Hackberry Collecting 2017

[ml_work]

Today stared out pretty much like last Saturday, cold this morning, warm up to about 65f... but hot when digging trees. I borrowed a reciprocating saw, it helped but went through the battery and the spare much quicker than I expected. It was 18 volt saw, after reading tonight I think a 36 volt would be more suited for cutting the roots. Last week my Dad has showed me what he said is a Hackberry and said the leaves do not get big. I liked the way the bark looked so we went back this morning to get it, well could not find the one he had showed me. Found what I think was a nice triple trunk, it was real close to a big pine tree. I dug around it and then cut with the reciprocation saw, it had a sharp turn back to the pine tree and when I finally got it up there were no roots the way I cut it. I brought it home and put in some soil but do not expect it to live. My Dad picked out a couple of more, one looked nice but once I dug it up it had a sharp turn at the bottom of the trunk that looked like a gold club. Again, once I dig one I feel it is only right to bring home and stick in a pot, I am not going to just toss it way. I went in a different direction than last week, everywhere I looked I saw what looked like the hackberry. So I decided on this one as a multiple trunk clump. When I was washing the dirt from the roots it was not coming out well so I put the spray on "jet" ( we don't really have much water pressure) and it cut the dirt out and at the same time took the layer of green back off the trunks. I really did not realize it was taking it off, I hope it did not damage the tree.

Washed off the outer layer of bark....

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This may not be a hackberry, if it is not please tell me what it is and did the bath damage the bark / tree?

I have 2 more single trunk, one is a hackberry and not sure what the other is, ran out of daylight, put them in water and will do tomorrow afternoon. It is too many trees to pick in one walking, I just tied orange ribbon to check them out later. My Dad got to check his Game Camera, no pictures but 50lb of corn gone in the past 3 days. After a closer look, the SD card had gotten on Write Protect.... we had put a new card and 50lb more corn at the camera.

"It Was a Good Day!"
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[justBonsai]

Not sure on the ID but looks like some gnarly trunks. Should be fun to develop.

 

[BrianBay9]

A hackberry that size should have 'worty' bark. Nice stump though. Hard to tell what it is at this point.

 

[parhamr]

Damn, that's quite a cut! I've been considering getting a reciprocating saw for similar purposes.

Impressive trunk; that's a good find. I look forward to updates!

 

[ml_work]

Parhamr..... the cut in the picture was not done with the reciprocating saw, it was done with a Stanley Hand saw and an "Armstrong" battery after I got home. If you look at the first picture you can see I had cut the smaller roots around the clump and there was more hanging down. That is what I cut with the had saw.

Bleumeon and BrianBay9, as I said I am not for sure about the species, my Dad had told me the name, he was showing me different ones, one was a summer hackberry and the other was winter hackberry. To be honest I may have gotten the name incorrect .... he grew up in the woods and knows many trees. I will check back and post when I have more or the correct information.

 

[thumblessprimate1]

That clump doesn't look like Hackberry, and I'm basing that guess on the bark and roots. I suspect it's an Elm. I'd save some roots and grow as cuttings in case it turns out to be an Elm and you find out you could use some roots grafts next year. It's an interesting clump. I like how it looks in the 4th image.

 

[Waldo Street Pottery]

Is it possibly a honeysuckle?

 

[BrianBay9]

Yeah, I was thinking honeysuckle too. That can also work for bonsai. Gonna be a fun surprise when it leafs out. Let us know who picked it.

 

[ml_work]

I don't think it is honeysuckle, from the way it looked before I cut it down, should have taken a picture of the entire thing before cutting. There were a couple that already had leaves (I think they were the same thing) did not look like honeysuckle. I will post progress pictures..... if there is any progress

 

[ml_work]

as I said I am not for sure about the species, my Dad had told me the name, he was showing me different ones, one was a summer hackberry and the other was winter hackberry. To be honest I may have gotten the name incorrect .... he grew up in the woods and knows many trees. I will check back and post when I have more or the correct information.

