Field Guide

Trees, Shrubs and Woody Vines

Showing 31 - 40 of 41 results
Illustration of poison ivy leaves, flowers, fruits.
Poison Ivy
Toxicodendron radicans
Poison ivy is a toxic plant that contains an oil in all its parts that, if you come into contact with it, can cause an intense skin reaction. Learn to recognize it, and sidestep it on your outings.
Illustration of ninebark leaves, flowers, fruits.
Ninebark
Physocarpus opulifolius
An attractive shrub with wide-spreading, graceful, recurved branches and bark peeling off in conspicuous thin strips, ninebark is found throughout southern and eastern Missouri on gravel bars, rocky stream banks, and bluffs along streams. It's very popular as a native landscaping shrub, too.
Leaves of riverbank grape in a thick growth of the vines
Wild Grapes
Vitis species
Eight species of grapes in the genus Vitis are native or naturalized in Missouri. All bear edible fruits. Like their relatives elsewhere, they have important connections to humans and to nature.
Illustration of common elderberry leaves, flowers, fruits
Common Elderberry
Sambucus canadensis
Common elderberry is a colony-forming shrub with opposite compound leaves. Its large, flattened clusters of small white flowers produce purple or black berrylike fruits.
Illustration of multiflora rose, leaves, flowers, fruits.
Multiflora Rose
Rosa multiflora
Starting more than a century ago, this nonnative rose was planted across America — for many good reasons — but multiflora rose has proven to be invasive, and now the goal is to stop its spread.
Shagbark Hickory
Hickories
Carya spp.
Hickories are an important part of Missouri’s oak-hickory woodlands and forests. They have tremendous economic value, too. Learn about the nine species of hickory found in Missouri.
A closeup of an acorn
Oaks
Quercus spp.
Oaks are the most important group of trees in Missouri, in both human and ecosystem value. They dominate most of the forests, woodlands, and savannas in the state. Learn more about our 22 species.
Illustration of buckbrush leaves, flowers, fruits
Buckbrush (Coralberry)
Symphoricarpos orbiculatus
Buckbrush, or coralberry, grows throughout Missouri. This familiar thicket-forming shrub bears dense clusters of pinkish-red berries that persist through most of the winter.
Photo of slippery elm leaves and twigs.
Elms
Ulmus spp.
Missouri has seven species of elms that grow in natural settings. Elms have tough, shock-resistant wood. In the past, some species were favorite shade trees, which is why so many towns have Elm Streets. But elms have suffered for a century from a devastating fungal disease.
white ash leaves
Ashes
Fraxinus spp.
Missouri has six species of ashes that you might find in natural settings. They have been very popular as shade trees, and their wood is famously useful. Ash trees of all the species in North America are currently being killed by the invasive, nonnative emerald ash borer.
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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.