Wood ID

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Spanman75

New Member
Jan 31, 2019
4
New Jersey
I can’t figure out what these rounds are. I also can’t split them . Anyone want to take a stab at ID’ing ? Cut in NJ this winter
 

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Wood (grain) and bark look like sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua).
Look for the "gum balls", a dead give-away. Also it has a distinctive palmate, star-shaped leaf.
http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=53
Crushed green leaves produce a fragrant terpinen aroma (like tea tree oil).

Middle of pack for heat output - 20.6 MBtu/ cord, but tough to split, sometimes even with a hydraulic splitter.
I give each species a try to split & burn - tried sweetgum once. It's not worth the trouble IMO.
I'd take a pass on it.
 
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Some kind of pine.
 
I second the Sweet Gum. In Maryland it's a native Coastal Plain tree. In New Jersey thinking similar. But you can plant it near anywhere and it will grow.
 
Sweetgum certainly is notoriously difficult to split, but some knotty pine can be very difficult, too.

If pine, it should be easy to ID by cutting/splitting a little and giving it a smell test.
 
I think you guys are right sweet gum. I’m going to give it to a buddy that has a hyd splitter. Will that get through it or is it not worth the work and should I dump it?
 
May as well put the hydro to it. Betting it will finish it.
 
I think you guys are right sweet gum. I’m going to give it to a buddy that has a hyd splitter. Will that get through it or is it not worth the work and should I dump it?
I didn't know there was sweet gum in NJ. What part of NJ are you in?
 
Just did my own research and found out that Sweet Gum is in south Jersey. I've never seen it being in north central.
 
I never got a tree, although there are some around. I was used to looking at the bark lower on the trunk which is different than what's pictured. I looked up higher and yep, looks like that.
T27_bark.jpg