When is a tree just a tree? And when is it a poplar, maple, birch, pine, cedar, or Douglas fir?
Sometimes in a story, a tree serves as a background: "The trees swayed in the wind." "The branches creaked on the dead tree."
At other times, a particular tree needs its particular name. "The bark on the birch tree peeled off like paper." "He climbed the tall maple in the backyard, hiding in its red leaves." It's the difference between someone calling you by name or saying, "Hey, you!"
A couple of weeks ago I went for a hike in the Olympic National Forest and took the above photo. Those of us on the hike debated whether the trees with the whitish bark were birch trees or alders. (I still don't know.)
If I were to put these trees into a story, I'd ask myself if it was important to know what kind of trees they were. If the name was important to the story, I'd head for the nearest computer, nature guide, or forest ranger.
Even if we don't use the tree name in our story, it's good for us writers to know the names of things that surround us. The more we master particular names, the more we understand our world. That way, the world becomes richer, and so do we.
Find a tree whose name you don't know. Look up the name, and write a description of it in detail. Draw it if you'd like. What color and shape are the leaves? Is the bark black, brown, gray, white, or all of the above? What role could this tree play in a story you're writing?
Now excuse me while I look up the name of "my" trees.
