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mdchambe

tree id help

mdchambe
10 years ago

Hi everyone,

I was out on the edge of my timber planting a buckeye tree and happened to notice this tree in "bloom?"

I'm located in central Iowa. This tree is right on the edge of a large piece of timber. I believe the adjacent ground would have been farmed at some point.

It isnt leafed out yet, but these look pretty unique to me. Thoughts?

Comments (31)

  • calliope
    10 years ago

    Magnolia

  • Embothrium
    10 years ago

    Hickory.

  • greenthumbzdude
    10 years ago

    looks like a magnolia to me.....that could be the site of an old homestead....keep that tree...it might be a very rare cultivar. These types of flowering magnolia generally do not seed on their own...it was planted by someone.

  • bengz6westmd
    10 years ago

    Agree w/bboy -- looks like (maybe Shellbark?) hickory buds. Splendid.

  • mdchambe
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks for the thoughts everyone! I looked around some and found other pictures of blooms just like this that were noted as hickory blooms!

    I was just going to ask about which type of hickory. I'll look into shellbark. Here is picture.

    Also, I must confess. As I said this tree is right on the edge of the timber and ass in the way of mowing last year. Not knowing the tree was anything special dial I lopped off a big branch! It will get a lot more care now!

    Is this tree uncommon in central Iowa?

  • calliope
    10 years ago

    Wow...............thanks for the heads up. I had no clue hickory could be so beautiful!

  • flora_uk
    10 years ago

    This is not actually a bloom it is just the spectacular buds opening. Hickory flowers are catkins.

  • mdchambe
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Huh, catkins, interesting! Thanks for the info. I've got a few shagbark hickories on the property. Suppose that makes that the most likely candidate for what species of hickory this is.

  • sam_md
    10 years ago

    look around for some larger specimens, if its shagbark they will look something like this:
    {{gwi:364392}}

  • jujujojo_gw
    10 years ago

    Is that a leaf bud, right?

  • jujujojo_gw
    10 years ago

    Posted by greenthumbzdude (My Page) on Wed, May 8, 13 at 10:59

    This is a magnolia. I hope the picture helps you to identify the tree correctly.

    {{gwi:364393}}

  • lucky_p
    10 years ago

    Yep; hickory.
    Most folks either don't notice(passing by at 80mph) - or have never seen, to notice - how pretty those expanding buds are. Not all have red-tinted budscales, but even the green ones are nice; just not as striking.
    I'm mainly looking at shellbark & shagbark, so I see 'em regularly.
    Have grown out a number of seedlings of a local shagbark selection(nuts won 1st place at the KY State Fair) with green bud scales - but several of the offspring have the more appealingred bud scales - so I've moved one of those to the front yard.

  • bengz6westmd
    10 years ago

    mdchambe, your small-tree bark pic shows it's hickory -- looks just like my shellbarks.

    Yes, those are simply the expanding leaf-buds. Interesting that the bud-scales expand & color like flower-petals.

    This is a durable forest tree & worth protecting as a specimen & wildlife tree.

  • calliope
    10 years ago

    My kid's property had lots of pig nut hickory.........that's the only kind I've been up close and personal with. No wonder I didn't 'get it'. Many trees are quite showy when they're breaking leaf..........I think I love sassafras at that point in time. Also the maackia is lovely now as it's starting to leaf out.

  • Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
    10 years ago

    That is neat. Thanks for posting it. I do not have a prime spot for one but will be on the lookout

  • jqpublic
    10 years ago

    Great looking hickory! Hard to tell b/c it's so young, but it could either be a Shellbark Hickory or a Shagbark Hickory.

    Based off how there are no remaining rachises/petioles from last year, I'm leaning toward a Shagbark Hickory. One of my favorite trees!

    Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:364389}}

    This post was edited by jqpublic on Thu, May 9, 13 at 19:50

  • jqpublic
    10 years ago

    And by that I mean that when the leaves fall off in Autumn, the rachises/petiole remain over winter on Shellbark Hickories (curling up toward the branch tip). Shagbarks drop the leaves (rachises/petiole and all) in the fall.

    Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:364390}}

    This post was edited by jqpublic on Thu, May 9, 13 at 19:55

  • flora_uk
    10 years ago

    By lenticels did you mean petioles? I don't know hickories so are those the leaf stalks (petioles)? Lenticels are porous tissue I believe.

