Field Guide

Trees, Shrubs and Woody Vines

Showing 51 - 60 of 124 results
Media
willow
Species Types
Scientific Name
Salix spp. (about 12 species in Missouri)
Description
Exotic willows are available at lawn and garden centers, but there are several willow species that are native to Missouri. Most are rather humble colonizers of gravel bars, riverbanks, and lakesides. Many are important for human economic interests. All have a place in our wild ecosystems.
Media
Illustratin of river birch leaves, flowers, fruits.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Betula nigra
Description
River birch is a native tree easily identified by its reddish, papery, peeling bark. It is used extensively in landscaping, where many-stemmed groupings are planted in moist places in yards and along streams and ponds.
Media
Illustration of dwarf chestnut oak leaf.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Quercus prinoides
Description
The dwarf chestnut oak, though only 3–10 feet tall and the shortest of Missouri's oaks, can nevertheless produce abundant acorns that are relished by several types of birds and mammals.
Media
Illustration of swamp chestnut oak leaf.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Quercus michauxii
Description
Swamp chestnut oak grows in Missouri's Bootheel swamps. The leaves look something like those of true chestnut trees.
Media
Illustration of pawpaw leaves, flowers, fruits.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Asimina triloba
Description
“Way down yonder in the pawpaw patch” is an old song you might be familiar with — but today, surprisingly few Missourians know a pawpaw tree when they see one. This is a good tree to know, especially when the large, sweet fruit are ripening!
Media
Illustration of Osage orange flowers and fruit.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Maclura pomifera
Description
Osage orange is a densely branched, short-trunked, thorny tree. It bears weird-loooking, softball-sized, chartreuse, brainlike fruits, which often lie beneath the tree in abundance in autumn.
Media
Illustration of black willow leaves and catkins.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Salix nigra
Description
In some parts of our nation, black willow is only a shrub, but in Missouri it grows quite large. The largest and most widely known of our native willows, black willow is the only member of its family that reaches commercial size.
Media
Illustration of sandbar willow small branch with leaves.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Salix interior (formerly S. exigua)
Description
Identify sandbar willow by its very narrow leaves with widely spaced, slender teeth along the margins. This is a good soil binder and bank stabilizer; it prevents washing and erosion of alluvial soil.
Media
Illustration of Ward's willow twig with leaves.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Salix caroliniana
Description
Ward's willow, or Carolina willow, is one of the first woody species to occupy the outer edges of gravel bars in a stream. Common in the Ozarks, it occurs nearly statewide.
Media
Illustration of willow oak leaf.
Species Types
Scientific Name
Quercus phellos
Description
Willow oak's leaves are narrow, pointed, and willowlike, and like willows, this oak is associated with wet ground. In Missouri, willow oak is only found natively in our southeastern counties.
See Also

About Trees, Shrubs and Woody Vines in Missouri

There are no sharp dividing lines between trees, shrubs, and woody vines, or even between woody and nonwoody plants. “Wood” is a type of tissue made of cellulose and lignin that many plants develop as they mature — whether they are “woody” or not. Trees are woody plants over 13 feet tall with a single trunk. Shrubs are less than 13 feet tall, with multiple stems. Vines require support or else sprawl over the ground.