These are the results for the contest I published here.
What a turnout!
Thank you all for playing so numerously. Six participants are 300% of the previous turnout, so it's been successful, not matter how you look at it. Also I acknowledge, this quiz may have been a bit hard, considering that you had to solve the puzzle without seeing the bark, the cone, or the shape of the trees in question. For that you've done exceptionally well. Even though nobody got a perfect score, it's no reason to shed a tear, since some people got REALLY close.
What a learning experience … !
It's been a revelation. Most importantly for me, I realized that there is no way to see when an answer was edited, only when the first version was submitted. Of course I didn't even mention editing your answers, so I'll accept them, and instead of the submission time I'll focus on the informational value. Next time I'll make sure to emphasize this point more strongly.
What were the right answers then?
Okay, let's take them one-by-one:
A – 5 This is the Sitka Spruce. One of its most famous characteristics is its hard needles that actually hurt you when you try to close your hand around the branch. What's lesser known is its edible inner bark, which native peoples used to mix with berries, and that its wood is favored by instrument makers for its beautiful sound. Yes, this one was supposed to be a hard one, but it seems like most of you had no problem with it.
B – 8 This is a branch of a White Pine, which is often used in furniture making, since it is not as strong as fir or hemlock wood. Almost all of you got this one right, too.
C – 7 Flat needles growing flat in two directions with decent spacing in between, that's gotta be the Yew tree. Interestingly, one of the easiest trees to identify when holding the branch in your hand, here on the photo it's a whole different matter. Two of you still managed to identify it correctly. Good job!
D – 3 Western Red Cedar. You don't need to be a tree-buff to know about the wonderful smell coming out of a cedar box. Also, since the wood is so rich in oils, it can withstand heavy weathering without needing varnish, and it catches fire quite easily, even in the ever damp climate of the Pacific coast. It seems like almost everyone got this one right, not surprisingly, as it's the only cypress-like branch on this photo.
E – 4 Meet the Western Hemlock. Its distinct leaves / needles (or whatever you call these things in between) make it quite easy to identify. Now it may be widely known that Hemlock also has a very sturdy wood, making it great structural timber. However, since its name was one of the options, number 2 had to be a different one. Also this tree was identified correctly by almost every participant.
F – 6 Moving on to the difficult ones: the Grand Fir. Okay, notice how the bottom part of the needles are silvery? Yes, that's the distinct mark of the Grand Fir, at least the one that can be seen here. This was also intended to be a tough one, but some of you got it right.
G – 1 More fir trees: the Amabilis Fir. This one was probably the hardest of them all. To most of you it looked like a Douglas Fir, and I don't blame you, the two are quite similar. One feature sets them apart: Whereas the needles of the Amabilis Fir grow flat(ish) in two directions from the branch, the Douglas Fir is like a bottle-brush, growing in spirals in all directions away from the branch. I know, this could be almost considered a trap, though I believe this one distinction is quite clearly visible on the photo.
H – 2 The furriest of them all: the Douglas Fir. By the way, sorry for the spelling error in my questions, making the trees look like furry animals. I only noticed my mistake when I read your answers, but then I didn't want to edit the quiz any more, out of principle. (Or I might as well change the answer options, rewrite all the rules, even the whole quiz.) Anyway, being the tallest and proudest of all the green giants, the Douglas Fir also has a very strong wood, making it excellent for structural timber.
What About the Winners (and winnings)?
First of all, nobody got a perfect score. Sorry about that, but thanks for trying. However, there are TWO SECOND PLACES! Both @chelsea88 and @flemingfarm got a score of 6/8. It loks like the only miss-match both of you got were numbers 1 and 2, the Douglas Fir and Amabilis Fir. Since I have no way of knowing who edited their answer first, I will assume both did it at the same moment. Thus I am going to reward you BOTH with the second price of 15 SBD. Congratulations you two! I'll send you your winnings right away. (It's my first time transferring SBD, so please let me know whether or not it arrived. I appreciate it.)
The rest of you have done well, with 50% correct matches each. One participant failed to re-steem, so I did not count their answers, though I still appreciate that they played. Most of all I would like to give a special SHOUT-OUT to @farmstead for providing all the names of the trees, even the ones not given in the answer options. And most of them were quite correct, too! Well, the Yew... taken out of context it does look a bit different, doesn't it?
Once again, thank you all for playing! I had fun, and I hope you did too. As a gesture of appreciation I followed all of you who participated, even if I did not count your answers. It would also interest me immensely what you thought of this quiz, what you liked, what you didn't like, and maybe if you have any suggestions for the next one, I'll be happy to read them. Thanks again for playing, hope to see you again the next time.
Cheers!