  • jujujojo_gw
    10 years ago

    Posted by flora_uk SW UK 8/9 (My Page) on Thu, May 9, 13 at 13:25
    I have the same question to jqpublic.

  • jqpublic
    10 years ago

    My fault folks! Yes I meant petioles/rachises. I'll edit my posts!

  • sam_md
    10 years ago

    Gray's Manual on Shagbark Hickory: most of serrations with a dense tuft of persistent hairs on one or both sides near apex of the tooth
    OTOH Shellbark Hickory is lacking tufts of hair on the leaf serrations.
    See link for a good illustration of this.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Carolina Nature Fact Sheet

  • mdchambe
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Hi everyone, thought I'd post an update. I don't know how I didn't notice last spring (our first in the house) but I've got little hickory trees everywhere along the edge of our timber.

    As was mentioned above, the buds of some are significantly more red than others.

  • jqpublic
    10 years ago

    Here are my hickories.

    Shellbark Hickory 1
    Put on almost 18" of new growth already this season :) Do you notice the lingering rachises from last year (just below where the new growth started)?
    GIANT LEAVES
    {{gwi:364394}}

    Shellbark Hickory 2
    Not quite as vigorous this year as it was last year. Traded growth rates with it's brother above.
    {{gwi:364395}}

    Shagbark Hickory
    Second full spring in the ground. Put on about 4" of growth (not bad!)
    {{gwi:364396}}

  • greenthumbzdude
    10 years ago

    ok I was wrong...never came across a hickory like that before

  • jujujojo_gw
    10 years ago

    Posted by jqpublic 7b/8a Wake County NC (My Page) on Mon, May 13, 13 at 1:15

    There is a small city called Hickory near Charlotte. Do you know if it is named after the tree?

  • sam_md
    10 years ago

    Not to be outdone here's my shagbark just coming out of winter slumber. Notice that they can have either 5 or 7 leaflets.
    I've had poor germination with these. Handbook 450 explains that fall sown seed should not be allowed to freeze??? What has been experience of others here?
    {{gwi:364397}}

  • jqpublic
    10 years ago

    jujujojo - per wikipedia "In the 1850s, under a huge hickory tree, Henry Robinson built a tavern of logs. The city of "Hickory Tavern" was established in 1863 and the name was eventually changed to "Hickory" in 1873." There are definitely a lot of native hickories in NC. My particular area of NC has more pignut/mockernut hickories w/ the occassional shagbark. The Shellbark do have an isolated grouping just west of me along a river. They think the Native Americans that lived here traded the nuts with N.A.'s in other areas of the country in order to harvest the Shellbark nuts, which they used to make a hickory nut milk drink (hicora ?sp?).

    sam_MD...Unfortunately, I didn't grow mine by seed. The Shellbarks are from Oikos and the Shagbark is from ForestFarm. I grew one Carolina Shagbark Hickory (Carya carolinae-septentrionalis) from seed. I soaked it, put it in the freezer for about a day, then in the fridge for another month or two and sowed it in Feb. It grew fine, but I had to take it out b/c a critter ravaged it.

  • treebird101
    10 years ago

    sammd is that your giant hickory tree? That is a biggun!

  • sam_md
    10 years ago

    hi treebird,
    The pic in my May 8 post is from the #2 SB in Montgomery County MD. I spoke with the owners and there is a really interesting history with this tree.
    It seems a German engineer lived in Chevy Chase in the 1800's. He was hired to design a bridge in WVa. While there he saw the SB hickories and brought some home since they are few and far between in eastern Maryland.
    3 or 4 of the original trees are still there, right off of Connecticut Ave. I am so happy that the people who own the property didn't cut them down and replace with a bit of fluff like so many are prone to do.

  • treebird101
    10 years ago

    Wow, that's a very interesting story. What are the nuts like? Would you have any idea or photos to share?

  • sam_md
    10 years ago

    hi treebird,
    read further about the Chevy Chase tree in this link. Its from last year. Nuts VERY hard but delicious taste. When they gernimated foliage was red. Sorry, nothing to share :(

    Here is a link that might be useful: Mast year thread