by Ryan Reed
It should come as no surprise that the Bureau of Forestry staff loves trees. A dendrophile is one who loves trees, and the bureau is full of them. Prior to writing this article, I reached out to forestry staff with that love in mind, asking for respondents’ most beloved native tree species.
The results are in, and the winner couldn’t be more appropriate. The eastern redbud, with its heart-shaped leaves and gorgeous spring bouquet, got the most votes (TRUE LOVE!) (4).
Coming in second and showing us how to forever “STAY COOL”, the lovely white oak, with its strong features and attractive form, received three votes.
Tied for third place but desired by several suitors to “BE MINE” were eastern hemlock, pawpaw, northern white cedar, sycamore, and the very aloof bald cypress (MISS YOU!) (more on that in the “love notes”).
Proving the diversity of human affection, these species all received a “KISS ME”: red spruce, tamarack, butternut, American holly, black walnut, serviceberry, sassafras, staghorn sumac, persimmon, and tulip poplar.
Fittingly, these species were someone’s “SWEETHEART”: sweet gum, sugar maple, and persimmon.
Bureau responses were as varied as the unique traits we seek in others. While some trees may not be your idea of “HOT STUFF”, I’m glad there’s a place for all of them in the hearts of our staff.
Species Love Notes
We have an old black walnut in our backyard. It is the most beautiful tree I have ever seen… and I have spent a lifetime looking. It shades our house and breaks the wind. In the spring, the orioles fly from afar to reach it. Our two-story farmhouse was built in 1850, and I suspect the tree started growing then. It never stopped, and now the house, sagging with age, is tucked beneath. -Jim Hyland
My favorite tree that USDA lists as native to PA is the bald cypress https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/TAXOD. I think it is way better than the other native deciduous conifer/s. It has a neat cone and it’s the tree’s knees! I’m not sure about them reproducing within stands in PA anymore, maybe in the coastal plain, but they survive many areas when planted. There are a couple in Mercer County in a park next to a pond whose roots I would stand on while fishing as a kid. PA Big Trees has listings in many counties, biggest in Longwood Gardens-Jeff Osborne
My favorite tree is Tamarack because of its unique adaptation- shedding needles annually which allows it to conserve water and energy during harsh winters. Their lack of winter needles means that they’re less susceptible to leaching of nutrients by winter precipitation than other conifers, and they can withstand extreme cold temperatures through a process called supercooling. (Essentially, a tree’s cells dehydrate, pushing water into spaces outside their walls, where crystallization won’t damage living tissue.) Tamarack needles are deceiving, they may be wispy, but they are efficient. Their relatively sparse placement along the branch stems means that a high percentage of them are well illuminated. Even distribution of light ensures that most of the needles are fully engaged in photosynthesis. The Tamarack’s charm, for me, lies in its striking fall colors. It’s bright orange and golden yellow needles can be seen well into late November, long after other trees have lost their fall color. -Angela Poleto
My favorite tree that grows native in PA is the sassafras tree; its unique leaves make me smile and think….. God does have a sense of humor! -Hope Mroczka
My favorite species of tree native in PA is the eastern hemlock. Eastern hemlock was designated as the State Tree of Pennsylvania in 1931 for its value to the timber and tannery industries as well as beauty and service to people and wildlife. This magnificent, slow-growing, and long-lived tree is the foundation species to such habitats as stream banks, swamp edges, cool coves, ravines, north-facing slopes, and rocky outcrops across the state because of its extreme tolerance to full shade and the ability to thrive under various moisture conditions. We should celebrate it as a state symbol for 100 years in 2031. -Houping Liu
My favorite tree is the mighty white oak. I think I am connected to this tree from my Irish and Scottish ancestors. There is nothing like the beauty of an open grown white oak. Right before Ithica going north on Rt. 13 there are two huge open grown examples between the north and south bound lanes. Unfortunately, one tree died a couple years ago. Every time I drive through there, I look at the remaining living white oak and think people of the six nations used to pass by that tree. I also pick the white oak as my favorite tree for its benefit to wildlife as a food source. Nothing like bowhunting an AD timber type during a good white oak acorn crop. Also, some of my favorite beverages are aged in white oak barrels. -Dale Gower
Though not the most glamorous, I am going with the eastern white pine. I went to the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology many a year ago for carpentry and cabinetmaking. The wood that we had readily available to us was white pine. The smell of white pine will forever be inextricably linked to my love of woodworking and trees. -Josh Thomas
My favorite tree is the white oak. I enjoy white oaks in so many different ways – beautiful hardwood, ecologically valuable, used in wine barrel making, and they make the best wolf trees. -Jessica Pierce
Sweetgum… visually, their foliage is a real treat. Their five-point leaves shift from their lush summer green to starbursts in the fall – autumn’s variety all on one tree. Their fruit “gumballs” are nature’s caltrops (or jacks) for bare feet and lawnmowers alike, but wildlife such as finches, chickadees, and juncos all gain a food source from them. -Ellie Elliott
Eastern white pine! I love the green in the winter. I also have good memories of a white pine stand when I was learning forestry in college. I planted white pines around my house to enjoy them year-round. -Seth Cassell
American persimmon because the fruit is my favorite fruit in the world due to how delicious it is. I have fond memories when I was a kid eating ripe persimmons that had fallen from trees. I was also surrounded by amazing women in my life (mom and her friend group) who were excellent cooks and baked awesome persimmon pudding and cookies. -Evan McDivitt
Well, it is hard to choose just one since I am a lover of all trees, especially Hemlocks (our house was built from Hemlocks). -Amy Kyle
