Ok, should be the last one guys. This one might be tough, down for over 2 years, bark coming off.... What do ya think?
My immediate impression is Maple from the first pic. Get the saw into it and see how punky it is. The stuff off the ground might still be in gooder shape.
Thanks.... I thought maybe Maple, there is a lot of it around there, but wasn't sure. Not punky at all, it's perfect for the pickin. Of course it is now in 3 feet of snow, so it isn't happening for a while!
A lot of the red maple here have multiple trunks. They often get loaded with polypore mushroom pretty quick so that one may be solid. I pass them by when I see those fungi, they're growing on punk. Although I've seen a huge sulfur fungi on a oak tree in my back yard and that tree still looks healthy. When I went back to get a pic of it on sunny day cuz it was bright orange and huge it was on the ground busted.
I agree with maple, however pretty tuff to say if it's a red, silver or sugar with those pics. Red or silver I.D. without foilage and just using bark is a guess mostly. Clumps are usually silvers in my experience. One trick to identify a maple is the end of the branches have opposing branches . In my parts only ash is the other tree with this same feature. Oaks ect....will have staggered young branches. When I'm in the woods marking trees for tapping in the winter I've seen some young oaks that a first glance look like sugar maples. Look up and then check the branches for a positive id.
So which type of Maple does the "opposing branches" signify? From what I know (which is not much), we mostly have Sugar Maple on Long Island. That is what I always thought anyway. ??
I have a lot of Red here that are all at least double trunk. By clump, do you mean something else, because there are a few here that have a whole slew of small trunks and they look a bit different. I'll pay closer attention this spring.
I guess I should have been more clear. Sorry. All maples ( sugar , reds, blacks, norway, silver, box elder) have these opposing branches . Another clue is sugar maples will drop the samaras ( those helicopters ) in the fall while red and silver do in early summer. Sugar maples don't like wet ground , they are commonly found with beech. Reds and silvers like the wet stuff. Being that your in NY , I doubt you have many Norways as I believe they won't allow any in the state . Invasive non native tree.
Why I mean is exactly what your seeing. A whole bunch of clumps. Reds can have multiple trunks but when I see those 4 or so trunks growing it usually will be a silver . Leaf ID is the best bet to tell them apart. Of course when it comes to drilling holes I don't discriminate, they all get one !
Been considering tapping some of the Reds. Bold: If I'm reading the leaves correctly, my multitrunks are Reds. Hmmmmm. Some have 2, some 3, 4, 5. Then, the others have a bunch more, almost like a huge bush. I'll try to get a pic.
My first thought is Maple, too, but as you said, if it's been down for a while and it it clearly starting to lose bark and there are no leaves, it get's tough to be sure.
