Woodworker mesmerizes millions by crafting a US map out of each state's official tree
Justin Davies has awakened a deep, latent fascination with trees people didn't even know they had.

Justin Davies shares his official state tree U.S. map woodworking project on TikTok.
Did you know that there are around 73,000 species of trees in the world?
Most of us go about our days surrounded by trees that just sort of sit in the background of our lives, quietly providing beauty, shade, oxygen, a home for wildlife and more, without us giving them a whole lot of thought.
But it appears that a whole bunch of us have a deep, latent fascination with trees and wood, based on how people have responded to Justin Davies' unique state tree U.S. map project. Davies, who goes by @justinthetrees on TikTok, has spent months crafting a stunning wall map of the U.S. using wood from the official tree of each state, and he has gained more than a million followers doing it.
Davies tells Upworthy the map idea was one he'd held onto for years, ever since a run on a trail sparked his interest in woodworking.
"While out on a trail run I noticed a tree I'd probably passed thousands of times without really noticing it," he says, "and was struck by how little I knew about it. Didn't know what kind of tree it was, didn't even know its name. And I spend a lot of time out in the wilderness out here in Utah, so it made me just feel really disconnected from the natural places that surround me.
"So I got home and just started digging online until I found the type of tree it was, and I was kinda blown away by how fascinating I found everything I discovered. The properties of the tree, where it grows, its many traditional indigenous uses, and one of the big things was that I just really wanted to know what its wood looked like."
Davies' curiosity led him down a creative path that eventually moved him away from a 12-year marketing career and toward creating content focused on trees. Oddly enough, it's been a great move.
"When I meet new people and tell them I make content about trees, I often get a response like, 'Trees? Really??' with a raised eyebrow, implying I've never thought about trees before in my life, that sounds boring," he says. "But you very quickly discover that it takes almost nothing to help people realize they do find trees to be fascinating. Everyone has a tree they love from their childhood. Everyone has types of trees that make them feel at home. So it's been fun to see that kind of response happen at such a massive scale."
Davies spent around eight months creating his official state tree map, making a video for each piece in which he shares scientific and historical information about each tree, how Indigenous peoples have used them and interesting anecdotes about them. As it progressed, the map project morphed into a community endeavor, with people from all over the country sending him pieces of the kinds of wood he needed from each state to complete it.
Here is Davies sharing the finished map, which is the best place to start. This video offers a glimpse of the work and community support that went into this project, as well as Davies' genuine likability that keeps people coming back.
@justinthetrees Thanks for making this project possible! You’re the best #trees #statetreemap #thankyou
As Davies said, he isn't actually done. He has also made different countries and Canadian provinces out of native wood, and has started making a whole new larger U.S. map for his followers on YouTube (since the vertical format for video on TikTok isn't really compatible with YouTube).
And to get a taste of what's caused millions of people to tune in each time he revealed a new state, here's the video from the final state he made, Missouri.
@justinthetrees Reply to @eawilliams1s get to know a state tree: Missouri’s flowering dogwood #trees #woodworking #missouri #statetreemap #learnontiktok #dogwood
Check out Georgia, which attracted nearly 13 million viewers:
@justinthetrees Reply to @djunamars get to know a state tree: Georgia’s Southern Live Oak #trees #woodworking #georgia #learnontiktok #map #liveoak #statetreemap
And how about Florida, whose official tree is only kind of, sort of a tree (same goes for South Carolina, whose state tree is also a palmetto):
@justinthetrees Reply to @draphra get to know a state tree: Florida’s Sabal Palm #trees #woodworking #florida #learnontiktok #statetreemap #palmetto
Davies shares that his love of trees goes beyond just their beauty. There's something about trees native to where we live that tap into something primal within us.
"I find them absolutely fascinating, of course. I think they're beautiful, of course. But also from a practical sense, we wouldn't be anywhere without them. We need them to build our homes, to heat our homes, to make furniture, food, the games we play, the art we admire. But ultimately for me, what I love the most is the way different types of native trees and forests have the power to evoke something so personal for different people.
"For me, a large, twisted Utah juniper instantly makes me feel at peace and at home. Same goes for the color of the dancing light coming through the canopy of a quaking aspen grove. I can hear and see and smell those forests and trees that are native to the wild places in my home and they give me something so much different than, say, the exotic beauty of a forest of old-growth redwoods or a cypress swamp. And what I love is how someone from those places will feel entirely the opposite."
Part of what makes Davies' videos so engaging is that he really connects with his audience. Check out how he taps into the psyches of his viewers who were incredibly bothered by the empty space where Nevada was supposed to go before he made the piece.
@justinthetrees I love you all, send me some bristlecone pine wood if you find some lol #statetreemap #woodworking #trees #map
Davies is thrilled with how people of all ages have responded to his videos. He says he gets sent pictures of things kids made in shop class inspired by his work and messages from viewers who say they didn't care at all about trees before, but who now find themselves out for walks with friends and pointing out things about different tree species. "That kind of stuff is just absolutely amazing," says Davies.
Seriously, who knew trees were so fascinating?
There's something so pure about watching someone do woodworking, but adding an interesting educational element and a true love for trees makes it all the more satisfying. You can follow Justin Davies on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.
P.S. If you really want to watch every state video from the TikTok U.S. map project, he compiled them all here on YouTube:
- Ever heard of a dynamite tree? It's a tree built to kill. ›
- How some zoos are using leftover Christmas trees to enrich their elephants' lives. ›
- America has more trees now than it's had in 100 years. But we're not out of the woods yet. ›
- Map Men explain why North goes at the top of the map - Upworthy ›
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."