Mary Jo DiLonardo has worked in print, online, and broadcast journalism for 25 years and covers nature, health, science, and animals. Young trees sometimes have smooth bark that's unbroken by ridges.

I was up in the mountains this past weekend and got to visit with one of my favorite trees — the striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum). I did some googling and it turns out striped maples are a lot of ...

Every garden is a thing of beauty in the growing seasons -- spring bulbs, summer flowers and fall foliage all carry on with extravagance. But winter is coming, so the colorful garden superstars will ...

With bright colors and interesting shapes, unusual tree and shrub bark can add visual interest to winter landscapes. Many types of bark become more distinctive and sought after during winter months.

During the growing season, trees' and shrubs' leaves steal the show, but this time of year I always rediscover the beauty of bark. With the loss of leaves, the Kentucky coffeetree shows off its bold ...