Identify Trees in Winter by Twigs and Buds

Clue 1: opposite or alternate

Look at how buds and side twigs are arranged. In opposite trees they come in pairs, directly across from each other. In alternate trees they take turns along the twig. Only a few common tree groups are opposite. A popular memory aid in North America is "MADCap Horse": Maple, Ash, Dogwood, the Caprifoliaceae family (such as elderberry and viburnum), and Horse chestnut. If a tree is opposite, it's very likely one of these; most other trees are alternate.

Check several twigs, since some buds and branches get broken off.

Clue 2: the buds

Beech: long, slim, pointed, copper-brown buds, like tiny cigars.
European ash: distinctive velvety black buds, in opposite pairs.
Horse chestnut: large, glossy, often sticky dark buds.
Oak: small buds clustered at the tip of each twig.
Maple: paired buds; many maples have reddish buds.
Birch: small, pointed buds on thin twigs, often with catkins already visible.

Clue 3: leaf scars

Where a leaf was attached, it leaves a scar below the bud. Their shapes can be distinctive: horse chestnut has large leaf scars shaped a bit like a horseshoe, with dots that look like nail holes.

Clue 4: what's still hanging on

Dry leaves in winter: young beeches and oaks often keep their brown leaves until spring.
Spiky balls: sweetgum seed pods often stay on the tree.
Small cones on a bare "conifer": it's a larch, with its knobby short shoots.
Winged seeds in bunches: ash keys often hang on through winter.
Catkins: birches and alders show them early.

Clue 5: the overall shape and bark

Without leaves, a tree's outline is easier to see: the broad spreading crown of an open-grown oak, the upright shape of many birches. Bark is another year-round clue; see our guide to identifying trees by bark.

Practice tip

Learn a few trees on your street in autumn, while they still have leaves, and visit them again in winter. It's the quickest way to link the leaf to the twig.