1. Balsam Fir (Abies balsamea)
Mid-sized conifer found throughout northern North America, from central Alberta to Newfoundland south to Pennsylvania. Found in a variety of habitats, the tree has extensive ethnobotanical uses as balsam, medicine, and Christmas trees.
2. Sweet Acacia (Acacia farnesiana)
Pan-tropical acacia bush with yellow puffball flowers that can be used to make perfume. Its seed pods are edible as well.
3. Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
North America’s most common tree, Red Maple grows from Newfoundland to the Florida Everglades, and east to Texas and Minnesota. Though it’s adapted to a variety of different climates, it prefers to grow in swampy soils.
4. Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)
Canada’s flag bears the leaf of the sugar maple, which is the tree most used to harvest maple syrup from. Found throughout southeastern Canada down to Tennessee and Missouri.
5. Macaw Palm (Acrocomia aculeata)
Spiny palm ranging from southern Mexico and the Caribbean to as far south as Argentina. Macaws are fond of its hard-shelled fruits.
6. Ohio Buckeye (Aesculus glabra)
Small nut tree from, well, Ohio, throughout the Midwest south to central Texas. The nuts resemble the eyes of a deer, hence the name, but are generally inedible. If you’re in Ohio do try the buckeye candy, though, if you aren’t allergic to peanuts or chocolate.
7. Pawpaw (Asimina triloba)
North America’s largest native fruit, the pawpaw is a small understory tree found throughout the Midwest and South, from Virginia and Pennsylvania west to Kansas. It is said to resemble banana and mango in both flavor and texture.
8. Black Mangrove (Avicennia germinans)
Growing slightly more inland than the Red Mangrove, the Black Mangrove has dark wood and tiny pneumatophore roots that stick out of the mud like half-buried fingers. They feel weird on your feet.
9. Gumbo-Limbo (Bursera simaruba)
Also known as the “tourist tree” because of its peeling red bark that resembles badly sunburnt skin. Found from southern Florida through the Caribbean region to Brazil, this fast-growing tree is highly hurricane resistant in its native habitat.
10. West Indian Laurel (Calophyllum antillanum)
A small fruiting tree used for lumber in the Caribbean islands and Central America. Salt tolerant. Invasive in Florida and Hawaii.
11. Puerto Rican Manac (Calyptronoma rivalis)
Endangered palm native to Hispaniola and Puerto Rico. Grows near streams and other freshwater habitats in the lowlands; the related Calyptronoma plumeriana replaces it at higher altitudes in Hispaniola and Cuba.
12. American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana)
Birch-like tree ranging across the eastern woodlands, from Ontario and Maine south to Florida, with isolated populations in the highlands of Mexico and Central America. A shade lover, common in moist areas and forest understories.
13. Pecan (Carya illinoisensis)
Many debate on how to pronounce the word “pecan”. Though farmed across the South, the tree natively ranges from Illinois and Indiana south to Mexico.
14. Shagbark Hickory (Carya ovata)
Nut-bearing tree with a wide range across the temperate forests, from Quebec to Texas and isolated populations in eastern Mexico, though it is absent on the coastal plains. Develops a shaggy texture to the bark as it matures.
15. American Chestnut (Castanea dentata)
Once incredibly common throughout the Appalachian region from Maine to Mississippi, the American Chestnut has been rendered nearly extinct by fungal disease called “chestnut blight” brought over with Chinese chestnuts in the early 1900s. Blight-resistant cultivars are now being released into the wild, though, as the tree slowly recovers.
16. Cuban Cedar (Cedrela odorata)
A relative of the mahoganies, Cuban cedar grows throughout the tropical Americas in well-drained soils. It is an important lumber tree due to its resistance to rot and termites, and its pleasant aroma.
17. Kapok (Ceiba pentandra)
A very large jungle tree native to the Latin American tropics and western Africa. It bears a spiny trunk.
18. Cocoplum (Chrysobalanus icaco)
Small fruiting shrub of the coastal tropics, where it grows along beaches. It produces a fruit which can be either golden or purple in color; though it is edible, I don’t enjoy eating them- they taste very astringent.
19. Pigeon Plum (Coccoloba diversifolia)
Small tree with large leaves, found throughout tropical lowlands. Common in the forests of the Bahamas, but also found in Belize, Guatemala, southern Mexico, and southern Florida.
20. Seagrape (Coccoloba uvifera)
Round-leaved beach shrub of the American tropics with small fruits that can be made into edible jams.