I was wrong... I ask my Dad and he said that they are huckleberry...... and he had said that, I am the one that got it mixed up. And he is worried about forgetting things!

 

[ml_work]

Update on "this stump" hopeful we will see if it is huckleberry, it seem to be "Happy" I am not going to touch it this year, just let it grow.

April-11

April - 22

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[Leo in N E Illinois]

alternate leaves - means it is not honeysuckle or dogwood
equal lobes at the base of the leaves where leaf joins petiole. (stem). - this means it is not an elm

leaf so far is rounded, and slightly ''fuzzy''. The tip of the two most common species of hackberry is elongated and pointed. Celtis occidentalis and Celtis laevigata both have these elongated pointed leaves. There are I believe 5 species of Celtis, one of the other 3 lives in N Florida, S Georgia & parts of Alabama, I've never seen it in person, have no idea about its leaf, but suspect it has a pointed tip. .

Buckthorn (Rhammus), - it has very rounded leaves, and alternate leaf pattern that occasionally reverts to opposite leaf pattern. The buds stagger at irregular pattern, so both the alternate and the opposite pattern appears on the twigs. Bark of buckthorn is usually pretty dark. When cut the wood is yellowish in twigs, more normal ''wood color'' when thicker branches and trunks are cut. Your leaves are dead ringers for buckthorn - except yours have hairs, my buckthorn has glossy leaves without hairs. Bark on your tree is not right for buckthorn, not ''black enough''.

So what is your tree? - I don't know. I do know it is not honeysuckle, elm, buckthorn, dogwood and probably not hackberry.

It COULD be one of the North American native hollies, Ilex. Perhaps Ilex glabra, which has small black berries in winter. If it is, they are wonderful for bonsai, except the black berries are not as showy as the red berries of its cousins, Ilex verticillata and Ilex vomitoria. But you will need clear images of flowers, fruit, winter twigs, leaves and bark to really nail down identity.

This is a nice piece of material, regardless of the species. Common names versus scientific names can be confusing. Your father's ''winter hackberry'' may very well be the Ilex glabra, which is often called ''inkberry'' for the inky black berries. Your father correctly identifies it as something different than the ''regular'' hackberries, Celtis, as they all drop their fruit fairly early in autumn. Seldom do you see fruit hanging in a hackberry after November. Hollies will hold their berries until Spring.

So those are my guesses, it may take a season of observation, and collecting good images to really nail it down. One tool available is a botanical key for winter twigs. A key is a sequence of questions, and the answer to the question will jump you to the next question. For example question one might be alternate or opposite leaf patter, answer alternate, it may send you to question 2, answer opposite and it might send you to answer 47, answer indeterminate - it might say Buckthorn or Rhammus. The questions will end with a name of a species. Often your state DNR will have a identification guide on line, with a key. Library will have tree identification books.

There are trees in Alabama I am not familiar with, like titi, cyrilla, wild privet, and other ''southern'' species. So I am not 100% on Ilex glabra. The round slightly fuzzy leaves do look like one of the hollies.

 

[BrianBay9]

The single prominent central vein of the leaf means it's definitely not a hackberry. The three veins meeting near the base (see pic) is absolutely diagnostic for hackberry.

 

[ml_work]

Hackberry or whatever we have decided it is. It has filled out nice, I have not done anything to it. I am thinking I will have a better view this winter to see if I should remove some of the branches. I don't want to stress it....

Hackberry 8-13-17

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[Giga]

This could be something awesome, once in a pot and developed - whatever it is

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Recovering nicely
I like it. This will be nice in time.
i still think Ilex. Photos of flowers in spring will help.

 

[M. Frary]

whatever it is

Hacksuckle!

 

[ml_work]

Stump / Clump Update
Today I cut back some of the small stuff that was coming out on this. Hope for the new energy this spring to go to making what remains larger. One of the pieces of dead wood that was in the middle came off this winter. this has some dead wood that needs to come out or treat. You see the end of the trunk has died, can I just cover with cut paste / putty or should I cut it back to fresh wood and the seal. The dead wood in the trunks, what is the best treatment for it?