What Kind of Tree is This?

Was going to take pictures of it earlier today but things happen. Anyway it's about 20 feet tall, probably 16"-18" in diameter with a grey solid bark. The limbs grow pretty much opposite each other and it's a conical tree, not a coniferus tree though, it sheds leaves and I can't tell which leaves belong to this tree so I'm going off of the bark and the way the limbs grow. I'm guessing it may be black birch, or cherry?

 

Based on your description - go take that picture! That said - beech has a light grey solid bark. Black birch and cherry have similar dark bark which, in larger trees, plates in black birch and becomes scaly in cherry. Without a pic no one here will be able to give you a definite id. Cheers!

 

Well I would right now but it's a bit dark out. I will early in the AM tomorrow, regardless of what kind of tree it is it has to come down, it's blocking off sunlight to the saplings beneath it.

 

Ahhh.....nighttime tree id pics - this could be fun! Good luck with the take-down! Cheers!

 

Maybe poplar or birch? I don't know, there's no way to give a good answer without pics

 

I'm leaning towards birch due to the way the branches grow in (almost right across from one another). But I'll be able to get pictures up tomorrow for a more definite answer.

 

'Grey solid' sounds like beech, until the rest of your description.

 

I'll have pictures up tomorrow. I'll add it to the 'oak' pile until I know what it is.

 

Might be a .... .... errr ....hmmmmm, beech, birch (not white paper birch though) , cherry, maple, walnut, hickory, elm, ash, poplar, oak or willow
well we can rule out sycamore
LOL
Now everyone is waiting,

 

I spy with my little eye.....a tree.....that's round and has gray bark....

Ok guys what is it?

Its hard to go off a description, I mean think of a car...there are a lot of similar cars...just like trees.
I saw a car yesterday and don't know what make or model it was, it had oval headlights, a rounded hood, round tail lights.....

I'm just playing. Looking forward to seeing the pics.

 

Well, just trying to narrow it down... Local trees with smooth gray bark would probably be either a younger maple or a beech. Beech can take a "pyramid" sort of form. The beech at my house dropped their leaves after the maples; see if there's any branches with the leaves still attached. And get a !!

 

Birch and Cherry can have smooth gray bark when young too.

 

True, dark grey or sort of a shiny black. By 16-18" cherry would have the "burnt cornflakes", but I suppose birch could still be described as "smooth".

 

Grey solid bark-could be silver maple 16-18" x 20' tall, sounds like its short, fat and squatty like someone I used to know.

 

Beech trees hold their leaves late into the winter.

 

Yep, those, and oaks, and sugar maple seem to cling to their leaves pretty good. Speaking of which, red oak can be smooth and gray in that size too. And sometimes a pyramid shape if they're in the open.

 

Well further investigation revealed some ridges in the bark. Still not sure what kind of tree I'm dealing with.

 

Think that's a red maple.

 

I was thinking maple as well, just wasn't sure of the breed. Makes sense where it is as well.