Any ideas on this one? Grey scaley bark. Very hard. Big ms290 had to work just to cut a 6" diameter log. Location: Northeast Ohio We've always called it "smell good wood" for as long as I can remember. Very strong distinct smell when burning. Elm maybe???
Thanks for the reply! I've been looking at tons of pictures if Ironwood or Hop Hornbeam and I'm pretty darn sure that what it is. I will try and grab a picture of the bark. If it truly is Ironwood, then the sthil is about to get a real workout - found a totally dead standing 14" diameter guy right along the edge if the farmers field. Either way I will harvest this tree, but if it's Ironwood I'll be RIGHT on it!
Leaf looks alot like ironwood, but also resembles elm........ I'd like to see the bark and/or some wood grain.....
That pic confuses me even more. Doesn't look like ironwood bark but more like locust! But the leaves are all wrong....
I've never seen ironwood with that deep of furrows but I do know in MI they don't get much more than 12-14" before dieing. I'm just going to say hickory for fun. Leaves are green, bark is scaley, and OP says it smells good when burnt. And we all know how good our smokers smell!
The trouble with ironwood is that I find many people claim different trees to be ironwood. That is mostly because in their particular area some tree has always been called ironwood. For example, one of the most common "ironwood" trees, or what some call ironwood turns out to be blue beech. So what is is? Hophornbeam is something else as there are many trees that are supposed to be in this family.
Got all setup and split one piece and then got called to work. Didn't even have time to snap a picture Inside was NOT stringy at all. A 4 to 6" roind split right in 2 with little to no splinters
Exactly. Learned that at your GTG. Saw a tree and you said it was Ironwood, Hophornbeam. Walt and I thought, "Don't look like Ironwood to us." Our Ironwood is Blue Beech. As far as what is it? I am kind of leaning towards hickory. Maybe elm. Haven't seen any elm around here in years, since the Dutch Elm Disease epidemic, but the leaves look like I remember elm. Since OP is in Ohio I am reluctant to toss my hat in the elm ring.
Yup. I found out at Shawn Curry when walt pointed out what he called ironwood and it was blue beech. It seems to be a regional thing.
