Any experts on trees?

[JonSnow]

I'm at the point in my book where some of my main characters are having to flee into the wild. I was wondering if anyone was an expert on trees, and could provide a list of types of trees, and the climate/elevation they would most likely live? I don't need every type of tree (I also plan on making up a few of my own), but a few common types like oak, willow, fir, ash, pine, etc...or any else you would see as "common".

Also, any expertise such as how far apart they might need to grow from eachother (so I know how thick the woods might be in certain areas). Thanks.

 

[Jabrosky]

Why would the specific tree species matter?

 

[Saigonnus]

Why would the specific tree species matter?

I agree in a general sense. The types of trees are a relatively unimportant feature in comparison with say the chase through the trees itself. They only become important if they have a direct effect on the characters plight; like chucking coconuts from a palm tree at the pursuers or climbing one to escape from a persistant bear or even the main character sliding on the loose pine needles and tumbling down a steep hill.

This is where research is your friend; if you want to know the types of tree in a certain climate, think of real world locations with similar geographical features and simply look up trees for that region for a good idea. For an example, I searched for "deciduous trees in a warm climate" on google and came up with different types of Ash, Maple and Walnut for the southern states of the US.

I used to do landscaping for a job, but never really got to know more about the individual plants that I needed to for my area and if I needed to know more types to help a customer decide what types they wanted in their yard, I would look them up myself and present them a rundown.

 

[Stuart John Evison]

I would humbly suggest you go to your nearest forest and describe what you see into your book. Failing that Readers Digest produced a book in the eighties called "The Ever Changing Woodland", I've sometimes used that both for description and illustration.

 

[Jess A]

I like to briefly comment on a tree species here and there. 'So-and-so climbed up a tall spruce'. I don't go into detail.

I agree with Saigonnus. I tend to look at real climates. One of my major settings is based on a place I travelled to. I took a lot of notes on the wildlife, tree species, geography and ecology of the area. Whilst a reader may be lost in too much description (I must bring up Jean Auel again), I as a reader have always enjoyed being able to visualise a place as long as I am not drowned in detail.

Anyhow - you don't need to fly across the world to see your setting. A bit of research will certainly help. Pick an area. The redwood forests of California. Australian bushland. Canada. Ecuador. African savannah.

I am the sort of person who thrives on visiting places. So certainly visit a forest and spend as much time as possible taking notes and absorbing the sounds, scents, sights and even the feel of the place.

---

Trees are like any living creature. They are competitive: they (their roots) compete for nutrients, light, water and space. The thicker the canopy above, the less light getting to the forest floor. A pine plantation, for instance, is thinned out often to maximise the light and nutrients getting to each individual plant. I forget the details but I think it goes in phases. Older forests are very widely spaced and younger ones were very close together. Of course, those are manmade forests. If there is light getting to the floor, other plant species may grow and create an undergrowth. If a tree falls, the light created by the gap in the canopy will allow more plants to grow. Rainforests and plantations are wonderful things to study to grasp the concept of tree competititveness.

As far as altitude goes, I am not entirely sure. I did learn about it repeatedly in University, but it was some time ago. The wind going down the slopes, altitude etc would affect tree growth.

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_line
http://www.denverplants.com/hialt/dtree.htm
http://homeguides.sfgate.com/effects-land-elevation-tree-growth-31433.html

Quote from the last page on wider spacing in higher altitudes:

Because fewer trees can survive at high elevation, less energy is infused into the soil through decaying matter. This means fewer stretches of soil are viable sources of nutrients for tree growth. The effect is wider spacing between patches of trees than is seen at lower altitudes. Higher winds also contribute to this effect, since wind carries the seeds farther away from parent trees at high altitudes.

Your forests would be less dense higher up the mountain, but check around to see some different examples of forest.

 

[Ravana]

Why would the specific tree species matter?

Rather depends on what you're planning on eating—the apples on conifers taste like crap.

Frivolity aside (though that answer isn't entirely frivolous): whether you want to give the precise species is partly preference, but it's also useful to keep from having only two types of trees in your world—deciduous and coniferous. Most readers may accept the latter term, most will be thrown off by the first sounding too "scientific," and both terms will get old after about the dozenth repetition. (As will making all of them maples or pines.) So sometimes it's nice to have the variety.

Especially once you start asking yourself questions such as:
• what do the characters eat?
• what do they burn?
• what do they shelter in or among?
• how much cover does the tree provide?
• how hard is the wood to cut?
• what else lives in that type of tree?
• does the tree provide any other useful products (sap, resin, antipyretic bark, tea, etc.)?
• how tall are they?
• how high (as a percentage of total height) can they be climbed?
• what are the other dimensions (trunk diameter, crown diameter, branch thickness)?
• what's the bark like?
• if they are seasonal, when do they produce leaves/nuts/fruit/etc.?

And so on. Note that the answers aren't always "obvious," either. Is the tree an evergreen? "Is it a conifer?" is not a synonymous question: the answer may depend on climate as well as general type. Olives in midsummer? Not. Olives in mid-January? Well, actually, yes. Assuming you're talking about black olives—and are in a temperate zone north of the equator. Acorns from an acorn tree? Only if you want your readers (rather, your editor) to cringe. Peanuts from a peanut tree? Not on this planet. Cucumbers from a cucumber tree? I'm not sure they're edible… on the other hand, such a tree does exist. (Surprised? I sure was.) Mimosas from a mimosa tree? Only if you're talking about the flower; the drink was named after it, and has nothing to do with anything from the tree. (I'm still looking for a margarita tree, myself. Or, better, a mojito tree.)

It's the same as any other kind of detail: you aren't going to want to try producing a treatise on the complete biodiversity of the region you're describing, any more than you want to give a complete inventory of, say, a blacksmith's shop… or a castle armory. You may want to have that shop contain more than just hammers and not-hammers (honestly, even if all you have is a hammer, neither horseshoes nor anvils look like nails… ); likewise, just because all you have is a sword, that doesn't make everything else look like a shield. If you're going to go that simple, you probably aren't going to want to bother describing the place at all: it's a smithy, its an armory… it's a forest. If you do want to go a little deeper, having a short list of possibilities is a good idea.

Besides, what you really don't want to do is make a mistake about a term you do use… like describing the needles on an ash or birch, or the leaves on a yew or cedar, or putting a teak in a temperate zone.… or putting edible nuts on any of these.

 

[JonSnow]

Why would the specific tree species matter?

Well, I don't plan on going into great detail. But I need basic info on what type of tree might realistically live in a certain climate (such as a mountain forest or a wooded river bottom). I don't want to have my characters "make camp under an oak tree" if its an area where an oak tree would never grow. Its more about avoiding dumb mistakes than describing foliage in depth.

Anyway, thanks to everyone for the input and the info links.

 

[Jess A]

Well, I don't plan on going into great detail. But I need basic info on what type of tree might realistically live in a certain climate (such as a mountain forest or a wooded river bottom). I don't want to have my characters "make camp under an oak tree" if its an area where an oak tree would never grow. Its more about avoiding dumb mistakes than describing foliage in depth.

Anyway, thanks to everyone for the input and the info links.

Yes I must agree. I like to learn the nitty gritty details. I might only mention 0.05% of those details in my actual story, to avoid those little 'mistakes' that you mention. It's a good way to go. Keep the questions coming!