 50-60 feet tree that grows 80-100 feet Sessions Woods. It grows 60-80 feet alcohol and rubbing lotion. tall. It can be found growing in tall. It is found in a wide variety tall in sandy loam soils where it often deep, rich, moist, but well-drained of locations, but grows best in grows with other hardwoods and white Sugar Maple soil. Ruffed grouse feed on the deep, well-drained, loamy soil. pine. Wildlife, such as bear, waterfowl, Acer saccharum catkins, buds and seeds while smaller The acorns are a desired fall and woodpeckers, grouse, wild turkeys, blue jays, This deciduous tree grows 75-100 birds, like the redpoll and pine siskin, winter food for a variety of nuthatches, raccoons, deer, squirrels, mice and feet tall in moist, rich, well-drained feed on the seeds. Mammals such as moose, deer, wildlife species, including deer, chipmunks rely on its acorns for food. The leaves soils. Wildlife use is similar to the showshoe hares, porcupines and beaver eat the squirrels, waterfowl, blue jays and and twigs are used by squirrels to make nests. The red maple. Sugar maple is used to foliage, twigs and inner bark. The wood from this wild turkeys. The hard wood is used for flooring, wood is used for flooring, furniture, boxes, crates, make maple syrup, sugar, lumber, veneer, tree is used to make furniture, veneers, paper pulp furniture, barrels, ship-building, millwork, millwork, timbers, handles, pallets and boats. It is pulpwood, flooring, furniture, boxes, crates and wooden ware. The sap contains aromatic oils lumber and boxes. also a good shade tree. and handles. It is also a prized shade tree. formerly used in making birch beer soda. Eastern Hemlock American Chestnut Sassafras Tsuga canadensis Paper (White) Birch Castanea dentata Sassafras albidum This coniferous (evergreen) tree Betula papyrifera Prior to being decimated by a blight This fragrant deciduous tree grows 20-50 grows 60-70 feet tall. It grows The white, peeling bark makes (a fungus) introduced from Asia in feet tall and is usually found in dry soils. best in cool and moist locations. paper birch a distinctive tree. The 1904, this magnificent deciduous Sassafras forms dense shrubby thickets, This shade-tolerant tree bark was once chosen by some tree grew 80-100 feet tall in cool, providing shelter for wildlife. The seeds are (survives well in the shade native Americans for the shady, moist soils. The blight killed eaten in early fall by deer, turkeys, bear and many of other trees) grows slowly, making its way construction of canoes. Paper the top of almost all American species of birds. The leaves, bark, twigs and roots through the crowns of other trees. Ruffed grouse, birch is associated with the northern chestnut trees provide oils used in soaps. Sassafras tea can wild turkeys, deer and other wildlife use the hardwood forest where it will grow to 80 by attacking the bark continuously. Today, sprouts be made by boiling the bark and roots. foliage for winter cover. Birds like the black- feet in height. Wildlife use is similar to black from living root systems continue to grow and then throated blue warbler, black-throated green warbler birch. The wood is hard, light and strong. It is die back a few years later. Chestnut was once an Red Maple and the blackburnian warbler nest in this tree. The used for veneer, pulpwood and fuel. important wildlife food prior to the blight. The Acer rubrum wood, which is soft, light, brittle and difficult to straight-grained, rot resistant wood may still be This deciduous tree grows 75-90 feet tall work with, is used for rough construction lumber Big-toothed Aspen found in use as fence posts, railroad ties and in and is commonly found in moist to swampy and pulpwood. Hemlock is valuable as an Populus grandidentata older homes and barns. soil, sandy loam soils or on rocky uplands. ornamental and a shade tree. This short-lived deciduous tree Its buds and fruit are a food source for wildlife. grows 60-70 feet tall. It is American Beech New growth is commonly browsed by deer. Birds Yellow Birch commonly located along Fagus grandifolia use the leaves and seed stalks to build nests. This Betula alleghaniensis water courses, on sites where This broad-crowned deciduous tree tree is used for fuel wood and is planted as an This tree is common at Sessions Woods. the forest is sparse or in is uncommon at Sessions Woods. It ornamental. It is deciduous, grows up to 100 feet tall disturbed areas. Wildlife such can grow up to 70-80 feet tall under and is found in hilly terrain with deep, as rabbits, deer, beavers and the right conditions. Beechnuts are a Witch Hazel rich, moist, but well-drained soil. Wildlife porcupines eat the bark and twigs. valuable food for a variety of