Overview
Ohio's mixed-hardwood forests, river bottoms, and woodlots hold a classic eastern tree community, including the buckeye that gives the state its nickname. A few leaf and bark clues name most of them.
This guide covers common and iconic Ohio trees — how to tell them apart by leaf, bark, and habit. Pair it with a photo of the leaf or bark and the app to confirm any tree you find.
Key Species to Know
Ohio Buckeye
Aesculus glabra
The Ohio state tree — a medium hardwood with palmate leaves of five leaflets, showy spring flower spikes, and glossy brown "buckeye" seeds in spiny husks.
Sugar Maple
Acer saccharum
A hardwood with five-lobed leaves that blaze orange and red in fall, and the source of maple syrup. Smooth gray bark furrows with age.
White Oak
Quercus alba
A stout oak with rounded-lobed leaves (no bristles) and pale, flaky gray bark. Long-lived and a mainstay of Ohio uplands.
American Sycamore
Platanus occidentalis
A huge riverside tree with broad, maple-like leaves and unmistakable mottled bark that flakes to creamy-white on the upper trunk and limbs.
Tulip Tree
Liriodendron tulipifera
A very tall, straight hardwood with four-lobed "tulip"-shaped leaves and orange-and-green tulip-like flowers high in the crown.
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
A small tree with heart-shaped leaves that bursts into rosy-pink pea flowers directly on bare branches in early spring, before leafing out.
Seasonal Guide
- Spring: redbud flowers on bare branches and buckeye leafs out early.
- Fall: sugar maple, tulip tree, and oaks carry the color.
- Winter: the creamy-white upper bark of sycamores lines every river.
Safety Reminder
This is an identification guide only — it does not cover edibility or foraging. Buckeye seeds and many ornamental parts are toxic if eaten — observe trees without tasting any part, and do not damage bark or limbs.
Identify it instantly
Found something and not sure what it is? Point your camera with Spotter and get a species identification in seconds — with detailed reference info and species notes.