Union Pacific tried to kill our trees, the :censored: !!

[MzHopsing]

Hi guys (and gals!), I'm not so new here, I just had to start a new account, 'cause I lost my old e-mail and other info...

Anyway, I've posted some pictures below of the damage Union Pacific did to our nearby property in their attempt at reducing foliage near their tracks. Earlier this spring it looked like they successfully killed this grove of trees, whose identification I would dearly like to know! If it weren't for their size, I wouldn't be sure you could call them trees, they proliferate like weeds; but they are rather pretty in their little group there. We managed to spare them being razed to the ground when the power company came through to clear the land near their power lines last summer, but then UP enthusiastically came through with their damn herbicide the following month. You can see the huge swath where there used to be grass.

I've included a few close ups where you can see the little bunches of berries on the top of some of the higher branches. There's so many other trees in the vicinity, it was hard to isolate them in pictures. They're not very tall trees at all, and their "wood" is very soft. They're the short trees closest to the path. Their uniqueness is in the way the branches all kind of bend at a slight angle this-way-and-that. Neat effect in the bunch that they grew in. Most of them have definitely recovered, to UP's dismay, I'm sure. You can see them sprouting up in multitudes on the pathway! I wonder how well they'll grow, however.

Any help in identifying would be much appreciated!

Thank you,
Ruth
MzHopsing

 

[splittah]

If I had to guess I would say maybe non-poison sumac...

http://landscaping.about.com/od/weedsdiseases/ig/Poison-Sumac-Pictures/Non-Poison-Sumac-Seeds.htm

IMO not much to lose sleep over... grows more like a weed here.

 

[xraydaniel]

Here they are

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumac


Some variety of these is what they are.

 

[appalachianarbo]

Probably staghorn sumac...not poison sumac

 

[Ed*L]

Yup, looks like Sumac to me also. IMHO they did you a favor! That stuff will spread like wildfire, it's highly invasive. Cut it ALL down!

Railroad property is usually 100' wide, with the tracks centered on it. Looks to me like they were within their property boundary. The utility poles also tell me there might be an easment along there also.

I would verify and mark your property line, then plant a non-invasive species within that boundry. Stay out from under the utility lines also, they will trim trees to keep them out of the lines.

Ed

 

[MzHopsing]

Oh geez...

Well, I guess I was right about the "growing like a weed" part! Yeah, I know it's on the RR property, but we tend the ground near there like it was our yard, hence the path we mow, etc. So we kinda took it personally... You know, unbelievably though, that bunch of trees hasn't hardly spread in years. Now, however, we'll be keeping a closer eye on it. It's strange, my in-laws have two of what appear to be the same trees in their yard, and they haven't proliferated.... then, they probably mow down any upstarts, you think? My husband says they're "memosa" but I don't think we're talking about the same trees.

And yeah, the guys that the power line company hired to clear the trees in the same area really butchered other trees as well. Looks like they somehow twisted off the tops and branches of some of them, all frayed looking and everything. Looks awful.

Anyway, thanks for the quick response, guys! You rock!

Ruth
MzHopsing

 

[splittah]

Well, I guess I was right about the "growing like a weed" part! Yeah, I know it's on the RR property, but we tend the ground near there like it was our yard, hence the path we mow, etc. So we kinda took it personally... You know, unbelievably though, that bunch of trees hasn't hardly spread in years. Now, however, we'll be keeping a closer eye on it. It's strange, my in-laws have two of what appear to be the same trees in their yard, and they haven't proliferated.... then, they probably mow down any upstarts, you think? My husband says they're "memosa" but I don't think we're talking about the same trees.

And yeah, the guys that the power line company hired to clear the trees in the same area really butchered other trees as well. Looks like they somehow twisted off the tops and branches of some of them, all frayed looking and everything. Looks awful.
Anyway, thanks for the quick response, guys! You rock!

Ruth
MzHopsing

I would then say they used a power cutter head of some kind like the roadside mowers use. But it definately looks like the non-poisonous type of sumac.

 

[Mark Currie]

I'd have to go with staghorn sumac as well. Are the branches covered in "velvet"? Very easy to identify by the buds/leaf scars as well.

The fruit can be used to make tea as well. I've never had it, but I've heard it's good from different people. Staghorn Sumac Tea

But yeah, they're basically weeds. I don't mind the look of them though.

Mark

 

[tomtrees58]

thats not trees thahs junk be happy tom trees

 

[cjk]

When the RR "trims" trees near us, they use a machine similar to a brush hog, but bigger mounted on a hydraulic arm and shred any tree they can reach.

 

[Dennis_Peacock]

Yup....Sumac trees.

They are great for natural bird feeding and such. The Sumac berries are what birds like to eat and is probably why I have so many Sumac trees along my fence-row.

 

[MzHopsing]

Mark - It's not so much the branches, but the little buds where the leaves sprout that was like velvet, it kinda reminded me of ##### willows. I think I'll pass on the tea idea for now, but it might be worth a try if there's any medicinal purpose or something... =) I've never seen a grove of trees like this anywhere before. They really do have a neat visual effect. It's too bad their as invasive as everyone here says.

CJK - When the company that came to cut the trees out there near the RR, they left a machine that they were using before moving it to their next location, presumably; it looked like a huge circular saw on an extendable boom, and the guy who ran it sat in a cab on a longish 4-wheeled truck nearly the size of an excavator, but without the tracks. It was fairly impressive! I'm sure this machine made the much smoother cuts on the higher up branches that we can see. I wish they'd used it on the other ones they left for the "brush hog."

Dennis - I guess that explains the proliferation of these trees! The birds eat and then "process" the seeds, hence the sprouts in the path. I suppose I should have guessed something of the sort.

Thanks again, all you guys for the input; you're providing a great service!!

Ruth
MzHopsing

 

[MzHopsing]

I found a picture of a "cutleaf" staghorn sumac from a landscapers page! Is this different from a regular staghorn sumac? From the picture, it appears to have the same general characteristics, but not showing any berries.

I figure if a landscaper finds them useful they can't be all bad!! :biggrinbounce2:
Ruth
MzHopsing

 

[fugazi42]

Staghorn Sumac is a native North American tree that has a number of positive attributes. It is a good source of wildlife food, as was pointed out earlier. It grows quick and is also tough as heck to kill. I wouldn't be so sure that these trees are damaged too badly. Staghorn Sumac is one of the last trees to leaf-out in my area (zone 5/6 CT) just after the hickory and white oaks. All of the hickory around here look the same as yours just small tufts of leaves on the ends of blunt branches.

Josh

 

[treeseer]

Sumac are pioneer species, yes, but the "invasive" label does not fit. They do send up suckers but are not so aggressive that they take over the land and displace other plants.

An excellent ornamental tree. If the railroad is managing their vegetation that way, maybe it is time for you to plant more on your own land.

 

[ropensaddle]

Sumac are pioneer species, yes, but the "invasive" label does not fit. They do send up suckers but are not so aggressive that they take over the land and displace other plants.

An excellent ornamental tree. If the railroad is managing their vegetation that way, maybe it is time for you to plant more on your own land.

Exactly wrong spot but really if the right of way were really thinking
they would just cut the fast growers and let that go. It after a few
years would be all that grows there and would not reach the lines.
I have a lot of staghorn on my farm and its benefits to birds, deer
and other wildlife is good, so I leave clumps here and there in my
oats and clover field!