How to draw a tree

The classic “lollipop” tree — a stick under a circle — is what everyone draws first. This version keeps the same simple idea but adds the two things that make a tree look real: a trunk that flares at the roots and branches that disappear into the leaves.

It is also a great tree to reuse as background in other drawings: behind a house, next to a horse, or in a row along a road.

Step-by-step: how to draw a tree

1. 

   1Guide shapes

   Draw a tall narrow rectangle for the trunk and a big circle above it for the leaves, overlapping the top of the trunk.

2. 

   2Draw the trunk

   Draw two slightly curving lines for the trunk, a little wider at the bottom, and flick each one outwards at the base to make roots.

3. 

   3Add branches

   Split the top of the trunk into three branches — one left, one right and one up the middle. They should get thinner as they go up.

4. 

   4The canopy

   Draw a bumpy, cloud-like outline over the guide circle, with a scalloped bottom edge that the branches disappear into.

5. 

   5Details and erase

   Add a couple of short bark lines on the trunk, a few small curls inside the canopy for clumps of leaves, and a ground line. Erase the guides.

6. 

   6Colour your tree

   Brown trunk, bright green canopy, and a few red dots if you want an apple tree. Try orange and yellow for autumn.

Tips for a better tree

• Wider at the base. A trunk with parallel sides looks like a pole.
• Uneven bumps. Make the canopy bumps different sizes — perfect scallops look like a cloud, not a tree.
• Branches into the leaves. Let them vanish into the canopy rather than poking out.

Try a variation

For a pine tree, swap the cloud for three stacked triangles. For a winter tree, skip the canopy and keep splitting each branch into two smaller ones.

More things to draw

Level up

• Basic shading
• Colour theory for beginners
• Drawing ideas
• Easy things to draw