Sweetgum or Florida Maple

Gumpisan · October 12, 2019, 11:48:10 AM

We own a wooded lot near Pensacola. Recently, the Power company removed a large tree from the property by mistake. We filed a complaint, and they agreed to reimburse us for a Sweetgum tree. We have been maintaining this lot for over 5 years and have never seen "Gum balls." There are several trees like the one they removed and we think that they are Florida Maples. We have a few questions:
What kind of tree do you think it was?
What is the value of the tree? It was as tall as the power-pole and had a diameter of 10-12".
We have read about similar situations where the property owners rated up to 3 times the value of the tree for damages. Have you seen such cases? This was such a beautiful tree, and it was removed needlessly. They had already cut the top off the tree and thus, it wasn't going to impact the power lines whatsoever. However, they returned a week later and completely removed it.
Please advise, and thank you in advance.

curdog · October 12, 2019, 12:54:23 PM

I'm going with sweetgum. Those are shade leaves sprouting from the trunk, and will typically look different from leaves in the canopy. But the bark definitely looks like sweetgum bark. I can't tell if the branches are opposite or alternate, but if by chance it is maple, the limbs will be opposite on the tree...

Gumpisan · October 12, 2019, 01:34:08 PM

Here is an older picture. I hope it helps.

WV Sawmiller · October 12, 2019, 02:06:32 PM

Not sweetgum - it has a distinct star shaped leaf.

lxskllr · October 12, 2019, 05:18:09 PM

The trunk sprouts look like what sweetgum does, but the leaves don't look like gum to me. Also, the absence of gumballs would be strange I think. Those things are all over the place with a mature gum.

nativewolf · October 12, 2019, 06:44:22 PM

As to value as a commercial timber tree, maybe $5 maybe $0. Replacing it as a landscape planting tree I'd expect to pay hundreds of dollars for a rootballed tree of that size. Obviously I'd suggest getting a quote from a local nursery (not a Lowes,etc) for a large maple of 30' and 10" in diameter.

Woodpecker52 · October 12, 2019, 07:11:12 PM

Buy a peach tree and enjoy the fruit of your labor.

curdog · October 12, 2019, 09:00:28 PM

These leaves are a little rough off the sweetgum in my yard after the end of a dry summer, but the smaller one is a shade leaf that has a maple like appearance. I snatched these off while mowing this afternoon. I've cut a lot of the sweetgums, but this one was still hiding at the base of a bush.

WDH · October 13, 2019, 07:58:47 AM

Curdog is spot on. It is definitely a sweetgum tree. Like nativewolf says it has no commercial value as a timber tree. It's only value is as an ornamental landscape tree. Getting a quote to replace it from a nursery is the only reasonable solution for determining value. I would start there. Even though the tree has no commercial value, it will be quite expensive to replace a landscape tree of that size.

WV Sawmiller · October 13, 2019, 09:28:24 AM

@WDH ,

Sweetgum with a 3 lobed leaf?

caveman · October 13, 2019, 11:36:54 AM

Shade leaves, immature leaves and other factors sometimes make dendrology challenging. Often, young sweetgum trees will also have corky projections off of the branches (wings) like winged elms. Chinese sweetgum trees usually have three main points, otherwise they look like our American sweetgum trees. The leaf arrangement on the sweetgum is also alternate and the maples are opposite. The original picture posted did not show a good shot of leaf arrangement but the bark and leaves indicate it is a sweetgum.

If I were looking to get the power company to replace the tree, I would suggest that they provide a balled and burlap (or one grown in a cool ring) hardwood shade tree of similar size and pay for installation and let negotiations begin.

WDH · October 13, 2019, 11:54:47 AM

Shade leaves coming off the trunk can be misleading. Corky wings and noticeably imbricate bud scales are distinctive characteristics. Plus the tender twigs have a distinctive aroma.

caveman · October 13, 2019, 01:17:57 PM

Just for the record, I did not see any wings in the pictures submitted at the beginning of this thread. I mentioned that because a lot of times folks are surprised the first time they see a sweetgum with wings.

Sometime today I am going to have to look up what an imbricate bud scale is.

Southside · October 13, 2019, 02:16:36 PM

Quote from: caveman on October 13, 2019, 11:36:54 AMIf I were looking to get the power company to replace the tree, I would suggest that they provide a balled and burlap (or one grown in a cool ring) hardwood shade tree of similar size and pay for installation and let negotiations begin.

Kinda like in free range ranch country, ever notice how every cow that gets hit in the roadway is always a State Champion who was being flushed for embryo transfer every 30 days!! :D

I would do the same thing if I were in your shoes, come to think of it I sort of did when they ran over a bunch of irrigation pipe driving where they were not supposed to after passing a sign about no vehicle access. When they pushed back at the cost of the replacement I asked them if I could come to their office to discuss it and if it would be OK to park my truck and stock trailer in the middle of their landscaped flower and shrub arrangement on the front office lawn. There was silence on the line for a few moments and then something along the lines of "I think I understand your frustration and we can address this" was the response. Good luck.

WDH · October 14, 2019, 07:12:23 AM

Quote from: caveman on October 13, 2019, 01:17:57 PMSometime today I am going to have to look up what an imbricate bud scale is.

Most buds have scales. They can help in treed ID. Here is a primer on bud scales. Sweetgum is a poster child for imbricate scales.
Twig Morphology: Bud Scales