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| Hello and thanks in advance for any help you may be able to provide. I was told by a friend in the landscape business and again by a tree trimmer that my tree is a River Birch.
I'm looking at pictures and reading descriptions of River Birch trees online and I'm not so sure. The bark does not fit the description in color or appearance and the bark does not shed. I�m very curious as to if the tree is a River Birch and if not what it actually is so I can research life span, etc. This tree is in my back yard in a Houston suburb and could be as old as the house which is 45 years old. I bought the house in 2006 and noticed the patio roof had some damage from a falling limb. Since then it continues to lose a partial branch now and then but seems to have a healthy trunk and sprouts new branches once in a while and has full foliage in the summer. The tree survived hurricane Ike with no damage but an issue began the other day when a branch fell in my neighbor�s yard. She seems obsessed with the trees condition and has verbally given me "official notice" that my tree is dying and I'll be held responsible if it causes her property damage or injures her dog. My neighbor is a bit strange in my opinion. Every day I�m finding tree service flyers near my front door. My house seems to be the only one on the block getting these flyers. Any help identifying the tree would be greatly appreciated. Link will take you to 3 tree pictures if I did it correctly. I put a last years leaf in the bark closeup and a picture of some early leaves. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Link to tree pictures
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Looks like one to me. Aren't very common in zone 9. They lose the bark quality with time. You typically don't see these trees live more than 50 years. Personally I'd take that tree down in a heart beat. It has terrible structure and is way past its prime. A new tree awaits... |
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| The ugly mature bark and diamond-shaped leaves are both quite typical for Betula nigra. If you are looking at pictures of Heritage = 'Cully', the bark of that one is not typical for the species and was probably the main reason for selecting the cultivar. |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Mon, Jan 30, 12 at 8:25
| Personally I'd take that tree down in a heart beat. It has terrible structure and is way past its prime. ===>>> DITTO its going to be nothing but problems from here in out ... heck.. it doesnt even look like it gives any usable shade ... and the canopy looks very sparse.. but i dont know if that is the usual in your zone .. in winter ... be done with it ... its the end of the line for that one.. but it opens a vast potential.. for you to make your mark on this yard ... you can do so much better ... and.. unless its an optical delusion.. i wouldnt be surprised if the power company doesnt show up one day and torture it with some creative pruning .... sorry ... i am with the neighbor on this one.. and be sure to use it politically .. to make her a better neighbor .... a long story about how she is right.. and you are doing it all for her.. blah.. blah .... lol .. try to get some mileage out of it .. ken |
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