Tree

An oak tree

A tree is a woody plant that produces one main trunk and a more or less distinct and elevated head.^CH

Life cycle

The life cycles of trees, especially conifers, are divided into the following stages in forestry for survey and documentation purposes, though the boundaries between stages vary among foresters:

1. Seed
2. Seedling: the above-ground part of the embryo that sprouts from the seed
3. Sapling: After the seedling reaches 1 m tall, and until it reaches 7 cm in stem diameter
4. Pole: Trees from 7–30 cm diameter
5. Mature tree: over 30 cm diameter, reproductive years begin
6. Old tree: dominate old growth forest; height growth slows greatly, with majority of productivity in seed production
7. Overmature: dieback and decay become common
8. Snag: standing dead wood
9. Log/debris: fallen dead wood

Gallery

• 

  The coniferous Coast Redwood, the tallest tree species on earth.

• 

  Leaves are an important feature of trees. These are Beech leaves.

• 

  A moss-covered tree.

• 

  Birch tree (foreground) and maple tree (background) in fall.

• 

  Eucalyptus bridgesiana.

• 

  Nyssaceae: a Dove tree in flower

• 

  Coconut Palm, a monocotyledonous tree.

• 

  A moss-covered tree.

• 

  Tree roots anchor the structure and provide water and nutrients. The ground has eroded away around the roots of this young Pine tree.

This article contains a definition from the Glossary of Gardening Terms.