wood ID

[Wes Ramsey]

I've got a few different trees on my property that I've tried to ID with no success. I've seen mention on here many times about sending samples to the USFS for DNA ID, but I tried looking up the info yesterday and came up empty. Can someone point me in the right direction?

[Jason Mikits]

Post some clear pictures of the bark, whole tree, and the leaf and I'm sure someone here can help.

[John K Jordan]

I've got a few different trees on my property that I've tried to ID with no success. I've seen mention on here many times about sending samples to the USFS for DNA ID, but I tried looking up the info yesterday and came up empty. Can someone point me in the right direction?

There is a link at the bottom of this page:
http://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-identification-guide/

Here is the linked page (but the Wood Database article is well worth reading)
https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/research/centers/woodanatomy/wood_idfactsheet.php

I make a hobby of wood ID. On my farm are many acres of hardwood so I get some practice.

Here is what I recommend for the long run for living trees. For wood already in hand skip the first part.

- Get a book or two on tree identification. None are perfect but I refer to several.
- In late spring when the leaves are out walk around with binoculars, the book or two, a notebook, some sandwich bags, and some colored surveyors tape. Examine leaves, bark.
- If possible, take my wife's cousin JC with you since he knows everything about trees and woods.
- Draw a map of the property with locations of major trees/landmarks
- Collect some leaves if possible. Sometimes where they are too high you might find identical leaves on a sapling nearby.
- Examine the trees and try to ID from the leaves and bark.
- Put the leaves in the sandwich bag and mark your best guess on the bag and number the bags. Start with 0001 so you will never run out.
- Mark the location of that tree on the map and tie surveyors tape around it.
- Write the number of the sample on the map and in an entry in the notebook along with a guess at the ID.
- If you can't collect leaves, come back in the fall when they are falling to the ground.

When a branch is cut or a tree comes down or is taken down, collect and number samples of the wood.
Save and catalog all samples for future reference.

Use the Wood Database, other online resources, and Hoadley's book "Identifying Wood" to prepare and examine the samples.
Send samples to the Forest Products Lab and compare your guesses with their results.
Before you know it, you will be the wood ID expert!

With some practice you will soon be able to identify certain trees by the bark and shape from 50' away.

BTW, this is hands-down the best magnifier I've found for looking at wood samples.

351518
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CMDIOBK

So far I think I've bought six of these. Great around the house, shop, and farm and good for presents too.

JKJ

[Wes Ramsey]

Thanks guys! One I'm trying to figure out is a question I have on mulberry. I posted the question here before, but didn't get any answers. The local mulberry wood I've come across seems to have two distinct appearances - one is bright yellow throughout and the other has a defined transition from the light-brown sapwood and darker, brownish-red heartwood. I can't seem to find anyone that knows if the two wood types are from different species that I'm not identifying correctly, different parts of the tree, or maybe something else. Figured a DNA test would tell me what I'm looking for beyond any doubt and will help me find more of the yellow stuff.

The other tree (or bush?) is in my front yard. It looks every bit like bodark/osage orange, but has leaves and small fruit that closely resemble a bradford pear. No hedge apples, just thorns. I don't know how old it is, but I'd guess at least 10-15 years since it isn't much larger now than it was when we moved here 5 years ago. It is a tall bush with thorns and many sprouts, the largest of which is maybe 4-5" in diameter. I want to figure out what it is so I can decide whether to cut it or at least how best to prune it. It is, quite literally, a thorn in my side. Every time I mow around it. But my boys love it and don't want it cut since my mom takes clippings from it to make gumdrop trees with them every Christmas. It is deciduous, so it doesn't have any leaves to takes pictures of at the moment, but does that ring any bells?

[Yonak Hawkins]

Wes, the address you asked for is in the link John posted but, in case you didn't get that far, here it is :

Center for Wood Anatomy Research
USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory
One Gifford Pinchot Dr.
Madison, WI 53726-2398

I think they will give you 5 free analyses a year, but it could be six. They will tell you species but not sub-species from my experience.

[Wes Ramsey]

I did a bit of googling on my thorn bush, and it appears to be a type of pear, maybe a callery or something close. It is planted next to a couple of bradfords. I wonder if a previous owner planted them close together maybe for cross-pollination, but none of the trees bears any fruit beyond what normally appears on bradfords.

[Bob Bouis]

The "thorn bush" might be sprouted from roots of the donor tree your bradford pear was grafted onto.

[John K Jordan]

I did a bit of googling on my thorn bush, and it appears to be a type of pear, maybe a callery or something close. It is planted next to a couple of bradfords. I wonder if a previous owner planted them close together maybe for cross-pollination, but none of the trees bears any fruit beyond what normally appears on bradfords.

The serious problem with bradford pear has become well known. The text below is an excerpt which describes the problem. For the tree/bush in question: dig it up, cut it, burn it!

