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Tree buds are an underappreciated wonder of nature.![]()
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Buds start appearing on branches as trees come out of their winter dormancy. Buds are undeveloped parts of a plant that, later in the season, will help with its growth and reproduction. Buds appear as hard, pointed, and colorful nubs, though their appearance varies from tree to tree. If you know what to look for, you can identify trees just by looking at their buds.![]()
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On a branch, there are many traits that help determine what species of tree it belongs to. For example, how are the buds arranged, what type of bud scales, and what does its scars look like, are only a few of the identifiers. ![]()
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Buds are the reason trees grow, and there are three types of buds that can grow on a branch: growth buds, flower buds, and mixed buds. Flower buds grow into exactly what you think they do, flower blossoms, the reproductive part of a tree that produces seeds and attracts pollinators. On most trees, flowers will become fruit when pollinated, a great food source for humans and native wildlife. ![]()
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Growth buds become either leaves or shoots. They are important because they are the reason the tree survives and grows larger. Leaves are needed for a tree to feed itself through photosynthesis, and without this process the tree wouldn’t have enough energy to survive. Shoots will grow from branches, allowing the tree to produce more buds in the future. The terminal bud is a type of growth bud that sits at the very tip of a branch, and it is the reason that branches are able to grow longer. ![]()
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Mixed buds have the ability to grow both flowers and shoots as they contain both embryonic leaves and flowers within the same bud. ![]()
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Next time you're outside, see if you can spot some buds!![]()
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If you're interested in learning more about tree bud identification, check out this article: feralforaging.com/fundamentals-of-winter-tree-identification/ ![]()
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Photo: Stephanie Briand, ALNC![]()
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#PhenologyFriday #TreeBuds #WIEnviroEd #NatureIsEverywhere #NatureIsForEveryone #EveryBodyOutside
