Gordon,
You did good.......it is Loblolly Bay. The woods and roadsides are full of it here and now that they are in bloom they have turned the place into a flowering garden. It would be hard to appreciate it unless you could see it first hand.
Loblolly Bay is one of those trees that the general population has considered a trash tree for many years. Some can be sold to Paper companies for pulp but most goes to chips for the boiler. I have made an effort to reintroduce it as a lumber tree with some moderate success. Those who have tried it love it. It is fast growing and makes pretty cabinet wood.
Way to go Gordon.....you pulled the fat out of the fire.
Don,
That was the reason I put the "rough" bark hint in the question because there are a lot of similarities between this tree and Loblolly Bay. Sweetbay's leaves are larger, which you can't tell very well from a picture, and the flower is not as symmetrical. If you are in the woods with both trees then a whiff of a crushed leaf of sweet bay would be a dead giveaway. It really is sweet. The wood is creamy white and magnolia looking while the Loblolly bay is a reddish brown and looks a little bit like mahogany.
Stewartia's leaves are short and fat compared to Loblolly bay and the flower is larger with a purple center whereas Loblolly bay has a yellow center.
I like it when two come so close.
It's more fun when I know what it is too.