My favorite tree is red spruce. I have spent a good deal of time in New England and Northern New York, and I enjoy red spruce’s presence on the landscape in that region. I see red spruce frequently in the Poconos, but somehow my appreciation for it has only grown. Red spruce is a very valuable timber species, with a high strength to weight ratio and tight, clear grain. Like other spruce woods, red spruce is used in the construction of stringed instruments. A silviculture professor who previously worked in Michigan told me that red spruce was so valuable to the settlers in that region it was high graded from mixed stands. It is hard to imagine spruce wood that is more valuable than sugar maple or red oak today. -Will Thomas
My favorite tree that grows in Pennsylvania is the Northern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis). I love this tree because of the childhood stories I was told about it. In Ojibwe culture, it’s called Nookomis Giizhik (Grandmother Cedar). I grew up being taught that cedars are where the Thunderbirds live and if you were ever lost, try to find one to stay near for protection. Some eastern tribes also believe the cedar is the home of helpful spirits. When I was little, my gram used to make a tea from the tree to help us not get sick. -Thomas Allison
I was always fascinated by the clump of Bald Cypress growing in a nearby neighbor’s pasture; at the time, I was told by a local forester it was the most northerly known existing population of the tree in PA. I don’t know if it was . . . even then. . . and the trees are long gone now. But I’m trying to recreate some small patches of bald cypress and white cedar “swamp” habitat on our farm; so was just so tickled both species were already mentioned by others! -Roy Brubaker
Sycamore, because I once heard that they, like me, like their feet wet, and now I imagine them on hot summer’s day, sighing with their feet wet underground. They were the first trees in the riparian buffer of my parents’ farm to grow big enough for me to sit under the shade, put my feet in the stream, and watch the crayfish and caddisflies. I also love the way their mottled white bark stands in contrast with the sky on dark, stormy days. I love how festive they look in the fall, without leaves, decorated with fruits. -Suzanne Hartley
My favorite tree species is the pawpaw. I enjoy this tree for a variety of reasons and have multiple growing on my property that I planted. One, the fruit is unique and though the taste varies, it can be delicious. Two, it is great food for wildlife. Three, it is the sole host of the Zebra Swallowtail butterfly. Four, the leaves remind you of a tropical tree, which is uncommon here in the North. -Ryan Thrush
My favorite PA tree is pawpaw, for the fun fruits & the way they’re pollinated. Also, because it was my college friend’s favorite tree before he passed. -Gina Berger
The sycamore is my favorite. The colors of the trunk and limbs, the beautiful pieces that flake off in the snow. The leaves I’m told are the best for compost piles (and sure easy to pick up enough- so large). The Lackawanna River runs close to where I used to work in downtown Scranton, and they are thriving in the sidewalk areas and Lackawanna Avenue for many years. That is the only place I’ve ever seen an adult worm snake! They also have awesome branches to spot eagles and hawks hunting, often nesting near them. -Gerri Jesse
White Oak, the leaf is on our Warden’s badge. Many nature-based religions identify it as a sacred tree of life. -Rick Deppen
My favorite is full-height eastern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis) because it was my dad’s favorite – for its rot-resistance and scent – and it therefore helped house me growing up in our passive solar cordwood home that he built. I also appreciate its unique bark, leaves and cones. -Hannah Huber
I love redbuds! I love how they burst into such unexpected color in early spring, giving hope for warmer weather to come. -Rebecca Bowen
I am going to have to revert to my New England upbringing and say white pine is my favorite. During my graduate program, I worked for a logging company that was 3/5ths female (in the late 80’s mind you!) and we did a lot of cutting of white pine. They were tall, would stay limb free if pruned, easy to regenerate and (usually) pretty straight. We milled some of the prettiest wood I had ever seen out of some 3-log tall white pine that had been pruned in the 70’s and I just fell in love with the species. -Lin Greenaway
Butternut, or white walnut tree, Juglans cinerea. They have a delicious nut, and of course the very cool chambered pith. But my favorite part of the butternut tree is the leaf scar, they look like mini smiley faces, and if you find a branch with many leaf scars, it is such a treat to see all the “smiling faces” wrapped around the twig! When I see a butternut leaf scar, I can’t help but smile back! –Rosa Yoo
I love any tree that fits on a veneer lathe. -Bob Wetzel
I love American Holly; it is so distinct, and I love that it is green through winter and the pop of red berries in the snow is beautiful. -Marisa Sprowles
I love sugar maples for the gifts of sap for maple syrup and a beautiful faint red tint to the hills when they flower in early spring. -Chris Firestone
My favorite tree is the Staghorn Sumac. This is a tough little tree that doesn’t always get the love it deserves, despite growing proudly in many of the places we frequent and many of the places we most heavily disturb. This tree has a lot to give. Its flowering spikes can be used in the kitchen, and it provides winter food for wildlife; its fiery red fall foliage is a delight as the seasons start to change, and its fast-growing ruderal nature means it doesn’t ask for a lot in return. If I had to guess, it’s only Valentine’s wish would be that people stop confusing it with Tree of Heaven! -Robin Eng
My favorite tree is the eastern redbud. It shows itself in the spring with those beautiful flowers and yet most of the year, we hardly notice it! It becomes inconspicuous! -Aura Stauffer
Redbuds are lovely; one of my favorites too. –Laura Davila-Reyes
My favorite PA tree is the pawpaw, one of a select few fruit trees native to the state! I love the yummy fruit, although it tastes best in the Monitoring Team’s hand-churned ice cream! -Arianne Proctor
My favorite native tree is the Tulip Poplar! I like this tree because it typically grows quite large and very straight. It has a unique shape to its leaf, and it also grows tulip shaped flowers that are beneficial to our pollinator species! The Tulip Poplar also regenerates quickly after disturbances due to its prolific stump sprouting and wind dispersed seeds. -Kyle Seyler
