Trees of Michigan
| Trees of Michigan | ||||||||||||
|
Paperback - USA. |
||||||||||||
|
Trees of Michigan: Field Guide is a pocket field guide for the trees of Michigan state by Stan Tekiela and published in 2002. It details 105 trees that grow in Michigan, including native and naturalized species. Each tree has a large photo of its leaves, and, in most cases, pictures of the bark, fruit, and flowers. Facts for each tree are given including its typical shape, height, leaf layout, longevity, coloration, habitat, and various other facts. It primarily focuses on wild trees, but does include some domesticated trees spanning evergreens, nut trees, berry trees, and various others.
Personal
| Own? | Paperback. |
|---|---|
| Read? | Paperback. |
| Finished | 2019-03-21. |
I bought this book from a shop in Frankenmuth in the late 2010s to help me identify the trees in my yard and along the path where I walked my dog, Lucy. I read portions from time to time and finally did a complete read-through in 2019. It was quite helpful at teaching me more about the trees in my area.
Review
|
Overall: |
|
Good
- The book has a lot of nice closeup photos for each tree it covers.
- Most of the trees also have a smaller photo of their bark, flowers, and fruit.
- The book includes very helpful tips for identifying each tree including the leaf formation, shape of the tree, and the scent and taste of the broken leaves.
- I like the additional facts unrelated to identification like typical age, location of origin, and taxonomy. Often times the author explains where the nomenclature comes from.
Bad
- Although the book contains a diagram of the shape of the full tree, I would much prefer a photo of an isolated tree. Though, this isn't really feasible, so I understand why only diagrams were used.
- I would have preferred additional photos that showed each tree in each season. Every photo is a summer photo, and, other than evergreens, trees often look markedly different in other seasons.
- The author often says that trees have medicinal properties, though doesn't cite any medical journals to back this up. While I presume he means that the trees have been used from medicine by lay-people, it's important to not suggest that a plant has medicinal properties without evidence.
Ugly
- Nothing.
Links
