Trees in Your Pocket by botanist Thomas Rosburg is now available in paperback from the Bur Oak Books series of the University of Iowa Press.

From honey and black locusts to white and chinkapin oaks to yellow and river birches, Trees in Your Pocket provides identification and natural history information for about 40 prominent deciduous species found in the Upper Midwest states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri.

Rosburg provides diagnostic color photographs of leaves, acorns and other fruits, and bark, along with descriptions of leaves, fruits, and measurements of blades. The composition, arrangement, shape, and margin of leaves are most important for tree identification. Fruits can help confirm identification of species with similar leaves. The bark of a tree can be very helpful for identifying some species; as a tree ages, older bark (lower on the tree) can be quite different from younger bark (higher and on branches).

Each state in this region maintains a Big Tree program that honors the largest individual tree of each species. Champion trees are determined by adding together measurements of trunk circumference, height, and canopy spread. Rosburg identifies the trees with the largest diameter and the tallest trees among the champion trees in the Upper Midwest by their county and state. Together his superb photographs and key information make this guide the perfect companion for enjoying the diversity of trees in all kinds of environments.

Books in the Bur Oak series represent the UI Press’ dedication to celebrating the literature, history, geography, and culture of the Great Plains with an intense focus on natural history and environmental issues.

The book is available at bookstores or from the UI Press, 800-621-2736 or www.uiowapress.org. Customers in Europe, the Middle East, or Africa may order from Eurospan Group at www.eurospanbookstore.com.