Make a tree diary
Observation · general activity through the seasons
One tree, several visits
The book A Vegetação em Portugal distinguishes leaves that remain functional through the unfavourable season from marcescent leaves, already dry but still hanging in the crown. Observing the same tree at different times helps reveal change. Record what you see before naming the species: green leaves, attached dry leaves, bare branches and new shoots do not all tell the same story. To compare visits, choose a specific part of the tree: a branch visible from the same spot or the entire crown. Keep the date and record green leaves, attached dry leaves, flowers and fruits separately. If you cannot see something, write “not observed”; that differs from saying it does not exist on the tree. The ginkgo and dawn redwood stories let you begin comparing on screen: both lose their leaves, but their shapes differ. Ash adds another question: are you looking at a whole leaf or one of its leaflets? Repeated observations and carefully chosen comparisons reveal more than immediately guessing a species name.
Vamos experimentar?
- Choose a tree you can see from a public path and write down the date and place, without needing to identify the species.
- Draw or photograph the branches from the same point: are there green, dried leaves, flowers or fruits? Do not harvest parts of the plant.
- Return to another date and compare. Write down what has changed and what you do not yet know; a visit does not set the whole species calendar.
You can store the records in a notebook or on your phone. This activity does not send observations to the site.
Open a história e os seus recursos →Sources of this proposal
- National Press — Vegetation in Portugal, semi-ducifolia and marcescent leavesConsultation/revision: 2026-11-07
- Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation — GinkgoConsultation/revision: 2026-11-07
- Cambridge University Botanic Garden — Metasequoia glyptostroboides, deciduous foliage and layout of leavesConsultation/revision: 2026-11-07
- Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation — Straits leaves, fruit and habitatConsultation/revision: 2026-11-07
My findings
An idea, a drawing or a question to go on.