This was from the same yard as Mystree #1 i just posted. At first i thought it was white oak based on the bark, but no. Then maybe elm but no as well. Its not ash either. the entire trunk had lots of little limbs growing out like a pin oak I only grabbed one log for now. felling notch piece. Color was very light. Wood had a slight odor which ive smelled before but cant place it. I think ive smelled it in lumber/board form and not log form. There was no limbs, but i searched the other lengths and found a couple tiny limbs still attached. Small leaves. I have no way of knowing the size of the other leaves that were chipped. Im completely stumped by this one. I didnt have camera with me when i grabbed the wood late this afternoon. Took pics when i got home. I can post more pics of the trunk pieces when i grab them tomorrow.
I remember your pile of it after going through the splitter. Not a pleasant experience for you from what i remember. Ill buck a piece and try it with the Fiskars. If it is ill cut 4" cookies and enjoy it in the pit next year. Did you ever noodle any?
I vote for black gum. Looks like stuff I got a few years ago. keep that log in a shady spot, and it will start sprouting leaves. It's nearly impossible to split when green, dry it has the weirdest grain....I won't touch it again.
I have noodled some of it before...not because it was too big for the splitter though, just wouldn't split down the center without doing so.
After your response i did some research into it. Used for shipping crates and insides of furniture etc and thats where ive smelled it before. Sometimes i cant ID wood and give it a sniff! The nose knows! For hahas ill cut a 16" round and try to split. Its 7" diameter.
If it turns out to be gum, let it rot! Been there, not worth the hassle considering you have plenty of other wood at your disposal.
I always say, all my neighbors that can see me up in the back where I process wood, must think I'm nuts, cause I've always got a piece of fresh cut or fresh split wood to my nose. And forget it if it's a piece of Black Birch, I'll stand there snorting it like a drug fiend, inhaling so deep my boots start to deflate.
OMG thats hysterical! I do the same. White oak my favorite even though i dont really like whiskey! Have some Eastern red cedar lengths and only wanna cut them to smell! Saving them for projects, not firewood. Been a while since ive fresh cut any birch. Rarer score for me. I have a sassafras blow over with root ball still attached to cut up come November. Looking forward to sniffing it! We should sell FHC scented air fresheners. How nice if your PU smelled like birch!?
The bark on this doesn't look like our local black gum; ours has more of an alligator back look. Not saying it is, just a comment, but this bark resembles mulberry. Soon as I saw your pic of leaves, I thought of black gum. I have been meaning to update a thread that I think I did on this forum about a mystery tree. I suspected it was black gum and now, I'm even more convinced. I have been meaning to update it with pictures of the splits. Now, you talk about gnarly! I took the rounds back to the dump, not interested!
Not too familiar with it but even though it does resemble white oak, it plainly is not so probably is black gum. Chew some of it. Maybe it will taste like black jack gum!
The nose knows. I’m certainly not afraid of using my sense of smell to identify wood. Give me black cherry and I’m in heaven!
I went back to the score today for more wood. Took a pic of the dried "berries/fruit" on the ground. Look like your yard under that tree? It was into the yard a bit and i was surprised the tree service cut it down along with the big oak from "Mystree #1" The oak is resting on the gum. Couple gum logs closest to the camera. I left them, but took more of the oak.
Oak trees self-pollinate and require wind to enable the pollination process. It's not impossible for one species of red oak to outcross with another species, so it is quite possible that you have an outlier every now and then. I've seen odd ball leaves on an oak tree that don't match the others. Up the street there is a red maple tree of some sort that has one branch with green leaves instead of red like all the others. The leaves and branch are also bigger than the others. I've been tempted to go in the yard and examine it to see if it was grafted on. It's that odd. There's a name for a part of a hybrid tree that tries to grow as one of the parentage rather than true to its hybridized genetics
I drove by late this afternoon and someone had grabbed the pieces of the gum. I wonder if they know what they got themselves into. Homeowner wouldnt let me use the saw in the yard, otherwise i wouldve cut up the oak.
