Trees Parts And Their Purpose

Trees Have Many Parts

Trees – one of Earth’s magnificent facets that make it different from all the other planets in our solar system. Aside from the beauty they portray, they also provide humans with clean air and water while giving suitable habitats to animals.

There is no doubt that trees are an important aspect of everybody’s lives. If you know what makes up a tree’s anatomy, you’ll be able to understand how they’re able to bring so many benefits to the world around us. At Tree Surgery Redmond, we regularly get asked about how trees work so we wanted to give you a resource explaining how trees do what they do to the best of our abilities.

Parts of a Tree

1. Trunk – This is what you think about when you hear the word “tree”. The trunk symbolized strength and longevity, both being characteristics of most trees. Depending on several factors, their appearances will vary in length and density. Despite their external differences, they all internally have the same general structure. The trunk is composed of four parts: bark, the outer skin; cambium, the ring layers; sapwood, the main section; and heartwood, the strongest layer.The first layer is bark, which defends the tree from harmful foreign elements. Then, there’s the cambium that reinforces the tree by forms ring-like layers. Sapwood is the significant component that spreads water and nutrients to all the other parts like blood vessels in our own bodies. When a sapwood layer dies, it will transform into the heartwood. It is the innermost and toughest layer that acts as the trunk’s skeletal system.
2. Leaves – Leaves are perhaps the most prominent part. They are what give color to the trees. Often, they are green but with varied shades, smoothness, and sizes. Their form makes them useful when you need shade. However, leaves can do more than just shield you from light, it absorbs light to create energy. This is called photosynthesis, the process is responsible for trees making about 260 pounds of oxygen annually.Trees consume carbon dioxide and water from the ground, sunlight is harnessed to fuel this process, which discharges oxygen as a byproduct to give us fresh air. Carbohydrates are also formed as the tree’s main food source.
3. Branches – Holding the leaves, as well as fruits, are the branches. Because they make up around 15% of an entire tree, branches are considered the major part of the crown, the top portion of trees. You can see their obscure formations during winter and autumn when the leaves have fallen. In these times of the year, branches serve another purpose, to store backup energy for the tree.
4. Roots – Roots are the hidden part of a tree, which you will never see unless you dig around it. There are two primary functions of roots. First, they absorb nutrients from the earth. Second, they keep the tree anchored. Water and essential nutrients can be obtained from the soil, so the roots are responsible for supplying them to the tree. Because they can reach as far as 20 feet underground, roots also stabilize the tree secure it from natural disasters, like storms and floods.