Familiar Trees - Leaf Key

Leaf Key to the Common Trees of South Carolina

This dichotomous key can be used to identify 60 different trees common to South Carolina. Beginning with number one, select one of the two choices presented and proceed to the corresponding number in the right column. Continue following links in the right column until reaching a tree name. The key relies heavily on leaf and twig characteristics for tree identification. Links to definitions of difficult terms are provided where possible. If you click through to a definition or wish to return to an earlier choice in the key, use your browser's back button.

1.	Trees with needlelike or scalelike leaves (conifers)	2
1.	Trees with broad flat leaves of many shapes and patterns (broadleaves)	12
2.	Leaves needlelike	3
2.	Leaves scalelike, sometimes prickly on young trees	eastern redcedar
3.	Leaves in bundles or clusters (fascicles) of 5 or fewer (pines)	4
3.	Leaves not in bundles or clusters	10
4.	Leaves in bundles of 5	eastern white pine
4.	Leaves in bundles of 2 or 3	5
5.	Leaves in bundles of 2	6
5.	Leaves in bundles of 3 or of 2 and 3	7
6.	Leaves twisted, mostly 2 inches long or shorter	Virginia pine
6.	Leaves not twisted, mostly more than 2 inches long	spruce pine
7.	Leaves in bundles of 2 and 3	8
7.	Leaves in bundles of 3	9
8.	Leaves short (2-4 inches), cone small (2-3 inches)	shortleaf pine
8.	Leaves long (6-10 inches), cone large (4-6 inches)	slash pine
9.	Leaves very long (10-14 inches), cone very large (8-10 inches)	longleaf pine
9.	Leaves 5-9 inches long, cones 4-6 inches	10
10.	Cones 4-6 inches, narrowly conical when closed	loblolly pine
10.	Cones 2-3½ inches, globular when closed, persistent on tree for years	pond pine
11.	Leaves flattened, evergreen, white on underside	eastern hemlock
11.	Leaves fern-like, deciduous, green on both sides	baldcypress
12.	Leaves fan-shaped, 2 or more feet across	cabbage palmetto
12.	Leaves otherwise	13
13.	Leaves opposite or whorled	14
13.	Leaves alternate	18
14.	Leaves in whorls of 3	southern catalpa
14.	Leaves opposite in pairs	15
15.	Leaves compound	16
15.	Leaves simple	17
16.	Leaflets 3-5, margins with coarsely serrated teeth or shallowly lobed	boxelder
16.	Leaflets 5-9, margins smooth (entire) or with finely serrated teeth	white ash
17.	Leaves 3-5 lobed, margins doubly serrate	red maple
17.	Leaves unlobed, margins smooth	flowering dogwood
18.	Leaves compound	19
18.	Leaves simple	24
19.	Twigs with thorns, spines, or prickles	20
19.	Twigs without thorns, spines, or prickles	21
20.	Twigs with long thorns, leaves twice compound	honeylocust
20.	Twigs with short spines, leaves once compound	black locust
21.	Leaves with terminal leaflets larger than lateral leaflets, twigs with solid pith	22
21.	Leaves with terminal leaflets the same size as lateral leaflets, twigs with chambered pith	black walnut
22.	Leaflets 5-9, leaflets, petiole, and rachis densely hairy	mockernut hickory
22.	Leaflets 3-7, leaflets, petiole, and rachis smooth or nearly so	23
23.	Bark shaggy, peeling in long strips	shagbark hickory
23.	Bark tightly furrowed, not peeling	pignut hickory
24.	Leaves evergreen, thick and leathery	25
24.	Leaves deciduous, thin and papery	28
25.	Leaves with spine-toothed margins	American holly
25.	Leaves with smooth margins	26
26.	Leaves large, over 6 inches long, with rusty hairs beneath	southern magnolia
26.	Leaves small, 2-5 inches long, without hairs	27
27.	Leaves densely white beneath, without lobes	sweetbay
27.	Leaves greenish or slightly white beneath, occasionally with lobes	live oak
28.	Leaves lobed	29
28.	Leaves unlobed or with occasional small shallow lobes	42