21. Coconut Palm (Cocos nucifera)
The only non-native tree in the pack, but a naturalized species ubiquitous in coastal tropical regions worldwide. Ranges from the southern half of Florida down through the Caribbean, so long as there’s a nearby coastline.
22. Dogwood (Cornus florida)
Small flowering tree found throughout the temperate forest biome (specifically near the forest edges), from southern New England and Michigan to the Gulf Coast. Comes in pink and white varieties IRL but ingame only pink, sorry.
23. Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)
Mid-sized tree with orange-yellow sweet fruits, found from the mid-Atlantic region across the South and southern Midwest to about central Oklahoma, and into south Florida. It prefers upland habitats. Possibly utilized mastodons and mammoths to disperse its seeds before humans became common in North America.
24. Guanacaste (Enterolobium cyclocarpum)
Broad-crowned legume tree native to mainland Central America down to northern Brazil. Also known as elephant-ear, monkey-ear, and even devil’s-ear tree, from the shape of its seed pods.
25. American Beech (Fagus grandifolia)
Tall, smooth-barked tree with a wide range from southeastern Canada to Louisiana, with a small, isolated population in central Mexico. Beech nuts are edible, and the tree is a good host plant for edible fungi. Associated with maples, birch, and hemlock in mesic forests.
26. Florida Strangler Fig (Ficus aurea)
Large and adaptive strangler fig native from central Florida southward throughout the Caribbean and Central America, in a variety of habitats. It is a keystone species that provides fruit for many birds and monkeys.
27. Shortleaf Fig (Ficus citrifolia)
A banyan-type strangler fig native to the Caribbean and Central America south to Paraguay. Generally smaller than F. aurea.
28. Honey Locust (Gleditsia tricanthos)
Thorny legume tree native to the trans-Appalachian forests from Iowa and Michigan south. Its seeds are edible by animals and was historically used to make an edible, sweet pulp by Native American peoples.
29. Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana)
Shrub ranging from southernmost Canada down to the Gulf Coast, with isolated populations in Texas and Mexico. Used as a folk remedy for inflammation, due to its ability to combat colon cancer.
30. Blue Mahoe (Hibiscus elatus)
Flowering tree found throughout the Greater Antilles, especially Jamaica. Its name comes from its wood which is blue when freshly cut.
31. American Holly (Ilex opaca)
An evergreen understory tree spread throughout the southern US north to New England. Despite its pyramidal mature shape and evergreen nature, it is not a conifer.
32. Black Walnut (Juglans nigra)
Found throughout the central and east-central US, the Black walnut is a shade-intolerant pioneer species with a very durable wood.
33. Eastern Redcedar (Juniperus virginiana)
A wide-ranging, long-lived, and fire-resistant pioneer species, found from New England and Ontario through the eastern Great Plains. A separate subspecies also inhabits the Atlantic and Gulf coastal plains to central Florida.
34. Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua)
Gum-producing tree with star-shaped leaves and spiny seed pods known as gumballs. Found throughout the South & Mid-Atlantic US (except Appalachia and southern Florida), and also the mountains of Mexico and Central America.
35. Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera)
Tall and fast-growing hardwood found throughout most of the eastern US, excepting northern New England and southern Florida. An ancient tree with a large fossil record, it bears large flowers and leaves, and is the tallest known tree species in eastern North America.
36. Sabicu (Lysiloma sabicu)
A leguminous lumber tree of the western Caribbean, as well as Florida, the Bahamas, and southern Mexico. Also known as “horseflesh” for some reason.
37. Sweetbay Magnolia (Magnolia virginiana)
Associated with lowland swamps, magnolias in the US range naturally from Long Island south along the coast to Florida and west into easternmost Texas.
38. Black Tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica)
Also known as black gum or sour gum, the tupelo is a tree that prefers creeks, swamps, and moist uplands. It ranges from New England south into central Florida and west to Texas, as well as a few highland locations in Mexico.
39. Balsa Wood (Ochroma pyrimidale)
Native from southern Mexico down into South America, Balsa trees grow incredibly fast and have a very light wood, with a lower density than cork.
40. Slash Pine (Pinus elliotii)
A large umbrella-shaped pine that defines the flatwoods and pine rocklands of Florida. Similar to Longleaf pine and other tropical pines of the Caribbean and Mexico.
41. Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris)
An iconic pine of the Southeastern US; prized for its lumber, wild longleaf pines are very rare today. Historically, Longleaf pine savannas covered much of the coastal South and supported a large range
42. White Pine (Pinus strobus)
Eastern North America’s tallest conifer and one of the tallest trees in the east in general. Found in mixed forests across the northern US and southern Canada, from Newfoundland into the Blue Ridge Mountains of Appalachia, west to Minnesota.
43. Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda)
America’s second-most common tree, the loblolly pine is native to the southeastern US where it has largely replaced its close cousin, the longleaf pine. It grows rapidly and is used for timber.
44. American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)
Deciduous hardwood that grows around water, found across the eastern US. It has peeling bark with white wood, and fuzzy fruits.
45. Carolina Laurelcherry (Prunus caroliniana)
Small, evergreen cherry species native to the coastal South preferring acidic soils. Fragrant, but the cherries it produces are mostly seed and inedible.
46. White Oak (Quercus alba)
Very large and long-living species of oak, found across nearly the entirety of eastern US and southernmost Canada. Mainly a lowland species, though it sometimes can be found in the Appalachian mountains.
47. Red Oak (Quercus rubra)
Common mid-large oak species found in southern Canada, and the Northeast and Midwest of the US into the upper South. An important lumber tree, the Red Oak is one of the continent’s most common trees.
48. Live Oak (Quercus virginiana)
An oak species of the coastal South with glossy, rounded leaves. An evergreen, it is often seen with pale-green Spanish moss growing in its wide-spreading branches. Many live oaks are known to be several hundreds of years old.
49. Red Mangrove (Rhizopora mangle)
The archetypal mangrove tree. Grows along the coasts of the tropics in shallow water, from Brazil to Florida. It shares its range with the Black Mangrove which grows ever so slightly further inland.
50. Cuban Royal Palm (Roystonea regia)
A tall palm native to Cuba, Hispaniola, Florida, and eastern Mexico. It doesn't bear edible fruit but it is commonly grown across its range as an ornamental.
51. Cabbage Palm (Sabal palmetto)
AKA “swamp cabbage” as its edible hearts have been historically used as a vegetable. A common fan palm native to the southeastern US and northern West Indies, and the state tree of South Carolina.
52. Pussy Willow (Salix discolor)
Shrubby willow found across much of Canada and the US northeast. It is a common host plant for many pollinating insects; it gets its name from the fuzzy catkins it bears as flowers, which resemble cat tails.
53. Black Willow (Salix nigra)
Riparian tree found across a wide swath of temperate eastern North America, from southernmost Canada to northern Mexico; it also inhabits the Colorado & Rio Grande basins and the Central Valley of California.
54. Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Found throughout the US Midwest and South, Sassafras root was used historically in the manufacture of root beer.
55. Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens)
Shrubby fan palm species native to the far-southeastern US. Common in sandy soils and in pine forests, the berries are used to treat prostate cancer.
56. Yellow Mastic (Sideroxylon foetidissimum)
Fruiting tree native to southern Florida, the Caribbean, and the northern half of Central America. Its yellow berries, about an inch in diameter, are edible.
57. Panama Tree (Sterculia apetala)
Buttress-rooted jungle tree native to its namesake Panama, but also the Amazon basin through the Caribbean as far north as Bermuda. Its name in Latin comes from the word stercus, meaning “excrement”, as the flowers have an unpleasant odor.
58. West Indian Mahogany (Swietenia mahogani)
Tropical hardwood found throughout the Caribbean and Central America north to Florida and the Bahamas. Commonly used for lumber due to its high-quality wood, the tree is endangered across much of its native range. Its woody seed pods can also explode like a grenade, so watch out.
59. Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)
Tall deciduous conifer found throughout the lowland South and lower Mississippi River basin. It sends out aerial roots known as “cypress knees” to hold it in place in the swamps, rivers, and lake shores it inhabits.
60. Black Olive (Terminalia buceras)
Shady tropical hardwood native to the Caribbean. Not actually related to olives, the black fruits it produces aren’t really all that edible.
61. Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis)
A conifer native to southern Canada down through the Appalachians. It forms associations with white pine. It is threatened due to invasive adelgid bugs from Japan that parasitize the tree.
62. American Elm (Ulmus americana)
Once one of the continent’s most common trees, ranging from Nova Scotia to Florida and west to Alberta and Montana, the elm has suffered much from Dutch Elm Disease. The tree naturally prefers moist lowlands but can grow in a variety of habitats.
63. Lignum-vitae (Guaiacum sanctum)
Forgot this one. Oops. A very strong-wooded shrub native to the Florida Keys and other parts of the Caribbean; its wood is so dense it sinks.
Bonus- swamp stumps
Some dead, vine-covered trees meant to be used for swamps or whatever. Feel free to use them however you want.