Trees are an important part of our ecosystem. Humans breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. Trees take in carbon dioxide and expel oxygen as part of the photosynthesis process. Without trees, we would have no air to breathe.
The photosynthesis process happens in the trees leaves. Beyond just being a “food factory,” leaves are important in other ways. They provide shade for animals and other plants and helps combat global warming, they help slow down air currents, making it less windy, and they provide a sheltered home for birds, insects, and other creatures that are necessary for a healthy ecosystem.
Trees are identified by many different characteristics, like the kind of bark on their trunks or the size and shape of their leaves.
The Experiment
Supplies: Tree leaves to be collected.
What to do: Collect tree leaves of the following types (Refer to the web or a tree identification book to find what kinds of trees have these leaves.)
Name Each Species of Tree:
Smooth Edges Simple Leaf ______________________________
Simple Leaf with Lobes or Teeth ______________________________
Palmately Compound Leaf ______________________________
Pinnately Compound Leaf ______________________________
Acicular Shaped Leaf ______________________________
Links
To find out more about the trees around you, use the Arbor Day Foundation’s tree identification field guide, What Tree is That?