What began just over a hundred years ago as a streetcar suburb ” within the city limits has matured into the leafiest neighborhood in town. The master-planned community of Forest Hill drapes over the gentle hills west of the Forest Hill Muni Station. Filled with elegant homes in an eclectic mix of architectural styles, its streets are lined by a notable diversity of trees, all maintained by the Forest Hill Association. Many of the pines, cypresses, eucalyptus, and elms are now mature and stately, often creating canopies that arch over the curving streets.

Forest Hill Clubhouse with some Monterey pines (Pinus radiata) — Forest Hill Clubhouse with some Monterey pines (*Pinus* *radiata*)

Despite the diversity of trees in Forest Hill, this tour tallies a relatively short list of trees, in part because we focused on the neighborhood’s most distinctive species. It could also be because it was the coldest day we’ve experienced in the past year of laying out tree tours. Brrr. . .

This walk begins in front of the Bernard Maybeck-designed Forest Hills Clubhouse on Magellan Avenue, and heads northeast along Magellan to Pacheco Street, then north on Pacheco, and northeast on Castenada Avenue. Opposite the intersection of Castenada and Magellan, the walk heads uphill on the steps, alongside a beautifully maintained garden. At the top of the steps, the walk continues across Pacheco and west on Lopez Avenue, north on Sotelo Avenue, southwest on Santa Rita Avenue, and west on Mesa Avenue to 9th Avenue. At 9th Avenue, the walk heads west and south a short distance to steps that lead down to the divided section of San Marcos Avenue and then down more steps to Castenada Avenue, where it winds around to the west and south to Montalvo Avenue, and then southeast on Montalvo to Magellan. At Magellan, the walk heads northeast, where it ends at the Clubhouse. This walk is barely a mile in length, but it does include a number of staircases to help navigate the hills. (Some of these elegant staircases are featured in Adah Bakalinsky’s classic book, Stairway Walks in San Francisco.)

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 29. White arrows on the pavement provide directions whenever a turn is needed.

Our trio of tree geeks responsible for this tour is the same: Mike Sullivan, author of Trees of San Francisco, Jason Dewees (author of Designing with Palms) and Richard Turner (retired editor of Pacific Horticulture).

Forest Hill Clubhouse garden

1. 381 Magellan Monterey pine (Pinus radiata), Año Nuevo, Monterey, Cambria, CA native (the most widely planted coniferous tree in the world, mostly for lumber)

Myoporum or ngaio in Māori (Myoporum laetum) - closeup of leaf affected by thrip — Myoporum or ngaio in Māori (*Myoporum laetum*) - closeup of leaf affected by thrip

2. 381 Magellan Monterey cypress (Hesperocyparis macrocarpa), Carmel, CA

3. 381 Magellan Marina strawberry tree (Arbutus ‘Marina’), hybrid of Mediterranean species (first introduced in San Francisco)

Magellan Avenue, east to Pacheco, southeast side

4. 365 Magellan Lemon bottlebrush (Callistemon citrinus), Eastern Australia

5. 321 Magellan Myoporum or ngaio in Māori (Myoporum laetum), New Zealand (this species is dying all over San Francisco, due to an insect pest called thrips; note that the leaves are poisonous)

6. 321 Magellan Elegant water gum (Tristaniopsis laurina ‘Elegant’), Eastern Australia (row of 4 edging the driveway)

Hercules aloe (Aloidendton ‘Hercules’) — Hercules aloe (*Aloidendton ‘Hercules*’)

**Cross Magellan at the intersection of Dorantes; then cross Dorantes to continue on Magellan to Pacheco Street.

6.5 As you turn from Magellan to Pacheco, look across the street to see a row of Hercules aloe (Aloidendron ‘Hercules’) on Pacheco just below Magellan.

Pacheco Street, Magellan to Castenada, west side

7. 201 Pacheco Monkey puzzle tree (Araucaria araucana), Chile (stiff sharply pointed leaves are said to prohibit monkeys, or anything else, from climbing the trees; watch for a mature specimen at #19)

8. 275 Pacheco Irish yew (Taxus baccata ‘Fastigiata’), Eurasia and North Africa (these 4 trees have recently been pruned to rejuvenate them)

9. 205 Castenada European weeping birch (Betula pendula), Eurasia and North Africa (not usually well-adapted to SF; tree is on the corner of Magellan and Castaneda, within the front yard)

Castenada Avenue, Pacheco to Magellan, east side

10. 181 Castenada Japanese cryptomeria (Cryptomeria japonica), Japan & China (national tree of Japan, where it is known as “sugi”)

11. 145 Castenada Coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia), California and San Francisco native!

