Heard a large truck coming up the neighborhood road this morning, looked out the window, and sure enough it was a tree service. Then the anticipation of seeing which house it was going to and which tree was coming down. The guys were more than willing to offload the wood at my house. They said it is birch, but I am not sure which kind. Any help? I didn't notice any smell standing next to it, but I can't say that I got my nose real close and took a good whiff. I understand that I should split it ASAP, right?
![[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/attachments/2009oct28001-webp.180993/ "[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?")
Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?
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That thar is,,,,,,,,,, sugar maple "birch"
!!
better tell the arborist to take a few lessons in tree ID.
!!better tell the arborist to take a few lessons in tree ID.
Before I even read Lee's post I was thinking this "birch" looked a lot like maple . . . but then again I'm better at tree ID with leafs and figured maybe it was just some type of birch I wasn't familiar with . . . until I read Lee's post.
So much for trusting the tree guys that it is birch -- so much so that I even titled my post they way I did. I never did see the leaves, but you would think a maple leaf would be a dead giveaway for a tree guy. Oh well, I'm happy with the pile of sugar maple "birch." But, I gotta get that pile cut-up, moved, or more stable before the trick-or-treaters come 'round on Saturday.
I wasn't sure what it was, but I knew there was no way that was birch.
Good score, send the guy a Christmas card and a case of good beer. He'll keep you in wood forever.
Good score, send the guy a Christmas card and a case of good beer. He'll keep you in wood forever.
Good score. I wood have rather had black birch but woodn't run the tree dude off for dropin' hard maple either. Hard to beat either wood.
mayhem said:
I'm thinking that if the arborist thought this was a birch perhaps he had already been given the case of beer before he dropped off the wood.
It's strange here (central Illinois) -- this is the third time in the past 5 months that I have told a tree trimmer in the neighborhood (different company each time) that if they didn't want the wood they could drop it off in my yard. Each time they acted like I was doing them a huge favor. Looks like this is sugar maple, the others were a mix of oak and maple. I don't know what they typically do with their wood.
The funny thing is that I have missed a couple of other trees that recently went down in the neighborhood. My in-laws have plenty of dead and dying trees that they allow me to cut and split (good, hard wood too). They only live 7 miles away, but I am finding that my own neighborhood is keeping me stacked for the foreseeable future. By the way, I'm a relative newbie -- just had an insert put in last year. Ironically enough, I still don't have very dry wood for this season. But going forward, things look good for now.
The funny thing is that I have missed a couple of other trees that recently went down in the neighborhood. My in-laws have plenty of dead and dying trees that they allow me to cut and split (good, hard wood too). They only live 7 miles away, but I am finding that my own neighborhood is keeping me stacked for the foreseeable future. By the way, I'm a relative newbie -- just had an insert put in last year. Ironically enough, I still don't have very dry wood for this season. But going forward, things look good for now.
I think in many cases you ARE doing the tree guys a favor - with your average homeowner, the deal is usually that the tree service is paid to cut and REMOVE the tree. Many tree services have a firewood business or at least friends who want firewood, so they might want to take a load of wood home with them, but they don't want to spend all day shuttling wood back to their garage when they could be getting paid to cut more trees. Even worse, they might have to pay a dumping fee - bad for them and a crime against woodburning to put firewood in the dump. Instead, they are happy to get rid of it locally for free. The case of beer, bottle of booze, etc. is just to say thanks for the effort, not as a payment for the wood (that is how scroungers can have wood delivered and still claim to get 100% of their wood for free).
OK. Here are some more pictures. I'm wondering if the consensus is still sugar maple. Thanks.
I think this leaf and branch is from the same tree. Doesn't look like a maple leaf, but I'm nowhere near an expert.
![[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/attachments/img_18091-webp.210625/ "[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?")
Splits are pretty stringy making it a bit more work to cut with a gas splitter.
![[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/attachments/img_18131-webp.210626/ "[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?")
Close-up.
![[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/attachments/img_18111-webp.210627/ "[Hearth.com] Today's Score - It's Birch (?), but what kind?")
I think this leaf and branch is from the same tree. Doesn't look like a maple leaf, but I'm nowhere near an expert.
Splits are pretty stringy making it a bit more work to cut with a gas splitter.
Close-up.
Looks like River Birch to me, never split or burned it, so I've never seen the heartwood/sapwood.
But there are a few down the road a piece, but not that big.....those are good sized rounds.
Maybe this can help------> http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook/trees/beni.html
WoodButcher
But there are a few down the road a piece, but not that big.....those are good sized rounds.
Maybe this can help------> http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook/trees/beni.html
WoodButcher
Dang, run that through your bandsaw mill and then a good planer and I can tell you instantly. It has characteristics of maple, birch and beach. Put bark on it and add some leaves and they start to look all the same to me, sort'a. If I had to guess, it looks like a diseased maple, about two steps from being spalted.
Having cut a LOT of sugar maple, i can safely say that's not sugar maple. for one thing the wood is just way too dark. looks just like old birch (river birch) to me.
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