On a crisp December morning, we returned to the western end of Pacific Heights, a neighborhood filled with well-kept Victorian homes, a delightful shopping district, one of the finest branch libraries in the city, and one of the few remaining single-screen movie houses (the Vogue) in town. For this tour we were happy to be joined by Josh Gevertz, Arboretum Director at Cypress Lawn Cemetery in Colma (home to some amazing trees - it was recently recognized as a Level I arboretum by Morton Arboretum’s international ArbNet program - take the virtual tree tour here).

Today’s walk begins in front of the elegant Presidio Branch Library, at 3150 Sacramento Street, and heads east on Sacramento to Baker Street, south on Baker to Pine Street, east on Pine to Lyon Street. The walk then turns south on Lyon for half a block, crosses Lyon to the east side, then heads north on Lyon to Sacramento, and finally east on Sacramento back to the Library. This walk is a little over one mile in length.

Numbered trees are labeled with common and scientific names and country of origin, all written in white chalk on the sidewalk; accompanying numbers, in blue, run from 1 to 25. White arrows on the pavement provide directions whenever a turn is needed.

Sacramento Street, Lyon to Baker, north side

1. 3150 Sacramento Flame tree (Brachychiton acerifolius), E Australia (a bold allee of six trees at the Presidio branch library; trees may lose their leaves just before flowering)

Baker Street, Sacramento to California, west side

2. 1819 Baker Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), SE USA (many in this block)

3. 1817 Baker Little Gem magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora ‘Little Gem’), SE USA (this selection of southern magnolia has smaller leaves, smaller flowers, and matures at a smaller size; compare with #2)

4. 1815 Baker Japanese maple (Acer palmatum), Japan, China, Korea (these trees have been pruned into a loose hedge lining the edge of the front garden)

5. 1813 Baker Brush cherry (Syzygium australe, formerly S. paniculatum), E Australia

6. 1813 Baker Irish yew (Taxus baccata ‘Fastigiata’), Irish cultivar of Eurasia & N Africa parents

7. 1811 Baker Eastern dogwood (Cornus florida ) E North America (not always the best choice for coastal California, but this one already has flower buds for next spring)

California Street, west of Baker, north and south sides

8. 3000 California Indian laurel fig (Ficus microcarpa ‘Nitida’), S Asia to N Australia (formerly one of SF’s most planted trees)

9. 3001 California Fastigiate blue Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca Fastigiata’), Atlas Mountains of Morocco & Algeria (note the narrow upright habit of the branches)

Blue Ice yellowwood (Podocarpus elongatus ‘Monmal’), S Africa

Baker Street, California to Pine, west side

10. 1710 Baker Chinese windmill palm (Trachycarpus fortunei), China (across the street)

11. 2896 Pine Peppermint willow (Agonis flexuosa), SW Australia (tree is on the east side of Baker)

Baker Street, Pine to Bush, west side

12. 1653 Baker Modesto ash (Fraxinus velutina ‘Modesto’), SW North America (this cultivar discovered in Modesto, CA)

13. 1611 Baker London plane tree (Platanus x hispanica, formerly Platanus acerifolia), hybrid of E USA species and European species; it is among the most commonly planted trees in cities around the world; there are many in this neighborhood)

14. 1611 Baker Japanese maple (Acer palmatum), Japan, China, Korea (one of the largest in the city)

15. 1611 Baker Australian tree fern (Sphaeropteris cooperi, formerly Cyathea cooperi), SE Australia

Bush Street, Baker to Lyon, north side

16. 2810 Bush Prickly melaleuca (Melaleuca styphelioides), E Australia (note the tiny prickly leaves and spongy park; white flowers appear in summer; this is one of the biggest in town)

Lyon Street, south of Bush, west side

17. 1515 Lyon Carob (Ceratonia siliqua), E Mediterranean Basin (there are several trees in this block; seed pods can be used to make a chocolate substitute—though not recommended for true chocolate lovers)

18. 1511 Lyon Monterey cypress (Hesperocyparis macrocarpa), Carmel, CA, native (one of the most widely planted conifers in coastal California; note the trunk is covered with English ivy, which should be removed for the health of the tree)

tree-themed art at Little School (1520 Lyon)

** cross the street carefully**

Lyon Street, south of Bush, east side

19. 1590 Lyon Victorian box (Pittosporum undulatum), E Australia (intensely fragrant white flowers cycle through the year)

Lyon Street, Bush to Pine, east side

20. 1644-46 Lyon Holm oak (Quercus ilex), Mediterranean Basin (a surprisingly uncommon tree in SF, despite its adaptability to our climate; these 2 trees are city champions)

21. 1652 Lyon Italian bay tree or Grecian laurel (Laurus nobilis), Mediterranean Basin (leaves of this tree are the bay leaves used in cooking)

Lyon Street, Pine to California, east side

22. 2296 Pine Glossy privet (Ligustrum lucidum), S China (tree is on Lyon)

23. 1740 Lyon Marina strawberry tree (Arbutus ‘Marina’), hybrid of Mediterranean species (many fine specimens of this tree can be seen throughout the neighborhood; first introduced in San Francisco)

Lyon Street, California to Sacramento, east side

24. 1812 Lyon Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia), China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam

Sacramento Street, Lyon to Baker, south side

25. 1832 Lyon Olive (Olea europaea), Mediterranean Basin (trees are on Sacramento)

Today’s tour ends here on Sacramento, across the street and a few doors west of the Presidio Branch Library, where it began.

Our regular commercial: This walking tour was organized by Mike Sullivan, author of The Trees of San Francisco and webmaster of www.sftrees.com; Jason Dewees, horticulturist at Flora Grubb Gardens and author of Designing with Palms; Richard Turner, retired editor of Pacific Horticulture magazine and Sairus Patel, soon to be author of Trees of Stanford and Environs. You can follow Mike and Jason on their tree-themed Instagram pages at @sftreeguy and @loulufan. Richard edited another great book on San Francisco trees: Elizabeth McClintock’s Trees of Golden Gate Park. If you’re a tree enthusiast, buy all four of these books!