Can you identify this tree?
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By the first pics I thought it might be ailanthus - but with all the pics considered I'd guess aspen as well.
I also agree that it does not look like black birch - and in my opinion, the tree I know of as black birch, Betula lenta, does not smell like root beer at all when you cut it green. It smells very strongly of wintergreen when green - and you can chew the inner green bark and it's nice and minty.
Dig up some sassafras roots and peel the bark...now that smells like root beer to me.
I also agree that it does not look like black birch - and in my opinion, the tree I know of as black birch, Betula lenta, does not smell like root beer at all when you cut it green. It smells very strongly of wintergreen when green - and you can chew the inner green bark and it's nice and minty.
Dig up some sassafras roots and peel the bark...now that smells like root beer to me.
Paulywalnut
Minister of Fire
has any body use leafsnap the phone apt for id trees and bushes go to google it put on smart phone works pretty good for me
Fanatical1
Member
Popple for sure, dries quick and splits easy but the density is real low so most avoid it. It makes some nice lumber with a chainsaw mill as its straight grain, a lot of painted trim is popple. It also saws easy, switching over to maple, the saw feels like the blades on backwards after cutting popple.
Fanatical1
Member
First time I cut up a fallen big tooth aspen, the saw cut through it so fast I thought it must be all rotten inside, but it wasn't. Burns up like cardboard though. I bet it does make nice boards and trim.
Problem I have with them is they tend to break in half with a heavy wind. I have been girdling a few of them, to let the hardwood take over. I don't have that many, but don't want any more.
Same here, I'd rather not have bigtooth Aspen around. They serve their purpose as a pioneer species on the edge of a reclaimed (filled in) strip mine on the side of our farm, but they are the tree that keeps getting blown over onto my trails.
The good thing is that strip mine was reclaimed decades ago and the mature Aspen trees are naturally being replaced by black cherry, red maple and white ash. There's also a thick black locust grove that has stopped their progression on one end.
The good thing is that strip mine was reclaimed decades ago and the mature Aspen trees are naturally being replaced by black cherry, red maple and white ash. There's also a thick black locust grove that has stopped their progression on one end.
Fanatical1
Member
te="TreePointer, post: 1673242, member: 14645"]Same here, I'd rather not have bigtooth Aspen around. They serve their purpose as a pioneer species on the edge of a reclaimed (filled in) strip mine on the side of our farm, but they are the tree that keeps getting blown over onto my trails.
The good thing is that strip mine was reclaimed decades ago and the mature Aspen trees are naturally being replaced by black cherry, red maple and white ash. There's also a thick black locust grove that has stopped their progression on one end.[/quote[/quote]
I agree they are a usefull tree in first generation regrowth and I like the look of them. I wont get rid of all of them, but they are probably a leftover of a regrowth area that is long gone on my property. I think I have about 20 or so. They are always snapping off and causing me more work to clean up. I have a lot of oak, cherry and maple all around them so I chose which ones get whacked to favor the hardwoods.. They do have a nice straight trunk to them. I bet mine are 80 feet plus with no branches.
The good thing is that strip mine was reclaimed decades ago and the mature Aspen trees are naturally being replaced by black cherry, red maple and white ash. There's also a thick black locust grove that has stopped their progression on one end.[/quote[/quote]
I agree they are a usefull tree in first generation regrowth and I like the look of them. I wont get rid of all of them, but they are probably a leftover of a regrowth area that is long gone on my property. I think I have about 20 or so. They are always snapping off and causing me more work to clean up. I have a lot of oak, cherry and maple all around them so I chose which ones get whacked to favor the hardwoods.. They do have a nice straight trunk to them. I bet mine are 80 feet plus with no branches.
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One more vote for Poplar. There's a lot of it here in northern Wisconsin. It grows fast, splits easy, dries fast, burns hot but kind of fast. And it lights easily. It makes up about 1/3 of my yearly firewood. They do blow over often and one that blew over on the Tuscobia ATV trail down the road took my neighbor out a few months ago on his ATV. He went under it on the way to the bar but coming back he hit his head on it killing him at 48. Not good. 
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I think you'll find that trim is made with yellow poplar; aka tulip poplar.
Cutting them or even girding them will not stop them. They grow from the roots and the roots can go a long ways underground. One good thing is that they are beneficial to a lot of wildlife. They will grow fast so you can cut every so often and let new shoots come up again.
Fanatical1
Member
I'm not sure were talking about the same thing. I'm literally putting girdles on them to embarrass them into leaving.
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