A tree herbarium
What tree is this?
A leaf, a piece of bark, a cone on the ground: a careful look is nearly always enough. Here are 66 trees of Catalonia and the Iberian Peninsula, from the woods and from the city, and a few simple questions to help you find yours.
Catalogue
66 trees
broadleafAlder
Vern · Alnus glutinosa
A riverside tree with round, blunt-tipped leaves and little black cones on the branches.
coniferAleppo pine
Pi blanc · Pinus halepensis
A pine with an open crown, fine pale green needles and a grey trunk, often leaning or twisted.
broadleafAlmond
Ametller · Prunus dulcis
A small tree of dry farmland that covers itself in white or pink blossom in the depths of winter, before the leaves.
coniferAtlas cedar
Cedre de l'Atles · Cedrus atlantica
A park conifer with short needles in rosettes, often bluish, and cones like upright barrels.
broadleafBay laurel
Llorer · Laurus nobilis
Tough, glossy, lance-shaped leaves that smell of stew when crushed.
broadleafBeech
Faig · Fagus sylvatica
A smooth grey trunk like concrete, and oval leaves with wavy edges.
broadleafBitter orange
Taronger amarg · Citrus × aurantium
A small evergreen street tree, laden in winter with oranges that nobody picks.
broadleafBlack locust
Acàcia · Robinia pseudoacacia
Compound leaves of oval leaflets, a pair of spines at the base of each leaf, and fragrant white clusters in April.
broadleafBlack poplar
Pollancre · Populus nigra
A tall riverside tree with triangular leaves that tremble in the wind.
palmCanary Island date palm
Palmera canària · Phoenix canariensis
A palm with a very thick trunk and a huge, dense crown of bright green feather leaves.
broadleafCarob
Garrofer · Ceratonia siliqua
An evergreen tree with leaves of thick, round leaflets and long brown pods.
broadleafChinaberry
Mèlia · Melia azedarach
Clusters of little yellow berries hanging from the bare branches all winter.
broadleafCork oak
Surera · Quercus suber
Like the holm oak, but with a trunk wrapped in thick cork, or stripped and reddish.
palmDate palm
Palmera datilera · Phoenix dactylifera
A tall, slender palm with a thin trunk and grey-blue feather leaves, often with suckers at the base.
broadleafDowny oak
Roure martinenc · Quercus pubescens
An oak with lobed leaves, downy beneath, that keeps its dead leaves through winter.
palmDwarf fan palm
Margalló · Chamaerops humilis
A dwarf palm with fan-shaped leaves, spiny stalks and several short trunks.
broadleafField elm
Om · Ulmus minor
A toothed leaf with a lopsided base, one side longer than the other.
broadleafField maple
Auró blanc · Acer campestre
A hand-shaped leaf with five blunt lobes, and fruits with two wings in a straight line.
broadleafFig
Figuera · Ficus carica
Big, rough leaves with three to five lobes like a hand, on a smooth grey trunk.
broadleafGinkgo
Ginkgo · Ginkgo biloba
Fan-shaped leaves, often with a notch in the middle, that turn golden yellow in autumn.
broadleafGlossy privet
Lligustre · Ligustrum lucidum
An evergreen street tree with glossy, opposite leaves and clusters of little blue-black berries in winter.
broadleafHazel
Avellaner · Corylus avellana
A many-stemmed shrub with round, rough leaves that are heart-shaped at the base.
broadleafHolly
Grèvol · Ilex aquifolium
Very glossy, dark green, prickly leaves, and red berries in winter.
broadleafHolm oak
Alzina · Quercus ilex
An evergreen tree with tough leaves, dark green above and grey beneath, that bears acorns.
broadleafHoney locust
Acàcia de tres punxes · Gleditsia triacanthos
A light crown of tiny leaflets and, in winter, huge twisted brown pods hanging from the branches.
broadleafHorse chestnut
Castanyer d'Índia · Aesculus hippocastanum
Leaves like an open hand of five to seven leaflets and, in spring, great candles of white flowers.
coniferItalian cypress
Xiprer · Cupressus sempervirens
A narrow, tall tree shaped like a flame, dark green, with small grey woody balls.
broadleafJacaranda
Jacaranda · Jacaranda mimosifolia
A crown covered in violet-blue flowers in late spring, and fine, fern-like leaves.
broadleafJapanese pagoda tree
Sòfora · Styphnolobium japonicum
It flowers in high summer with creamy white clusters, and its pods look like necklaces of green beads.
broadleafJudas tree
Arbre de l'amor · Cercis siliquastrum
In March it is covered in fuchsia-pink flowers that sprout even from the trunk; then come leaves as round as coins.
broadleafKermes oak
Garric · Quercus coccifera
A dense thicket of small, tough leaves, shiny green on both sides, with prickly edges.
broadleafKurrajong
Braquiquíton · Brachychiton populneus
An evergreen street tree with glossy leaves that tremble like a poplar's and boat-shaped fruit.