birds, deer, squirrels Hamamelis virginiana use is similar to the black birch. Yellow birch Buds are commonly eaten by grouse. The wood and other small mammals. The wood is used for Witch hazel is a deciduous shrub that is used for lumber, veneer, railroad ties, furniture, from this tree is used for making paper products, lumber, veneer, railroad ties, pulp, fuel, baskets, can grow to almost 30 feet tall. It woodenware, interior finish and pulpwood. The matches, boxes and crates. furniture, handles, flooring and millwork. grows well in moist soil near streams. sap contains aromatic oils and is used to make Ruffed grouse and squirrels eat the woody seeds distilled products. Eastern White Pine Sessions Woods White Ash Pinus strobus Fraxinus americana White pine is the most common Wildlife Management Area White ash is a deciduous tree that evergreen tree at Sessions Woods. grows 70-80 feet tall. It grows in It grows to 100 feet tall in moist, Learn about wildlife & deep, moist soil on well-drained sandy loam soils. White pine slopes. Birds and mammals eat seeds are used by birds for food. wildlife habitat firsthand the seeds. White ash is considered Porcupines and small rodents Tree Sessions Woods WMA is operated by the a good shade tree. The wood is used to eat the bark. Young trees Department of Energy & Environmental Protection make baseball bats, oars, tool handles provide good cover year round for a variety Wildlife Division. The main focus of the and furniture. of birds and mammals. The wood, which is light, facility is on conservation education -- bringing Identification straight-grained and easily worked, is used for Pignut Hickory together school groups, the general public and lumber, cabinets, interior finish, woodenware and natural resource professionals from throughout Carya glabra matches. Turpentine and pine pitch are extracted This deciduous tree grows 50- Connecticut and the region to participate in from the sap. White pine is also a common educational programs, demonstrations and Trail Guide 70 feet tall in well-drained ornamental. soils and on rocky ridges, workshops pertaining to wildlife and natural but grows best in rich Mountain Laurel resource management. Facilities at Sessions soils. The nuts are quickly Kalmia latifolia Woods include an education center with an harvested by squirrels and This evergreen shrub, Connecticut's exhibit area and a large meeting room, as well other small mammals. This state flower, grows in dense thickets as interpretive trails and habitat management tree is good for nest building to a height of 30 feet. The leaves are demonstration areas. Sessions Woods offers because the drooping leaves toxic to humans and some domestic conservation education programming that uses provide excellent camouflage. animals but some wildlife species are the expertise of Wildlife Division and other DEEP The nuts are edible and the green wood is used to immune. Ruffed grouse and deer feed on natural resource management staff. flavor meat in a smoker or a barbecuing pit. Due to the twigs, buds and foliage. The foliage is the tough resilient grain of the wood, it is used to used by wildlife as shelter. Mountain laurel make tool handles and athletic equipment. is particularly valuable in winter when deciduous trees have lost much of their cover value. This The Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Ironwood (American Hornbeam) species is commonly used as an ornamental shrub. Protection is an equal opportunity agency that provides services, Carpinus caroliniana facilities, and employment opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, physical and mental disabilities, national This small deciduous tree grows to heights origin, ancestry, marital status and political beliefs. of 20-30 feet. It grows well in rich, In conformance with the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, moist soil near swamps, streams and the DEEP makes every effort to provide equally effective programs and services to people with disabilities. Contact the DEEP Wildlife river margins. Birds and squirrels eat Division for more information. the seeds. The catkins, buds, bark and Cover illustration by Steve Jackson twigs are eaten by deer. The wood This guide follows the Tree ID Trail is tough, close-grained, heavy and strong. It is used to make tool handles, mallets and from the northern end of the trail south. wedges. Ironwood is also used as an ornamental 341 Milford Street (Rt. 69) and a shade tree. Sessions Burlington, CT 06013 Tel: 860-675-8130 State of Connecticut Woods Fax: 860-675-8141 Wildlife Management Area Department of Energy & Environmental Protection Rev.09/14 Bureau of Natural Resources http://ct.gov/deep Wildlife Division