Mud23609
ArboristSite Operative
One more for poplar. Got a wood shed full of it.
can anyone tell me the kind of wood i cut?
- Thread starter chipmaker29
- Start date
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woodbooga
cords of mystic memory
Call me crazy, but the grain looks a little like ash. The bark is nothing like the white ash I cut. But that's not the only one out there. Maybe someone who's handled a lot of different kind could chime in. Blue ash is native to the midwest.
Edit: just reread the OP and noticed the odor comment. Would have a hard time believing any kind of ash is that fragrant.
This is a tuffee for me!
chipmaker29
ArboristSite Operative
Call me crazy, but the grain looks a little like ash. The bark is nothing like the white ash I cut. But that's not the only one out there. Maybe someone who's handled a lot of different kind could chime in. Blue ash is native to the midwest.
Edit: just reread the OP and noticed the odor comment. Would have a hard time believing any kind of ash is that fragrant.
This is a tuffee for me!
man i hear ya...cut alot of wood but i am stumped on this one. whole pile i split smells like a bucket of paint. maybe it is poplar. if so it is different from any that i have seen round here before. i got prolly 6 poplar trees in my back yard.
thanks for all the help in figuring out this stuff.
cableguy256
ArboristSite Operative
well, this might be a pointless response, but aside from the bark, it looks/sounds like sassafrass to me... I cut a lot of it in this area.. has a very strong smell (wouldn't really call it paint though) although sassy splits very easily... the bark kinda resembles the stuff I've cut but more green in it.... not 100% sure on this one though...
willis09r
ArboristSite Operative
I have some of this same wood and have no idea what it is. I assumed
it was a hardwood until it dried out. Now it's VERY light in weight.
it was a hardwood until it dried out. Now it's VERY light in weight.
brisawyer
ArboristSite Operative
It dosent have the green heart to be tulip poplar. Wrong color wood/ bark for sassafrass. Basswood is not stringy unless it was a leaner. My other guess is Big tooth aspen. Sometimes you can get all kinds of odd smells if the log has laid for a while.
chipmaker29
ArboristSite Operative
i hear ya man...mystery stuff. it is light weight for sure. oh well i am mixing it in with some locust, black cherry & ash & it seems to be burning pretty well. the crap stinks though!! i wouldnt have cut it up if i would have realized it wasnt good hardwood but i swear the bark looked so much like oak. gotta admit as soon as i smelled it when i was cutting it i knew it wasnt what i was after.
oh well...live & learn
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This is Box Elder View attachment 123866
howellhandmade
Addicted to ArboristSite
I'm going to throw my vote in with the sassafras guys. The rough but fairly thin bark, the distinct reddish-brown layer next to the cambium, the stringy-looking but clean-splitting grain, the fairly even texture with little sap/heartwood change, and finally the pronounced odor. I wouldn't describe it as a paint smell, but it is aromatic, and who knows what anybody else thinks when he smells something. Too bad there wasn't a leaf to dig up, even a brown, soggy one.
Jack
Willow?
Hlakegollum
ArboristSite Operative
i hear ya man...mystery stuff. it is light weight for sure. oh well i am mixing it in with some locust, black cherry & ash & it seems to be burning pretty well. the crap stinks though!! i wouldnt have cut it up if i would have realized it wasnt good hardwood but i swear the bark looked so much like oak. gotta admit as soon as i smelled it when i was cutting it i knew it wasnt what i was after.
oh well...live & learn
The basswood I cut is very heavy when green and then drys very light. Aweful to burn, a big spark show.
I'm thinking it's sassafrass.
I also vote Catalpa. We're not much help here, are we.
Lets describe the tree.. was it tall, thin and straight or did it branch out with sizable limbs. Did the limbs have a lot of bends? Did the limbs grow up from the trunk or did they start up then curve down and back up again. What are all the other trees in the area? Wet feet or high and dry, sand or dark rich soil?
chipmaker29
ArboristSite Operative
man the tree was tall. prolly 60-70 ft, straight trunk, not knotty and all limbs were toward the top. maybe 1 or 2 growing out of the main trunk but overall quite a ways up there before there were limbs. not alot of bends to them. pretty much growing straight w/o curves. there are many trees around it. oak, ash, alot of hackberry, a few hedge trees and of course some softwoods like poplar and i believe there were also some young cherry trees.
dry ground and pretty rich farmland type soil. was fallen about 75 yards from a cut cornfield.
Hlakegollum
ArboristSite Operative
I also vote Catalpa. We're not much help here, are we.
Would catalpa still have those stupid cigars still hanging from it? In the summer the leaves are huge also. Not sure if this is any help to him.
chipmaker29
ArboristSite Operative
I also vote Catalpa. We're not much help here, are we.
LOL...i think i am confused. alot of different opinions. i figured one of the "ole wise experts" would be like..."oh ya, it is this. no question"....
not yet though...
Hlakegollum
ArboristSite Operative
I cut down basswood that looked like that. It burned with tons of sparks. We ended up burning outside in the summer and enjoyed the spark show. I had thought it was ash until it seasoned really light.
dingeryote
Blueberry Baron
Chip,
It's Sassafrass.
The red bark on the splits gives it away, as does the grain and color.
Add in the smell, and what else could it be.
The bark is a bit wierd looking in the pics though.
Any chance you have a twig or two for a Pic?
Sassafrass is pretty unique looking and I see that crap in my nightmares.
Stay safe!
Dingeryote
It's Sassafrass.
The red bark on the splits gives it away, as does the grain and color.
Add in the smell, and what else could it be.
The bark is a bit wierd looking in the pics though.
Any chance you have a twig or two for a Pic?
Sassafrass is pretty unique looking and I see that crap in my nightmares.
Stay safe!
Dingeryote
The bark and grain looks just like the silver maple I've cut before. Cant explain the odor though. REJ2
Ahh just dry it out and burn it, Don't matter what it is. If it puts out heat and you're not using the thermostat on the wall then that will bring a smile to your face. When you pick it up after it's good a dry and it's featherweight, Then you know it's not gonna burn long. If it's still heavy then it will last longer. Either way it's free heat.
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