Cedrus Atlantica

A tree up to 40 m high and up to 2 m in diameter. BARK on old trees fissured. CROWN pyramidal, with few branches, open. BRANCHES strongly ascending and relatively short; leading shoot erect and bent at the tip. SHOOTS thickly pubescent. LEAVES silvery bluish or green, usually not longer than 2.5 cm, between 19 and 28 in a whorl. FLOWERS appearing from June to September. CONES cylindrical, with level or concave top, 5-7 cm long, up to 4 cm wide, glossy, light brown, maturing in September and October and shedding seeds into the spring; seed scales about 3.5 cm wide, with tomentose keel. SEED 12 mm long and wing 12-15 mm long.

Basswood

Basswood (Tilia americana L.) is commonly 18 to 23 meters (60 to 75 feet) in height and 60 to 85 centimeters (24 to 34 inches) in diameter, but it can reach a height of over 30 meters (100 feet) and 120 centimeters (48 inches) in diameter. In the forest, basswood trunks typically are straight and clear of branches for much of its height. The narrow, oblong or pyramidal crown is composed of many small slender branches. The leaves are alternate, simple, heart shaped with coarse teeth that are 12 to 15 centimeters (5 to 6 inches) long. Basswood produces yellow flowers in July that are 1 to 1½ centimeters (½ inch) long and borne in clusters attached to the leaf. In October, a pale brown nut-like berry fruit is shed. Basswood trees prefer a deep loam soil on low slopes and streambanks. Basswood usually grows in the company of other hardwoods. Basswood never forms pure stands.

Since basswood trees are shade tolerant, they should be managed by ‘selective harvesting’. Basswood usually grows in clumps. Individual trees should be harvested rather than full clumps. Basswood provides habitat and food for many bird species, therefore it is important to maintain a number of cavity trees in you woodlot.

Basswood is one of the softest and lightest of the Canadian hardwoods. It is very easy to work with and is highly valued for hand-carving, modelling and interior trim. It has good gluing characteristics. Its lack of taste and odour makes it valuable for food containers. Basswood has been used for specialty products such as piano keys and Venetian blinds.

American Hornbeam

American Hornbeam also known as Musclewood, Blue Beech, Water Beech, or Ironwood. 20 to 30 feet in height and 8 to 12 inches in diameter. Small, bushy tree with a spreading top of slender, crooked or drooping branches. Rich soils on low slopes and along streams, ponds and lakes. Alternate, simple, 2 to 4 inches, oval, long-pointed, doubly toothed along the edges. Males in slender, yellow-green 1 to 2 inch hanging catkins; females in fuzzy yellow-green ½ to ¾ inch catkins on new branch tips. 4 to 6 inch hanging cluster of slightly folded, 1 inch, 3-lobed leafy bracts; each bract contains a 1/3 inch ribbed nutlet; nutlets fall with bracts attached, aiding their distribution by the wind. Light brownish-gray to dark bluish-gray; trunk fluted, resembling rippling muscles.

Hornbeam wood is tough, closed-grained, heavy and strong. Although seldom harvested, it has been used for levers, tool handles, wooden cogs, mallets and wedges. The seeds are a valuable food source for gray squirrels and a variety of birds. It is also used by beavers for food and building material.

Aesculus Glabra

The tree species Aesculus glabra is normally known as Ohio buckeye, American buckeye, or fetid buckeye. It derives its unpleasant common name from the offensive aroma generated from the flowers, crushed leaves, broken twigs, or injured bark. It is resident primarily to the Midwestern and lower Great Plains regions of the United States, extending southeast into the Nashville Basin. It is also found nearby in the tremendous southwest of Ontario, on Walpole Island in Lake St. Clair, and in isolated populations in the South. It is a medium-sized deciduous tree growing to 15-25 m tall.

The leaves are palmately compound with five leaflets, 8-16 cm long and wide. The flowers are produced in panicles in spring, yellow to yellow-green, each flower 2-3 cm long with the stamens longer than the petals. The fruit is a round or oblong spiky capsule 4-5 cm diameter, containing 1-3 nut-like seeds, 2-3 cm diameter, brown with a white basal scar.

The fruits contain tannic acid, and are venomous for cattle, and possibly humans, although they are often eaten by squirrels. Native Americans would lighten them, extracting the tannic acid for use in skin.