... The problem is that these trees are in fact not sterile. No two Bradford pears will ever reproduce among themselves, but they do cross pollinate with every other pear tree out there, including the Cleveland Select pear trees that were meant to be the salvation of flowering pears everywhere. The introduction of other pear varieties has compounded the problem to the point where it is almost too late to rectify.

Because of the cross pollination problem, pear trees have now proliferated exponentially across our environment. And, to make matters worse, the evil offspring has reverted to the ancient Chinese Callery pears which form impenetrable thorny thickets that choke out the life out of pines, dogwoods, maples, redbuds, oaks, hickories, etc.

When you see those fields of white flowering trees, please don’t get giddy with excitement over pretty white flowers. What you are looking at are Callery pears destroying nature. Callery pears have 4 inch thorns. They can’t be mowed down. Those thorns will shred John Deere tractor tires. They can only be removed by steel tracked dozers, decreasing the value of agricultural or forest land to the tune of $3,000 per acre.

And, make no mistake about this. That solitary Bradford pear growing in your yard is what caused this problem. Your one tree has spawned hundreds of evil progeny. If you don’t believe that, just take a little ride, and notice all the white flowering trees blooming these days. The closer they are to “ornamental” Bradford pear trees, the thicker they are.

http://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/life/2016/03/21/curse-bradford-pear/82070210/

Note that if you send a sample of the Mulberry wood to the Forest Products Laboratory, they will probably not give you the exact species/variety. Years ago when I started my wood ID hobby a woman from across the country sent a piece of mystery wood to the Lab and also sent one to me. Examining the cross section with a magnifier told me it was elm. The Forest Products Lab wrote back to her with a one word report: "Elm".

To determine the variety, one thing you can do is try to get the leaves in a few months from the area trees.
Another thing is look here and maybe even ask the guy who runs this web site:
http://hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/mulberry.htm
Read his comments about the color of mulberry and how it changes.
Paul is a very knowledgeable and helpful person and you probably will never find someone more interested in identifying wood.

JKJ

[Wes Ramsey]

The serious problem with bradford pear has become well known. The text below is an excerpt which describes the problem. For the tree/bush in question: dig it up, cut it, burn it!

... The problem is that these trees are in fact not sterile. No two Bradford pears will ever reproduce among themselves, but they do cross pollinate with every other pear tree out there, including the Cleveland Select pear trees that were meant to be the salvation of flowering pears everywhere. The introduction of other pear varieties has compounded the problem to the point where it is almost too late to rectify.

Because of the cross pollination problem, pear trees have now proliferated exponentially across our environment. And, to make matters worse, the evil offspring has reverted to the ancient Chinese Callery pears which form impenetrable thorny thickets that choke out the life out of pines, dogwoods, maples, redbuds, oaks, hickories, etc.

When you see those fields of white flowering trees, please don’t get giddy with excitement over pretty white flowers. What you are looking at are Callery pears destroying nature. Callery pears have 4 inch thorns. They can’t be mowed down. Those thorns will shred John Deere tractor tires. They can only be removed by steel tracked dozers, decreasing the value of agricultural or forest land to the tune of $3,000 per acre.

And, make no mistake about this. That solitary Bradford pear growing in your yard is what caused this problem. Your one tree has spawned hundreds of evil progeny. If you don’t believe that, just take a little ride, and notice all the white flowering trees blooming these days. The closer they are to “ornamental” Bradford pear trees, the thicker they are.

http://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/life/2016/03/21/curse-bradford-pear/82070210/

Note that if you send a sample of the Mulberry wood to the Forest Products Laboratory, they will probably not give you the exact species/variety. Years ago when I started my wood ID hobby a woman from across the country sent a piece of mystery wood to the Lab and also sent one to me. Examining the cross section with a magnifier told me it was elm. The Forest Products Lab wrote back to her with a one word report: "Elm".

To determine the variety, one thing you can do is try to get the leaves in a few months from the area trees.
Another thing is look here and maybe even ask the guy who runs this web site:
http://hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/mulberry.htm
Read his comments about the color of mulberry and how it changes.
Paul is a very knowledgeable and helpful person and you probably will never find someone more interested in identifying wood.

JKJ

I have noticed several white-flowering trees/bushes in early spring. Some are wild plums, but I don't know about all of them. After looked at pictures of callery pears I think that's what this bush is. I'll plan to cut it out in the spring. I'm gonna let the bradfords live a little longer. I'm not 100% certain they're bradford anyway. They're at least 15 years old and not as large as some other bradfords I've seen and don't seem to have the tell-tale low-angle branches that tend to break around 10-12 years of age. They could stand to get some more age on them. Besides, I'm not ready to cut them for turning wood just yet.

And I sure appreciate the info on mulberries! I'll cut some samples of both types and see if I can come to any conclusions based on his info.Many thanks!