Wood ID

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DaveH

Member
Aug 4, 2014
87
Rensselaer Co., NY
What do you think? It's the only one like it on my property. I've had conflicting guesses of elm and hickory.
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Looks like elm to me. Just a guess. Very hard to tell with such little information.
 
Looks like hickory to me.
 
I'd say elm.
 
Elm and hickory has the same bark looks like. We need additional details like what the canopy looks liks in summer and fall, the leaves themselves, the nuts (if any, not sure if elm has nuts, but hickory does), and whatnot.

The wood doesn't look like hickory.

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Looks pretty close to the pignut hickory I got last summer.
 

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Yep claydogg is right! Let us know how it splits and that should tell the story.
 
Bark looks just like elm but the wood grain not so much. I just cut up a red elm last weekend and a huge one last year. The rings look too close together. Like the others have said. Trying splitting with an axe. You will know.
 
Looks like hickory to me. Haven't seen elm come out split trunk much usually see that single trunk here.if it splits easy it's hickory . I've not run into even straight elm that splits very well
 
The more I look at the pics it resembles some wild pecan(hickory family) I cut last year so now I'm not sure
 
Elms have alternating layers of a wafer type white cork sandwiched in the outer bark. Very distinctive and usually a chevron pattern in the grain pores between the spring wood and winter wood and wide growth rings. I see it on Red Elm and American.
This white wafer cork easily seperates with a fingernail and feels soft to the touch.
The bark on Pignut hickory is harder than the wood on Elm. And pignut weighs almost twice as much as Elm.
Also fresh cut hickory has a very strong smell. This all cannot be deciphered from these pictures submitted.
Its up to the OP.
 
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I didnt notice a strong smell when I cut it, but it was 25 degrees. It is heavy. I'm trying to post another picture but the system is not cooperating. I'll have to wait a few more weeks to see some leaves.
 
We're talking like an 8' x8" log a man can barely lift kind of heavy( atleast in my experience). I also have trouble with elm/ hickory id. Some trees bark looks very similar , but hickory I believe has a small to medium dark hart wood whether in the limb or trunk and a strong odor as well when fresh cut
 
Both are good to burn!
 
Cool pic, is that a cemetery stone in the back? A private cemetery?
Uh...of the two, elm is more likely to be multi boled, your tree is most likely not a hickory. They tend to have a very straight central leader stem. Rock Elm might be confused with hickory.
Sometimes the tree is cut and multi stems grow back. Copiced trees.
The thing with Elms is they are fighting extinction along with White Ash. If the tree is healthy its kind of a sin to cut it down.
But I cant say positively that its an elm because its really healthy looking.
I sometimes rely on the bug eaten appearance of Elm to ID it. Missing bark and bug holes.
 
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