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Seeing this thread reminded me of our biggest heartbreak tree we had, came down 3 years ago, very bottom rotted out about 16 feet up :cry:. The very bottom base was 73 inches, where you see my little saw in the second picture, was 26 feet up the tree. We counted 240 something rings, but I think that we probably missed about 20-30 rings. It is a Red Oak.
oak1.JPG oak3.JPG oak2.JPG

I left them as thumbnail pics, left them rather large, so those that don't know...if you right click and open in new tab on the pictures, you'll se the big picture.
 
Seeing this thread reminded me of our biggest heartbreak tree we had, came down 3 years ago, very bottom rotted out about 16 feet up :cry:. The very bottom base was 73 inches, where you see my little saw in the second picture, was 26 feet up the tree. We counted 240 something rings, but I think that we probably missed about 20-30 rings. It is a Red Oak.
View attachment 460513 View attachment 460515 View attachment 460518

I left them as thumbnail pics, left them rather large, so those that don't know...if you right click and open in new tab on the pictures, you'll se the big picture.
love them monstah trees!
 
Im in NC and we have very hot summers, this one was especially dry. I cut split some green white oak in late may and have started burning it already. No hissing, sounds like bowling pins when hit, and flames right up. Red oak i dont think would be this way, but just goes to show how much quicker wood seasons here.
I'm right there with you. I see these threads where people are seasoning wood for 2 years. I'm burning some sourwood and maple right now that was cut in the middle of June and no hissing or sizzling, nothing. Fire catches right up with good kindling or a good bed of coals.
 
I'm right there with you. I see these threads where people are seasoning wood for 2 years. I'm burning some sourwood and maple right now that was cut in the middle of June and no hissing or sizzling, nothing. Fire catches right up with good kindling or a good bed of coals.

The significant trade off is that we waste BTU's when we burn partial seasoned wood. I am not saying that you, in particular, do.

I know I'm guilty of it as are many on this site are. When we burn wood that still has too much sap or "oils" left in the wood, it just increases the burn rate of the wood, hence burning up faster than seasoned well, and thus increasing the creosote output.
 
Seeing this thread reminded me of our biggest heartbreak tree we had, came down 3 years ago, very bottom rotted out about 16 feet up :cry:. The very bottom base was 73 inches, where you see my little saw in the second picture, was 26 feet up the tree. We counted 240 something rings, but I think that we probably missed about 20-30 rings. It is a Red Oak.
View attachment 460513 View attachment 460515 View attachment 460518

I left them as thumbnail pics, left them rather large, so those that don't know...if you right click and open in new tab on the pictures, you'll se the big picture.

Kind of hard to tell but if I had to guess, it might have been in the open yard of an old home place or pasture with low, large limbs. A grand tree in it's day for sure.
 
yep. gotta love oaks trees. They are majestic and beautiful as they get big. The branches spread out and they look so invitng. We've got some in my neighborhood that have been around a long time. Get my oak from tree service company for cheap, but sometimes I can find one of the many oaks around my house being cut down, and a lot of them need to be. A storm last summer that blew the steeple off the church all but destroyed six or seven of them on my road. Sad to see them go.
 
oak5.JPG
Kind of hard to tell but if I had to guess, it might have been in the open yard of an old home place or pasture with low, large limbs. A grand tree in it's day for sure.

Nope, deep in the woods, easily a mile from any road. It did have large limbs though, the canopy was well over 250 feet, the lowest limb (still attached and growing) was 26 feet, this tree was at least 120 ft tall. there are probably 100 trees in that near vicinity that I am sure are direct descendant's from that tree.
This is the largest around it and it is 32 dbh, probably 15 feet from that monster.
Hardpan, where you in SoIN? I'm close to Princeton. We'll have to meet up and cut sometime.
 
View attachment 460630

Nope, deep in the woods, easily a mile from any road. It did have large limbs though, the canopy was well over 250 feet, the lowest limb (still attached and growing) was 26 feet, this tree was at least 120 ft tall. there are probably 100 trees in that near vicinity that I am sure are direct descendant's from that tree.
This is the largest around it and it is 32 dbh, probably 15 feet from that monster.
Hardpan, where you in SoIN? I'm close to Princeton. We'll have to meet up and cut sometime.

Huntingburg. Not far at all.
 
You guys with big oak trees are spoiled. This is a good representation of the oak trees we have up here. Older guys called them scrub oaks although I know that's used for other oak species in other parts of the country as well.

Most never get bigger than this.
View attachment 460154

Here's a pretty big one, probably 14". I doubt I've ever seen one over 18".
View attachment 460155

Most of the leaves look like this.
View attachment 460157

But a few are palmated like this. I've seen both shapes growing on the same tree many times.
View attachment 460158

looks like there are a good amount of tree's that need to come down in that first pic though :D it's unhealthy to let them grow like that, you need to level them and start over. spacing won't help :givebeer:
 
View attachment 460624 Someone planted a line of them some time ago . Not sure of the age but they are my babies

I know what you.

The only big Oak on the property. I found 2 saplings by the house so that's cool.



I know it's not red but some sort of white.

I'd feel pretty bad to find that big boy down across the trail one day.
 
Most of what I cut is "high quality" oak from logging sites. I have a spot not to far away that has the same type of "scrub oak" in the OP's pictures. This spot is on the other side of a river and the soil types change dramatically. The landowner has given me permission to cut down any oak I want that will not be marketable. He said, "You know what marketable timber is". Most of the trees in the stand get so big and then they just kind of stunt and get hollow. There are squirrel holes galore.

OP, is the soil real sandy?
 
We've got lots of large oaks here in Georgia. Here's one my son and I took down a few years ago.
View attachment 460634

Dayum, that is big. Is that a "water oak"? That is what I call them but I think I am wrong. They get big here and grow relatively quick. Look at the space between growth rings.
 
I know what you.

The only big Oak on the property. I found 2 saplings by the house so that's cool.



I know it's not red but some sort of white.

I'd feel pretty bad to find that big boy down across the trail one day.

Well at least you are not complaining about the size of your wood like svk, that's just not manly. LOL
 
Dayum, that is big. Is that a "water oak"? That is what I call them but I think I am wrong. They get big here and grow relatively quick. Look at the space between growth rings.

I can't say what kind of oak it is either but it sure grew fast. Most of the white oak I cut has places where the rings are so tight it is difficult to count them. The leaves resemble shingle oak but the tree is too big.
 
image-jpeg.460155

Here's a pretty big one, probably 14". I doubt I've ever seen one over 18".

That's actually a Pine. Northern white Pine or a Sugar Pine....I'd think they get bigger than 18" in Minnesota. :surprised3:
 
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