12. 127 Castenada Deodar cedar (Cedrus deodara), Himalayas (the nearer tree)

Blue Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca’), Morocco & Algeria (behind the deodar)

Coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia) and Blue Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca’) — Coast live oak (*Quercus agrifolia*) and Blue Atlas cedar (*Cedrus atlantica* ‘Glauca’)

**Walk up Forest Hill Path, the narrow public steps from Castenada to Pacheco (note the beautiful cottage garden on the right side of the steps). Cross Pacheco and continue west along Lopez Avenue to Sotelo Avenue

American sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) — American sweetgum (*Liquidambar styraciflua*)

Sotelo Avenue, Lopez to Santa Rita, northeast side

13. 10 Sotelo Island oak (Quercus tomentella), California’s Channel Islands (a CA native) and Guadalupe Island, Mexico (these young trees represent a new species introduction that should thrive in the city’s climate)

Santa Rita Avenue, Sotelo to Mesa, east side

14. 11 Santa Rita Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), Eastern USA to Mexico & Central America

15. 11 Santa Rita English holly (Ilex aquifolium), Eurasia and North Africa

16. 35 Santa Rita Cutleaf Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum’), Japan, China, & Korea

17. 35 Santa Rita Paperbark maple (Acer griseum), Central China (note the richly colored peeling bark)

** Cross Santa Rita at Mesa Avenue.

Mesa Avenue, Santa Rita to 9th, north side

18. 2 Mesa Norfolk Island pine (Araucaria heterophylla), Norfolk Island, South Pacific (2 trees, plus one across the street)

Norfolk Island pine (Araucaria heterophylla) on left; its botanical sibling monkey puzzle tree (Araucaria araucana) on the right — Norfolk Island pine (*Araucaria heterophylla*) on left; its botanical sibling monkey puzzle tree (*Araucaria araucana*) on the right

19. 2206 - 9th Monkey puzzle tree (Araucaria araucana), Chile (tree is on Mesa, across the street; it is a close relative of the Norfolk Island pine)

20. 32 Mesa Sourgum or tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica), Eastern USA

Sourgum or tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica), just beginning to leaf out in May — Sourgum or tupelo (*Nyssa sylvatica*), just beginning to leaf out in May

**Cross to the far side of 9th Avenue.

9th Avenue, west of Mesa, west side

European beech (Fagus sylvatica) — European beech (*Fagus sylvatica*)

21. 2193 - 9th Lily-of-the-valley tree (Clethra arborea), Madeira (rarely happy in San Francisco, but this one is a city champion)

22. 2209 - 9th Coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), Big Sur to southwest Oregon; California coastal native (tallest tree species in the world)

**Cross 9th and walk down the long flight of steps to Pacheco and continue on down more steps to Castenada Avenue.

Castenada Avenue, west to Montalvo, north side

23. 390 Castenada European beech (Fagus sylvatica), Europe (these three trees are color selections of the wild green-leafed species)

Montalvo Avenue, Castenada to Dorantes, east side

24. 15 Montalvo New Zealand Christmas tree, pōhutukawa in Māori (Metrosideros excelsa), New Zealand

25. 50 Montalvo Brush cherry (Syzygium australe, previously known as S. paniculatum), Eastern Australia (across the street)

**Cross Montalvo at Dorantes.

Montalvo Avenue, Dorantes to Magellan, west side

26. 120 Montalvo Paul’s Scarlet hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata ‘Paul’s Scarlet’), Europe (2 trees beginning to flower)

27. 130 Montalvo Mayten (Maytenus boaria), Chile (2 trees)

Magellan Avenue, east of Magellan, south side

28. 201 Montalvo Dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), China (thought by Western science to be extinct, but discovered in central China in the 1940s; 2 young trees flank the steps at corner of Montalvo and Magellan)

29. 201 Montalvo European elm (Ulmus sp.), Europe (we’re not sure which species; the trees are on Magellan and many other streets in the neighborhood)

The tour ends here, a few yards short of its beginning at the Forest Hill Clubhouse.

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; and Richard Turner, retired editor of Pacific Horticulture magazine . 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 three books!