Tree Walks

Northern Red Oak, Hiawatha Park, West Seattle

Take a tree walk in your neighborhood or at the closest park.

I took a walk guided by Tree Ambassador Al from reLeaf, a division of SDOT. All the photos are from that walk. You can use a map and guide (an example)  from Seattle’s reLeaf program for your tree walk, or take one of their guided walks. From this page you can download a map from your own neighborhood.

Red Pines (state tree of Minnesota), Hiawatha Park, West Seattle

Look for native trees such as Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and black hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii). Native trees are from here.

Look for naturalized trees such as box elder (Acer negundo) and English laurel (Prunus laurocerasus). Naturalized trees are from elsewhere but now plant themselves.

Look for exotic trees such as the pitch pine (Pinus rigida). Exotic trees are imported.

Pitch Pine, Hiawatha Park, West Seattle

We would love to see your photos. Please, tell us where you walked and what trees you saw.

Resources for locating and/or identifying trees in the Seattle area:

 

*Trees of Seattle by Arthur Lee Jacobson (Sasquatch Books, 1989)

*King County’s extensive NATIVE plant guide.

*The city of Seattle Department of Planning and Development’s identification sheet of Seattle trees which “may qualify for protection measures.”

*Jake Ellison’s photo gallery of impressive Seattle trees with their locations.

*Download the free app, Tree Walk /Seattle for Seattle street tree maps with names.

London Planetree at Hiawatha Park, West Seattle

Do you like walking? Here are more ideas in the Seattle area from Feet First.

IF YOU LIVE OUTSIDE OF SEATTLE OR CANNOT MAKE IT TO A TREE WALK, PICK UP A TREE GUIDE AT YOUR LIBRARY, AND WALK AROUND YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD TO LOOK AT TREES. TELL US WHERE YOU WENT IN THE COMMENTS!