ID this tree

radio · June 05, 2016, 01:19:37 PM

I had been trying to ID this tree with only the bark available as a characteristic. Tree is about 60' in height. Single straight trunk. No branches up to about 40'. I pulled the bark off and the smell of the inside stringy red fibers are very sweet, citrusy. The odor is overpowering.

Location is southern NH.

elk42 · June 05, 2016, 02:04:17 PM

If it was here in south Arkansas I would say sweet gum tree.

WDH · June 05, 2016, 08:39:53 PM

Looks like northern red oak to me.

http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=38

Dave Shepard · June 05, 2016, 08:47:19 PM

First pic is almost definitely red oak. The pic of the chunks doesn't look very oak like to me, and I've never noticed a citrus smell to oak, but it can smell strongly. White oak smells sort of like a horse barn, if you know what I mean.

thecfarm · June 05, 2016, 08:58:58 PM

I thought the same about the red oak too,but the end cut does look like it at all. The bark would make me say the red oak that I have here.

Ron Scott · June 05, 2016, 10:06:08 PM

Looks like northern red oak to me.

sandsawmill14 · June 05, 2016, 10:21:34 PM

the growth rings and the dark offset heart in the bottom pics says red oak and the bark confirms it

radio · June 06, 2016, 10:26:19 AM

The red in the bark is deceiving. It does look similar to a nice 21" DBH Northern Red Oak that I have in my yard. But as can be seen the heartwood is nothing like oak, more like poplar.

This had me stumped for weeks. The best ID I could get was Yellow/Tulip poplar but we don't have those trees here in NH. Finally we have leaves on the tree and I was able to use binoculars to get a good look at them a few days ago. Here is a photo of the canopy. Notice there are 2 of these trees about 3' apart.

radio · June 06, 2016, 11:08:09 AM

I just went out and took of photo of the leaves through a spotting scope. Based on the bark I don't think that anyone would have guessed this tree. The bark of the tree when younger is completely different.

It appears to me that this is a Bigtooth Aspen/White Poplar. Old BT Aspens do develop red furrowed bark. However, the veins of the leaves are opposite from the central vein whereas all photos of Aspen/Poplar I have seen have had veins that alternate.

Autocar · June 08, 2016, 06:49:27 PM

Looks like a cottonwood to me. It looks like a layer of paper type bark between the wood and the outer bark.

sandhills · June 09, 2016, 09:42:23 AM

I'm glad I wasn't the only one thinking cottonwood, but I've never seen them grow quite like that ???. Around here they tend to not be so straight.

OneWithWood · June 09, 2016, 10:37:56 AM

Seeing the leaves definitely shows it to be in the Populus family. Looking at the bark pics makes me think Big Tooth Aspen but the wood looks more like cottonwood.