Deciduous Trees

Arbutus Tree

The Arbutus tree is a broad-leaf Deciduous Tree, usually with a crooked trunk that divides into several twisting upright branches that form an irregular top. This tree is usually quite gnarled and impressive to look upon. The leaves are dark, beautiful, and glossy, but are quite pale underneath. The leaves are from 7 to 12 cm long, thick, with a real feeling of leathery texture. Read More….

 

Aspen Tree

The Aspen tree is also known as trembling or quaking aspen. All of its names refer to how the leaves will quiver in the slightest breeze. It is one of the most widely distributed trees in Canada and the USA. It ranges from Alaska to Newfoundland and Labrador, southeast to Virginia. The Aspen Tree is very common in the interior of BC, but is spotty on the west coast. Look for it on southeastern Vancouver Island as far up as Campbell River, and there is a large clone population growing just on the outskirts of town. Read More….

 

Bitter Cherry Tree

The bitter cherry trees are small trees that grow up to 12 meters tall. It has a straight trunk, extending up to the narrow crown. The bark is reddish grey, peeling like paper birch. The leaves are small, oval-shaped, and tapered towards the tip; they are up to 8 cm long, greenish to yellow, thin, with unevenly sized teeth on the edges. The bitter cherry fruit is eaten by many birds and small animals. Read More….

 

Black Cottonwood Tree

Black cottonwood is the largest hardwood tree in Western North America. It usually grows on moist sites on the west side of the Rockies. The most productive sites are the bottom lands of major streams and rivers along the Pacific Northwest coast and all of Vancouver Island. Black cottonwood is used for lumber, veneer, fibre products, and toilet paper. Many kinds of wildlife use foliage, twigs, and buds for food. The black cottonwood can be found on all of Vancouver Island. Read More….

 

Black Hawthorn Tree

The Black Hawthorn Tree is a small tree that grows up to 8 m tall, armed with sharp thorns up to 2 cm long. The tree bears beautiful white flowers during May and June. The Leaves are oval and are up to 6 cm long, with up to 9 small lobes at the top. The flowers are white, round, and grow in clusters. The fruit comes in clusters of small, blackish fruits that die quite quickly. Read More….

 

Broad-Leaf Maple

Found along the western coast of British Columbia and on all of Vancouver Island, the broadleaf maple trees grow along with other trees such as Douglas fir, western hemlock, red alder, black cottonwood, and western red cedar. It is the largest and fastest-growing maple in Western Canada. It grows up to 30 m in height. These trees can live to be 250 years old. Read More….

 

 

Cascara Tree

The Cascara Trees are small with gray to black bark that can reach heights of up to 12 m. The flowers are nondescript, greenish-white, and clustered near the ends of branches. The fruit is purplish to black-coloured berries. The cascara tree is found on Vancouver Island, some parts of the southern BC coast, and in scattered locations in the Columbia Valley in the Interior.  Read More….

 

 

Douglas Maple

The Douglas Maple is widespread at low to mid-elevations throughout most of southern British Columbia and all of Vancouver Island, but not on the Queen Charlotte Islands or northern British Columbia. Douglas’ maple grows on well-drained but wet sites and sometimes in avalanche areas. It inhabits clearings and open forests. It is one of the trees that stabilizes slide areas. Read More….

 

 

Garry Oak Tree

The Garry Oak Trees have deeply lobed leaves that are bright green and shiny on top and paler with red to yellow hairs underneath. The leaves turn brown and crispy in the fall. Leaves often have galls, created by wasps. The acorns are small with a shallow cup on one end. The Garry oak has grayish-to-black bark with thick grooves and scales. In British Columbia, it only grows on southeastern Vancouver Island. Read More….

