Another western wood species to ID

[StihlHead]

OK, I do not expect that anyone will get this wood ID. This is a native tree species in the US west. This is from a smaller size tree, the upper branches are on the left, the lower part of the tree is on the right.

Good luck...

 

[ScotO]

Madrone? Just a semi-edjumicated guess.....

 

[StihlHead]

Nope. But a good guess.

 

[Holzstapel]

My guess is Chinkapin.

I searched for native trees in the PNW and went with some odd names I've never heard of and a few photos.

I dont even know my Ash from my Maple!

 

[rideau]

Isn't chinkapin some kind of oak? That doesn't look like an oak....

 

[rideau]

Cascara buckthorn, mountain mahogany?

Tanoak?

 

[StihlHead]

Isn't chinkapin some kind of oak? That doesn't look like an oak....

Chinkapins are not oaks. And no, its not chinkapin.

 

[rideau]

OK, I looked it up. Quercus muehlenbergii = chinkapin oak, an oak on the white oak family.

 

[StihlHead]

Cascara buckthorn, mountain mahogany?

Tanoak?

Those are really bad guesses. Tanoak looks nothing like this species. Mountain mahogany is a shrub.

I have cascara growing as a weed on my property. It is not burned for firewood, as its bark is used for an anti cancer medication. So much cascara bark has been harvested that it is not common here any more. So I am letting my weedy trees grow.

3 strikes, you're out!

 

[StihlHead]

OK, I looked it up. Quercus muehlenbergii = chinkapin oak, an oak on the white oak family.

Never heard of them. Chinkapin oak grows in the eastern half of the US.

Chinkapin here is Castanopsis chrysophylla, and is not an oak. It is good firewood though, and my ex has a lot of it on her property.

Repeat: the wood in the photo is not an oak and it is not what we in the west call chinkapin.

 

[bogydave]

Evergreen

 

[Foragefarmer]

Looks like maybe a maple, how about acer macrophyllum.

 

[rideau]

Never heard of them. Chinkapin oak grows in the eastern half of the US.

Chinkapin here is Castanopsis chrysophylla, and is not an oak. It is good firewood though, and my ex has a lot of it on her property.

Repeat: the wood in the photo is not an oak and it is not what we in the west call chinkapin.

Good to know.

It's interesting that totally different trees often have the same names as trees in other ranges. Ironwood is another example.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Applesister]

Pacific Dogwood?
Oregon Myrtle?
lol not that a clearer photo would help any. Your thumbnail wont enlarge.
Never been to the west coast, sadly.

 

[StihlHead]

Not any type of maple, or dogwood. I dunno what evergreen is. Sorry.

 

[StihlHead]

Oregon Myrtle?
lol not that a clearer photo would help any. Your thumbnail wont enlarge.
Never been to the west coast, sadly.

Well, for someone that has not been to the west coast your guesses are pretty good. It is indeed Oregon myrtle. Though as noted above, while there are the same common names for different species, in this case there are a lot of different names for the same species. Umbellularia californica is the botanical name, and it is called Oregon myrtle in Oregon. However it is called California Bay Laurel in California. It is most commonly called bay or laurel down there, and myrtle here. The wood is used for carving and to make beautiful turned pieces. It is also used in making guitars. The leaves are collected for using in cooking, and they are about 2x as strong as Turkish bay leaves that you get at the store (they have the same flavor). I can smell these trees a long way off when hiking and off-roading in So. Oregon and California. They are not very commonly burned for firewood because of their landscape value and woodworking quality, but they do have good heat when burned.

They grow all over California and southern Oregon. They are also planted in and around the Portland, Seattle and Vancouver, BC urban areas, but they are not as happy in this cold an environment. In California they get HUGE, often growing to 80-100 feet.

 

[StihlHead]

Oregon Myrtle?

Oh, and here is your prize! A Zimbabwe 100 trillion note...

 

[Applesister]

Thanks StihlHead I get a kick out of these ID threads. I "cheated" of course.
I consulted "A Natural History of Western Trees" by Donald Culross Peattie. Its the only book I have on Western trees. I'll have to go back and read more.
I only peeked but very curious about Bay since Bay Rum is my favorite mens cologne. But thats Dominican Bay Rum.

I kind of guessed you'd pick a famous tree like your Silver Fir. ;-)
Its more fun to study the teacher than it is to study the course.

 

[Applesister]

A trillion dollars!! If only.....
Seems to be the same exchange as Jamaica. My sister and I went down there last summer. We couldnt keep track of what we were spending. Of course we were drunk the whole time.

 

[StihlHead]

Yah, my brother was in the BVIs (British Virgin Islands) and he said that the Coca Cola there was more expensive than the rum they mixed it with.

Turns out that the Zimbabwe dollar was abandoned and is now worthless on any exchange. Even 100 trillion of them. One Jamaican dollar is worth one US penny now.