broadleafLarge-leaved lime
Til·ler · Tilia platyphyllos
A heart-shaped leaf, and fruits hanging from a long leafy wing.
broadleafLondon plane
Plàtan · Platanus × hispanica
The avenue tree: a trunk mottled green, grey and cream, and hanging balls all winter long.
coniferMaritime pine
Pinastre · Pinus pinaster
A pine with very long, thick, prickly needles and dark, deeply fissured bark.
coniferMonterey pine
Pi de Monterrey · Pinus radiata
A fast-growing pine with bright green needles in threes and lopsided cones stuck to the branches.
broadleafMontpellier maple
Auró negre · Acer monspessulanum
Small leaves with three rounded lobes, growing in opposite pairs.
coniferMountain pine
Pi negre · Pinus uncinata
A high-mountain pine, dark and dense, with cones whose scales end in hooks.
broadleafNarrow-leaved ash
Freixe de fulla petita · Fraxinus angustifolia
Compound leaves of narrow leaflets growing in opposite pairs, and clusters of winged fruits.
broadleafNettle tree
Lledoner · Celtis australis
A smooth grey trunk like elephant skin, and toothed leaves ending in a long point.
broadleafOlive
Olivera · Olea europaea
Narrow leaves, grey-green on top and silvery underneath, and a twisted trunk.
broadleafPortuguese oak
Roure de fulla petita · Quercus faginea
An oak with oval, toothed leaves, green above and grey beneath, that hang on until spring.
coniferPrickly juniper
Càdec · Juniperus oxycedrus
A shrub or small tree with sharp needles in threes and small reddish berries.
broadleafPurple-leaf plum
Pruner de fulla vermella · Prunus cerasifera 'Pissardii'
The tree with dark red leaves: in February it fills with little pale pink flowers.
broadleafRiver red gum
Eucaliptus · Eucalyptus camaldulensis
A very tall tree with a smooth trunk mottled white, grey and cream, and drooping, sickle-shaped leaves.
broadleafRowan
Moixera de guilla · Sorbus aucuparia
Leaves with many toothed leaflets, and clusters of red or orange berries.
coniferSalzmann pine
Pinassa · Pinus nigra subsp. salzmannii
A pine with a grey trunk and a dark crown, with long, stiff, very dark green needles.
coniferScots pine
Pi roig · Pinus sylvestris
A mountain pine with an orange upper trunk and short, bluish needles.
broadleafSessile oak
Roure de fulla gran · Quercus petraea
A tall oak of damp mountains, with lobed leaves that are smooth beneath and have a long stalk.
broadleafSilver birch
Bedoll · Betula pendula
A white trunk with black marks and fine, drooping twigs.
coniferSilver fir
Avet · Abies alba
A tall, conical mountain conifer with flat, single needles set in two rows like a comb.
broadleafSilver wattle
Mimosa · Acacia dealbata
In the depths of winter it is covered in fragrant yellow pompoms; fine, feathery leaves of silvery grey.
broadleafSouthern magnolia
Magnòlia · Magnolia grandiflora
Large, thick, glossy leaves with rust-coloured undersides, and huge white flowers in summer.
coniferSpanish juniper
Savina turífera · Juniperus thurifera
A squat, dark tree of high, bare plateaus, with scale leaves and blue-black berries.
coniferStone pine
Pi pinyer · Pinus pinea
A pine with a broad, flat, umbrella-shaped crown and fat, round cones.
broadleafStrawberry tree
Arboç · Arbutus unedo
Round, knobbly fruits, red like strawberries, alongside the flowers in autumn.
broadleafSweet chestnut
Castanyer · Castanea sativa
Long leaves with sharp, saw-like teeth, and spiky husks full of chestnuts.
broadleafTipu tree
Tipuana · Tipuana tipu
A big street tree with compound leaves of oval leaflets and a shower of yellow flowers in early summer.
broadleafTree of heaven
Ailant · Ailanthus altissima
Very long compound leaves, with a couple of teeth at the base of each leaflet and a nasty smell when crushed.
broadleafWalnut
Noguera · Juglans regia
A big tree with a broad crown and compound leaves of a few large leaflets that smell strongly when rubbed.
broadleafWhite mulberry
Morera · Morus alba
Glossy, toothed leaves, some whole and some lobed on the same tree, and a crown often pollarded into a ball.
broadleafWhite poplar
Àlber · Populus alba
Leaves green on top and cotton-white underneath, and a whitish trunk.
broadleafWhite willow
Salze blanc · Salix alba
A riverside tree with long, narrow leaves that are silvery underneath.
broadleafWhitebeam
Moixera · Sorbus aria
Oval leaves, green on top and flour-white underneath.
broadleafWild cherry
Cirerer · Prunus avium
Shiny reddish bark with horizontal stripes, and white flowers in spring.
coniferYew
Teix · Taxus baccata
A dark mountain tree with soft, flat needles and red fruits like little cups.
Nothing by that name. Try the Catalan, Spanish or Latin name, or identify it with questions.