Plants › birch family
smooth alder
Alnus serrulata
28 photos
Study shows up to four per card, from different observers, so you learn the species rather than one picture. Heart the good ones and swap any you do not like.
Photos you add are credited to you, and you keep the copyright.
Easily confused with
grey alderAlnus incana
common alderAlnus glutinosa
green alderAlnus alnobetula
alder buckthornFrangula alnus
white alderAlnus rhombifolia
American hornbeamCarpinus caroliniana
Red AlderAlnus rubra
European beechFagus sylvatica
Study checks a spoken answer against these, and tells you which one you named.
Where it is recorded
| United States | 9,589 |
|---|---|
| North Carolina | 2,148 |
| Virginia | 1,655 |
| Georgia | 1,429 |
| Alabama | 986 |
| Maryland | 851 |
| Massachusetts | 766 |
| Pennsylvania | 736 |
| New York | 689 |
| Tennessee | 654 |
Counts show where people looked, not only where it lives.
Traits
Group and habits
- Medicinal useListed as having medicinal use by a harvested source. This is not medical advice.Kew World Checklist of Useful Plant Species
- Material useListed as being used for materials such as wood, fiber, resin, gum, or oil.Kew World Checklist of Useful Plant Species
- Restoration or landscaping useListed as being used for restoration, landscaping, ornamental planting, erosion control, soil improvement, shade, windbreaks, pollution indicators, or wastewater purification.Kew World Checklist of Useful Plant Species
- Tree growth formListed by a harvested source as having a tree growth form.USDA PLANTS Characteristics
- Shrub growth formListed by a harvested source as having a shrub or bush growth form.USDA PLANTS Characteristics
- Wetland-associatedListed by a harvested source as obligate or frequent in wetland habitat.USDA PLANTS Characteristics
- Perennial plantListed by a harvested source as having a perennial life duration.USDA PLANTS Characteristics
- Nitrogen fixingDescends from a plant lineage commonly associated with nitrogen-fixing symbioses.Inferred from its group
Edibility, toxicity and medicinal traits are records from datasets, not advice. Never eat, handle or use a wild species on the strength of an app.
Classification
| Kingdom | Plants · Plantae |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Vascular Plants · Tracheophyta |
| Class | Dicots · Magnoliopsida |
| Order | beeches, oaks, walnuts, and allies · Fagales |
| Family | birch family · Betulaceae |
| Genus | alders · Alnus |
Study it in a deck
- Medicinal Plants of Baltimore County
- Trees of Maryland
- Wetland-associated Species of New Hampshire, United States
Or build your own from the species near you.
Sources
- Names, taxonomy and observation counts: www.inaturalist.org
- Photos and recordings: the creator and source are on each one.
- Traits: Kew World Checklist of Useful Plant Species (CC BY 4.0)
- Traits: USDA PLANTS Characteristics (U.S. Government work / public domain)
- How much to rely on each source
Remember the name next time.
Practise smooth alder with real photos from different observers. Say the name out loud, and it comes back just before you would forget it.