29.	Leaves with 3 shapes (unlobed, lobed, 3-lobed)	30
29.	Leaves with one basic shape	31
30.	Leaves with smooth (entire) margins	sassafras
30.	Leaves with serrate margins	red mulberry
31.	Leaves star-shaped, with 5 to 7 lobes	sweetgum
31.	Leaves not star-shaped	32
32.	Tip and base of leaves truncate, shallowly 4-lobed	yellow-poplar
32.	Leaves not truncated	33
33.	Leaves with 3 or more main veins, margins with large coarse teeth	American sycamore
33.	Leaves with 1 vein, margins deeply lobed (oaks)	34
34.	Leaves with smooth, rounded lobes (white oaks)	35
34.	Leaves with bristle-tipped lobes (red oaks)	37
35.	Lobes similar with sinuses halfway to midrib	white oak
35.	Lobes uneven with varying depths of sinus	36
36.	Three upper lobes square, forming a cross, deep central sinus	post oak
36.	Three upper lobes pointed, shallow, central sinus	overcup oak
37.	Base of leaves bell-shaped, 3-5 leaflets with terminal lobe long and narrow	southern red oak
37.	Base of leaves tapering or rounded with terminal lobe and lateral lobes of the same size	38
38.	Base of leaves strongly tapering	turkey oak
38.	Base of leaves rounded or shallowly tapering	39
39.	Base of leaves rounded, shallowly 3-lobed, with minute bristles at the tip of the lobes	blackjack oak
39.	Base of leaves shallowly tapering with 5 to 7 lobes	40
40.	Leaves leathery, hairy beneath	black oak
40.	Leaves papery, without hairs beneath	41
41.	Lobes large, sinuses shallow, narrow	northern red oak
41.	Lobes small, sinuses deep, wide	scarlet oak
42.	Leaves with smooth margins (or occasionally with shallow teeth)	43
42.	Leaves with toothed margins	49
43.	Leaves heart-shaped (cordate)	eastern redbud
43.	Leaves not heart-shaped	44
44.	Leaves deciduous, but stay on the tree through the winter, less than 4 inches long	45
44.	Leaves deciduous and fall off the tree before winter, 4-10 inches long	46
45.	Leaves with occasional lobes and teeth, having a long tapering base	water oak
45.	Leaves with wavy margins, occasionally with teeth, having a rounded base	laurel oak
46.	Leaves 3 or more times as long as wide	willow oak
46.	Leaves less than 3 times as long as wide	47
47.	Leaves 6-10 inches long, with occasional large shallow teeth	water tupelo
47.	Leaves 4-6 inches long, without teeth (entire)	48
48.	Leaves widest in upper half	black tupelo
48.	Leaves widest at middle or in lower half	common persimmon
49.	Leaves with small teeth above the middle, smooth margins below	sourwood
49.	Leaf margins toothed (serrated) throughout	50
50.	Leaves with parallel veins, each vein ending in a tooth	51
50.	Leaves with net veins, not ending in a tooth	57
51.	Leaf margins with singly serrate teeth	52
51.	Leaf margins with doubly serrate teeth	54
52.	Leaves with rounded teeth (undulate)	53
52.	Leaves with sharp points or bristles on the teeth	American beech
53.	Leaves downy beneath, petioles yellow	swamp chestnut oak
53.	Leaves smooth beneath, petioles green	chestnut oak
54.	Leaves that have bases with unequal (oblique) sides	55
54.	Leaves with symmetrical bases	56
55.	Leaves 1 to 3 inches long	winged elm
55.	Leaves longer than 3 inches	American elm
56.	Leaf bases broadly wedge-shaped	river birch
56.	Leaf bases rounded or tapered	American hornbeam
57.	Leaves 4 or more times as long as wide	black willow
57.	Leaves not more than twice as long as wide	58
58.	Leaves heart-shaped (cordate), white beneath	white basswood
58.	Leaves not heart-shaped, green beneath	59
59.	Midvein (midrib) paralleled by two prominent lateral veins from leaf base	sugarberry
59.	Midvein (midrib) distinct, often with rusty hairs beneath	black cherry