Trees and Shrubs

To the Wayfayer, Ye who would pass by and raise your hand against me, harken ere you harm me. I am the heat of your hearth on the cold winter nights; the friendly shade screening you from the summer sun; and my fruits are refreshing draughts, quenching your thirst as you journey on. I am the beam that holds your house, the board of your table, the bed on which you lie, and the timber that builds your boat. I am the handle of your hoe, the door of your homestead, the wood of your cradle, and the shell of your coffin. I am the bread of kindness and the flower of beauty. Ye who pass by, listen to my prayer; harm me not.

Prayer of a Tree, Alexander L. Howard, A Manual of the Timbers of the World, 1920)

Trees and Shrubs are just a visual way to separate plants by the way that they grow.  It is not a botanical definition. Wikipedia defines a tree as a “perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves.” A Shrub is just shorter with many branches. This means that you can transform a tree into a shrub or vice versa by careful pruning.