Native Trees in Toronto
Encyclopedia
Native trees in Toronto are trees that are naturally growing in Toronto
and not introduced by European
settlers to the area.
Many of Toronto's native trees have been displaced by non-native plants and trees introduced by settlers from Europe
and Asia
from the 18th century to the present.
The type of trees growing across the city varies based on the soil condition in the area. Tree cover in the city prior to European settlement started from the shore line back. Settlement resulted in trees being cut for use in building homes and ships and for heating by early residents. The current tree cover (or canopy) in Toronto is small (17%) and many trees are not native to the city. Most of the native trees are found along the waterways in the city and in city owned parks.
List of parks with native tree growth:
The city's Urban Forestry Services is actively planting these trees on city property and encouraging others in the city to do the same.
A partial list of native trees in Toronto:
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
and not introduced by European
European ethnic groups
The ethnic groups in Europe are the various ethnic groups that reside in the nations of Europe. European ethnology is the field of anthropology focusing on Europe....
settlers to the area.
Many of Toronto's native trees have been displaced by non-native plants and trees introduced by settlers from Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
from the 18th century to the present.
The type of trees growing across the city varies based on the soil condition in the area. Tree cover in the city prior to European settlement started from the shore line back. Settlement resulted in trees being cut for use in building homes and ships and for heating by early residents. The current tree cover (or canopy) in Toronto is small (17%) and many trees are not native to the city. Most of the native trees are found along the waterways in the city and in city owned parks.
List of parks with native tree growth:
- High ParkHigh ParkHigh Park is a municipal park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It spans , and is a mixed recreational and natural park, with sporting facilities, cultural facilities, educational facilities, gardens, playgrounds and a zoo. One third of the park remains in a natural state, with a rare oak savannah ecology...
- Rouge ParkRouge ParkRouge Park will become an urban national park located along the border of Toronto and Pickering, Ontario, Canada. It will be Canada's first national park within a municipality....
The city's Urban Forestry Services is actively planting these trees on city property and encouraging others in the city to do the same.
A partial list of native trees in Toronto:
- Red Oak
- Black Oak
- White OakWhite OakWhite Oak may refer to:* Quercus alba, a species commonly known as the White Oak* any of various trees from the botanical section Quercus within the list of Quercus species* a 1921 silent western written/produced by and starring William S...
- Sugar MapleSugar MapleAcer saccharum is a species of maple native to the hardwood forests of northeastern North America, from Nova Scotia west to southern Ontario, and south to Georgia and Texas...
- Black MapleBlack MapleAcer nigrum is a species of maple closely related to A. saccharum , and treated as a subspecies of it by some authors, as Acer saccharum subsp. nigrum....
- Silver MapleSilver MapleThe silver maple —also called creek maple, river maple, silverleaf maple, soft maple, water maple, or white maple—is a species of maple native to eastern North America in the eastern United States and Canada...
- Red MapleRed MapleAcer rubrum , is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern North America. It ranges from the Lake of the Woods on the border between Ontario and Minnesota, east to Newfoundland, south to near Miami, Florida, and southwest to east Texas...
- HemlockTsugaTsuga is a genus of conifers in the family Pinaceae. The common name hemlock is derived from a perceived similarity in the smell of its crushed foliage to that of the unrelated plant poison hemlock....
- White PineEastern White PinePinus strobus, commonly known as the eastern white pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the northern edge of Georgia.It is occasionally known as simply white pine,...
- Red PineRed PinePinus resinosa, commonly known as the red pine or Norway pine, is pine native to North America. The Red Pine occurs from Newfoundland west to Manitoba, and south to Pennsylvania, with several smaller, disjunct populations occurring in the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia and West Virginia, as well...
- Trembling AspenPopulus tremuloidesPopulus tremuloides is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, commonly called quaking aspen, trembling aspen, American aspen, and Quakies,. The trees have tall trunks, up to 25 metres, with smooth pale bark, scarred with black. The glossy green leaves, dull beneath, become golden...
- White AshWhite AshFor another species referred to as white ash, see Eucalyptus fraxinoides.Fraxinus americana is a species of Fraxinus native to eastern North America found in mesophytic hardwood forests from Nova Scotia west to Minnesota, south to northern Florida, and southwest to eastern...
- White CedarWhite CedarWhite Cedar may refer to several different trees:* Cupressaceae:** Chamaecyparis thyoides – Atlantic White Cypress** Cupressus lusitanica – Mexican White Cedar** Thuja occidentalis – Eastern Arborvitae* Meliaceae:...
- Green AshGreen AshFraxinus pennsylvanica is a species of ash native to eastern and central North America, from Nova Scotia west to southeastern Alberta and eastern Colorado, south to northern Florida, and southwest to eastern Texas....
- Black WalnutBlack WalnutJuglans nigra, the Eastern Black walnut, is a species of flowering tree in the hickory family, Juglandaceae, that is native to eastern North America. It grows mostly in riparian zones, from southern Ontario, west to southeast South Dakota, south to Georgia, northern Florida and southwest to central...
- Eastern Redcedar
- IronwoodOstrya virginianaOstrya virginiana , is a species of Ostrya native to eastern North America, from Nova Scotia west to southern Manitoba and eastern Wyoming, southeast to northern Florida and southwest to eastern Texas and northeastern Mexico...
- American ElmAmerican ElmUlmus americana, generally known as the American Elm or, less commonly, as the White Elm or Water Elm, is a species native to eastern North America, occurring from Nova Scotia west to Alberta and Montana, and south to Florida and central Texas. The American elm is an extremely hardy tree that can...
- Basswood
- Shagbark HickoryShagbark HickoryCarya ovata, the Shagbark Hickory, is a common hickory in the eastern United States and southeast Canada. It is a large deciduous tree, growing up to 27 m tall, and will live up to 200 years. Mature Shagbarks are easy to recognize because, as their name implies, they have shaggy bark...
See also
- Toronto ravine systemToronto ravine systemThe Toronto ravine system is one of the most distinctive features of the geography of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a network of deep ravines that form a large urban forest that runs throughout much of the city...
- Oak Ridges MoraineOak Ridges MoraineThe Oak Ridges Moraine is an ecologically important geological landform in the Mixedwood Plains of south-central Ontario, Canada. The moraine covers a geographic area of between Caledon and Rice Lake, near Peterborough...
- Rouge River (Ontario)Rouge River (Ontario)The Rouge River is a two river system. Little Rouge and Rouge River are in the east and the northeast parts of Toronto and begin in the Oak Ridges Moraine in Richmond Hill and Whitchurch-Stouffville...
- Humber River (Ontario)Humber River (Ontario)The Humber River is one of two major rivers on either side of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the other being the Don River to the east. It was designated a Canadian Heritage River on September 24, 1999....
- Don River (Ontario)
- Etobicoke CreekEtobicoke CreekEtobicoke Creek is one of the many creeks running through Toronto, Ontario and the Toronto Area into Lake Ontario, often characterized by their winding paths through deep ravines and distinctive shale banks....
- High ParkHigh ParkHigh Park is a municipal park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It spans , and is a mixed recreational and natural park, with sporting facilities, cultural facilities, educational facilities, gardens, playgrounds and a zoo. One third of the park remains in a natural state, with a rare oak savannah ecology...
- Rouge ParkRouge ParkRouge Park will become an urban national park located along the border of Toronto and Pickering, Ontario, Canada. It will be Canada's first national park within a municipality....
- Carolinian forestCarolinian forestThe Carolinian forest is a life zone in eastern North America characterized primarily by a predominance of deciduous, or broad-leaf trees. The term "Carolinian forest" is used primarily in Canada...