Wood ID Please

[katwillny]

Saw this on the side of the road on my way back from work and picked it up. Not sure what it is, any ideas?

 

[Wood Duck]

I think that is Ailanthus. The bark looks like Ailanthus but i haven't cut Ailanthus recently so I can't say whether the wood looks like Ailanthus or not. Ailanthus is also called tree of heaven, and it has fairly lightweight wood, which normally stinks. I haven't burnt any. Ailanthus is a common roadside weed tree.

 

[tigeroak]

We have loads of them here and we call them tree of heaven.

 

[katwillny]

Thanks guys. It was already cut up in manageable sizes so i loaded it on the truck. Ill split it and stack it tomorrow and it can make for next fall during the shoulder season. All it cost me was 20 minutes to load it.

 

[tigeroak]

I snag whatever I can get my hands on as I burn in the house and my refinishing shop.

 

[TreePointer]

My first thought also was ailanthus. It can be heavy when freshly cut and green, but it does get much lighter--similar to other high water, low BTU hardwoods.

 

[Mr A]

I think that is Ailanthus. The bark looks like Ailanthus but i haven't cut Ailanthus recently so I can't say whether the wood looks like Ailanthus or not. Ailanthus is also called tree of heaven, and it has fairly lightweight wood, which normally stinks. I haven't burnt any. Ailanthus is a common roadside weed tree.

That grows everywhere around here. I have volunteers sprouting in my yard, I pull them, weeds for sure. The State Park near my house is eradicating them, they are considered an invasive species. I have not burned any, the results were not good from a google search. Also called chinese elm.

 

[TreePointer]

...Also called chinese elm.

Interesting. I've seen it referred to as "chinese sumac." It certainly does have the long compound leaves similar to a sumac

 

[Thistle]

My first thought also was ailanthus. It can be heavy when freshly cut and green, but it does get much lighter--similar to other high water, low BTU hardwoods.

Its effing nasty.Very heavy when green,left more ash than any other wood I've burned.Only attributes are it dries very fast & is easy to split.Got rid of 2 very large ones & 1 medium sized off the property in April 2000.Very brittle branches,the flowers & twigs really stink,sometimes the wood does too.The ONLY wood I wont bother cutting or bringing home.Only reason I did this is because having a small storage area & didnt want to haul it out to parent's property or pay a tipping fee at county landfill.Took 2 years before I was rid of the prolific sprouts from the root system & all those seeds.Constant chopping & mowing.

 

[katwillny]

Well it was real easy to split, probably the easiest wood ive ever split. Its mostly split and stacked nonetheless. It will be seasoned in the fall and i will use it mixed with other hardwoods. I have lots of locust to go with it. Thanks for the ID all.

 

[ditchrider]

That grows everywhere around here. I have volunteers sprouting in my yard, I pull them, weeds for sure. The State Park near my house is eradicating them, they are considered an invasive species. I have not burned any, the results were not good from a google search. Also called chinese elm.

I would be a little (a lot) skeptical about it being chinese elm. The bark in the pictures is very smooth. We have a lot of chinese and siberian elm around here.Definitely a bark with a pronounced texture. I realize our hardwoods don't stack up to yours out east, but once seasoned it puts out a pretty good fire. It needs a couple of years though, for sure.

 

[uggabugga]

I would be a little (a lot) skeptical about it being chinese elm. The bark in the pictures is very smooth. We have a lot of chinese and siberian elm around here.Definitely a bark with a pronounced texture. I realize our hardwoods don't stack up to yours out east, but once seasoned it puts out a pretty good fire. It needs a couple of years though, for sure.

yeah, chinese elm is a totally different critter than tree of heaven. chinese elm is often, actually, siberian elm. not that fun to split but it burns pretty good. i wouldn't turn my nose up at it unless i had no room left.

 

[Mr A]

chinese elm probably not right, that's what it's called around here. Chinese sumac, ailanthus is the same tree we have here, invasive species