 

 

Mountain Ash 

Mountain Ash Trees are found mainly on rich, moist soils along the borders of streams, or rocky hillsides, usually in association with conifers. An infusion of the branches can be given to young children with bed-wetting problems as a treatment for weak kidneys to stop frequent urination. An infusion of the root and branch bark has been drunk in the treatment of stomach problems and rheumatism. It can also be used externally as a bath for treating rheumatism. Read More….

 

Ocean Spray

Ocean Spray is native to southern British Columbia, southern California, east to western Montana, Colorado, and Arizona.  It is very common along the roads of Vancouver Island.  It can easily be recognized by its triangular leaves with their toothed margins.  The green, upper surface of the leaves is smooth or coarsely hairy; the paler, under surface, is strongly veined with soft hairs.  Its long, flowing flowers are white to cream.  It is a strikingly beautiful flower during its short bloom period. Read More….

 

Pacific Ninebark Tree

Pacific Ninebark is native to the Pacific Northwest, from Alaska to California and as far east as Montana. It grows profusely on Vancouver Island, forming very dense stands. They grow to 10 meters in height and get quite wide. Their name is in regard to the way bark looks; it peels off in many layers. Animals would browse the plant as food, and birds would eat the berries as a great food source in the late fall or early winter. Deer and Elk will peel off the bark in lean times during the winter months. Read More….

 

 

Pacific Rhododendron

The Pacific rhododendron is a small perennial shrub. This shrub is native to the Pacific Northwest. This plant has dark green foliage and inconspicuous purple flowers, with an abundance of small black seeds. On Vancouver Island, it is very rare, with only a couple of areas where they grow. I am only familiar with the Parksville site at Rhododendron Lake. There is one plant growing at Antler Lake, also. Read More….

 

 

Pacific Willow Tree

The Pacific Willow Trees are classed as small trees or shrubs. These trees can be found growing on all of Vancouver Island. Its most active growth period is in the spring and summer. Leaves fall year to year. The inner bark was dried, ground into a powder, and then added to cereal for use in making bread. Pacific Willow branches and bark were used for making ropes for nets, tying, and bending. The Islands’ First Peoples used the bark to make a gray dye for mountain goat wool. Read More….

 

Red Alder Tree

Red Alder is a nitrogen fixer, meaning that it puts nitrogen back into the soil, unlike most plants. Small bumps, called nodules, on the roots house an organism that can convert the nitrogen in the soil into a form that plants can absorb. When the nitrogen-rich leaves fall, they provide nutritious compost on the forest floor. We call it the healing tree, as it puts more back into the soil than it takes out. It can be found on the coast of British Columbia and all of Vancouver Island. Read More….

 

Red Osier Dogwood

Red Osier Dogwood grows in many habitats but prefers moist growing soil. It is a very bushy, multi-stemmed, and colourful shrub. This plant has beautiful, deep green leaves that are arranged oppositely on bright red stems. This gets more impressive when there is snow on the ground. Read More….

 

 

Sitka Alder

Sitka Alder is sometimes called Mountain Alder. This Alder can be found in all places where you find red alder. You can also find it in the Rocky Mountains, Yukon and the Northwest Territories, Greenland and Siberia. It is very similar to Red Alder, an easy way to tell them apart when there are leaves is that Sitka leaves are quite sawtoothed when compared to Red Alder. Read More….

 

Vine Maple

The vine maple is a small tree that sometimes reaches a height of 20 m. It has a short, crooked trunk with spreading limbs and a roughly shaped crown. Vine maple can become a sprawling shrub that can get very thick. It is mostly restricted to southwestern British Columbia, at low to mid-elevations. It occurs in most areas on Vancouver Island. Vine maple grows best in wet soils, particularly along the banks of streams and wet sites. Read More….

 

 

Western Dogwood Tree

The western dogwood is a small tree. This tree is native to the Pacific Northwest. The Western dogwood has green leaves and beautiful white flowers. The greatest bloom is usually observed in the summer, with fruit and seed being produced in the early summer. Leaves are not retained year to year. Read More….

 

A message from Bud

Our Videos