The Forestry Forum

Any of you guys got any of these trees. I think I have finally determine it is a Mimosa. Whats it good for?

It is an invasive species and not liked in Florida but by those who want it for a yard tree.  It doesn't get large enough to provide for lumber.  It's wood is pinkish colored and turns browner upon drying.  It is used more by turners who create bowls than by any other wood workers.  It can be used for fuel.
^{(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/ID19b.jpg)}_{(https://forestryforum.com/images/YaBBImages/userpics/asomim.jpg)}
Mimosa is a name given to many small plants and trees from a 1" ground cover type, sensitive mimosa (see our tree and plant ID), to various acacias which reach heights of 10-15 ft.

Tom,
I don't know what to say except,
You Are Good
I had 2 questions about this tree and you answered them both without being ask.
Richard

I wouldn't consider it an invasive tree here although a lot have been planted in yards and they seem to grow fairly well.  They are kinda attractive and the humming birds like them.

I'm resurrecting this post because someone brought me short logs from a dying mimosa. It had a small leaflet sprouting from the bottom cut and had the typical spherical puffy blooms this year. It was 18" at the base.



 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13036/mimosa_001.jpg)

This 1/8" veneer, backlit by the sun, was translucent it had so much water in it. When green it is quite heavy - we measured its density at 52 lbs/ ft^3. Googling mimosa revealed quite a bit of variation in this value. One site reported 1.11 g/cm^3 which is denser than water. I doubted that.



 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13036/mimosa_002.jpg)

My friend is a master furniture builder and here he is (green shirt) admiring his lumber with a mutual friend. What can we expect when it dries out?



 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13036/mimosa_003.jpg)

QuoteOne site reported 1.11 g/cm^3 which is denser than water. I doubted that.

Why?  Wood cell walls are denser than water. Thus some wood sinks when in water.

Quote from: kelLOGg on October 03, 2013, 06:56:55 PM
I'm resurrecting this post because someone brought me short logs from a dying mimosa...

Kellogg,

Since all three members who participated in the original thread have passed on, you REALLY are working this resurrection thing a bit hard.  :o

Herb

BTW, that's quite the mimosa specimen. I cut one down which had a twelve inch diameter at the ground a few years back. Gave the "log" to a turner I know. Not sure if he ever did anything with it...

Kellogg,

Since all three members who participated in the original thread have passed on, you REALLY are working this resurrection thing a bit hard.  :o

Herb

[/quote]

That was an unfortunate choice of words - my apologies for insensitivity.
Bob

I think those three are prolly getting a kick outta that "resurrected" line.  ;D

Remembering at least two of them, they'd be the first to toss that one out there. ;)

Are you sure that it is mimosa?  Bark is way wrong for mimosa from what I have seen.  It is usually way smoother than your pic.  Looks more like Cunninghamia lanceolata, also called china fir or monkey puzzle.

http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=449

I've never heard of a MONKEY PUZZLE  :D......but I'm guessing that's what it is.  :D

That is probably not the right common name.  I never seen the first puzzled monkey in any of them. 

Quote from: WDH on October 03, 2013, 09:47:43 PM
That is probably not the right common name.  I never seen the first puzzled monkey in any of them.

What kind of BARK does a Puzzled MONKEY have if a Puzzled Monkey barks? 

It ain't smooth. 

Are you sure that it is mimosa?  Bark is way wrong for mimosa from what I have seen.  It is usually way smoother than your pic.  Looks more like Cunninghamia lanceolata, also called china fir or monkey puzzle.


I thought Monkey puzzle trees were from the south american araucaria araucanna. But no monkeys there either.

Yes, I believe that you are right on the monkey puzzle name. 

The only Mimosa I remember sawing had a much darker wood with a reddish hue to it.

Leaflet does not look like mimosa, nor the wood.  Mimosa wood looks a lot like light mahogany.

Looks like Bald Cypress to me.

Quote from: kelLOGg on October 03, 2013, 07:46:58 PM
Kellogg,

Since all three members who participated in the original thread have passed on, you REALLY are working this resurrection thing a bit hard.  :o

Herb

That was an unfortunate choice of words - my apologies for insensitivity.
Bob
[/quote]

Bob,

Well, like some of the other members have already said, I'm pretty sure at least a couple of those guys are rejoicing in laughter at the unintended humor of your words and I didn't mean to imply that you had committed any kind of offence...

I just found it funny myself and hoped to lighten up the thread a bit with my observation. I think I probably didn't do as good of job of saying that as I should have. I'm sure Mr. Tom would have found it funny and Bro. Noble would have probably blamed it all on those "stupid cows"...

Take care.

Herb

Quote from: WDH on October 03, 2013, 09:38:16 PM
Are you sure that it is mimosa?  Bark is way wrong for mimosa from what I have seen.  It is usually way smoother than your pic.  Looks more like Cunninghamia lanceolata, also called china fir or monkey puzzle.

http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=449

All mimosas I have seen have smooth bark but I have never seen one this big. Does the bark remain smooth when the tree is this big? It had about 20 rings so it grew fast. What clinched it for me was my friends' description of the blossom - sounded like a mimosa for sure.

The bark does remain quite smooth as the mimosa get larger. 

I have a Mimosa that is targeted for felling.  It might be 10-12" at the base.  I've been told on this forum that the wood can be quite beautiful.  I also concur with the others (hard to argue with Danny, I haven't seen him wrong yet) that my Mimosa has very smooth, very thin bark.

 

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10046/IMG_30075B15D.JPG) 

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10046/IMG_12735B15D.JPG)

Bald Cypress.

Looks like the mimosa we have around here, especially if it had the feathery pink blooms on it this spring. The bark changes from a smoother bark to a rougher one when the tree gets bigger, so I wouldn't be surprised if a tree that size had bark like that.

I've been curious lately about how the wood from these trees looked, so I'm glad you brought the thread back out of retirement!

Of course, take what I say with a grain of salt... I was convinced that a sweetgum was a red oak!!

Tom and Noble and I'll bet woodhaven as well, are certainly all smiling today. :)

Quote from: Jeff on October 04, 2013, 03:56:31 PM
Tom and Noble and I'll bet woodhaven as well, are certainly all smiling today. :)

I believe that. They sure can put a smile on my face, reading their stuff.  smiley_bucktooth

Quote from: LeeB on October 04, 2013, 11:59:09 AM


 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10046/IMG_30075B15D.JPG) 

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10046/IMG_12735B15D.JPG)

Bald Cypress.

I'll admit that looks like what I sawed. The density of BC (green) is 51 lbs/ft^3 and we measured 52. There's still the mystery of my friends' observation of the blossoms in the spring????
Bob

The plant in the original post is Albizia julibrissin. Native Iran through Japan. Commonly called mimosa in the eastern US.

Quote from: mesquite buckeye on October 05, 2013, 01:17:53 PM
The plant in the original post is Albizia julibrissin. Native Iran through Japan. Commonly called mimosa in the eastern US.

The original post (by woodhaven [rip]) contained no picture, so which are you referring to?
Bob

My mistake. Photo in Tom's post #2. ;D

Quote from: POSTONLT40HD on October 03, 2013, 09:43:26 PM
I've never heard of a MONKEY PUZZLE  :D......but I'm guessing that's what it is.  :D

House up the street has several monkey puzzle trees that have to be close to 100 ft tall ok maybe 75 ft. They drop bowling ball size and weight seeds.

My granddad used to call those a "monkey tree"?

Ah.  I see now.  Solved the monkey puzzle.

Mimosa can have rough bark when it gets old but it usually does not live long enough here in east Texas.  I have seen mimosa yard trees in west Texas that were 45+ years old and had rough bark (not necessarily big, just old).