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The (2nd) Oldest Tree I'll Ever Cut

Started by sprucebunny, February 21, 2006, 06:48:46 PM

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sprucebunny

I've been waiting for conditions to be just right to go get a blowed down cedar or two and today was close enough ;D

It has rained a lot and this is very uneven and wet ground. It was logged 15-20 years ago.Two cedars blew over and have been waiting for me.

The camera was too cold when I first got there ::) but this shot shows how eneven the snow is and the (still growing ) tree.


This is the log getting past the deep wet spot that limits access during warmer weather .


The biggest log was 18x22 above the butt flare and about 14" at 12 feet. The growth rings are very tight. I'll have to add a picture of them in a couple of days.
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

Troy

So how old is it?  Have you counted the rings yet? 
Peterson ATS 8" 27hp

sprucebunny

Not yet ;D But I know there are very few trees left on my land that are older ::) ;D
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

Troy

I milled a 33" red oak this past weekend that was approximately 170 years old.  It had been blown down a couple years ago.  I think that is the oldest I have milled.  Pretty cool to have trees that old still around.  Made some beautiful lumber!
Peterson ATS 8" 27hp

Sawyerfortyish

The oldest tree I've cut was a hemlock tree 34" dia on the little end at 21'. The growth rings were so close in places I had trouble seeing them. At last count (I did it a couple times)386 rings. It was one of the biggest hemlocks I ever cut and was in an almost impossible place to get out.
  SB what kind of cedar is that? I don't get much cedar. The red cedar I do get you'll be lucky to get 6" boards out of them.

isawlogs

 Hey good to see that the logging of those cedars went well .
Have you finished with the growth ring count yet .  ;D
A man does not always grow wise as he grows old , but he always grows old as he grows wise .

   Marcel

sprucebunny

It took all day to get them cut and dragged to the trail and then I had to tow them 2.5 miles to where the mill will be one at a time...... only one skidding cone. The trail MIGHT have been frozen hard enough to drag them without the cone but I didn't try.

I didn't have time to cut a cookie and count the rings. That's part of tomorrows plan along with dragging a ladder out there to get another log.

I don't know for sure which cedar they are. First guess is white 'cause they didn't smell much.
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

isawlogs

  Joan they are eastern white cedar .  That mud hole seems to be half froze , did you have any trouble zig-zaging the logs out of there .
A man does not always grow wise as he grows old , but he always grows old as he grows wise .

   Marcel

sprucebunny

The zig-zagging went pretty well... just don't stop !!!! Because the logs are heavy !!!!!

The exciting part was out on the hardpacked and icy trail when one of the logs tried to pass me going downhill and the chain wrapped around the axle 'cause of being thrown over by the track ::) It jambed the brakes on a little ;D

Note to self: No slowing down !!!! Always go FASTER :D
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

woodbowl

That does sound exciting! Hope it didn't mess up your snow buggy much.
Full time custom sawing at the customers site since 1995.  WoodMizer LT40 Super Hyd.

Black_Bear

http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/silvics_manual/Volume_1/thuja/occidentalis.htm

Do you think you will need to use some sandpaper and a magnifying lens to count the rings? I would venture to guess that the rings are fairly tight.

Coon

Cool pics SB.  Love what you've done with that quad.  How big of engine have you got in it?  What's the deepest snow you've gone through with your quad.  Was thinking about putting tracks on my quad but don't know if that would justify the cost. We get alot of snow here. :o :D

thems some nice logs you got too. ;D ;D  So what you got planned for them when you get em sawn??????

Brad.
Norwood Lumbermate 2000 w/Kohler,
Husqvarna, Stihl and, Jonsereds Saws

Ironwood

I cut up parts of a 310 year old white oak. Core (inner 50 years fell out) Really neat. I use that core for special projects, handles for a friends bale hook (with custom blacksmithing work by me as well). Neat stuff. Reid
There is no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love to do, there is only scarcity of resolve to make it happen.- Wayne Dyer

crtreedude

That is a very cool tree.

We have big stuff and hard stuff (and sometimes big and hard) but not much old stuff at all. A very old tree here would be 200 years old. Ceibas are about the only think that last that long. The Ojoche that Harold sawed up was about 70 years old probably - 4 to 5 feet in diameter, the Peterson would barely handle it.

Our growth rings are like an inch a year or more.

So, how did I end up here anyway?

sprucebunny

You guys are way ahead of me with the 300+ year olds !!!
This tree was about 150. I counted 100 outside the heartrot.



This is what I dragged back today. 8' cedar in trailer and some firewood . 12' cedar in cone and 16' cedar half in the trailer. Had to winch the mess up a tiny but icy hill :D What a pain !!!



This is what the bark looks like after being dragged aways. I think it's VERY 8)



The quad is a Honda 500 cc. It has a solid rear axle and a Low range. I use low alot ;D I've driven it thru 16" of sugar type snow....that was neat ;D
No damage yesterday, but I bent a little something today when some logs fell out of the cone and jambed in the snow ::) It still works fine though.
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

getoverit

SB, I like your cone that you use on logs... can you post a pic of it and tell us where you got it? I think I could actually use one of them down here to keep from digging up the pasture when I skid logs around
I'm a lumberjack and I'm ok, I work all night and sleep all day

beenthere

getoverit
This might be it, or similar from an earlier post.

skidding cone
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

sprucebunny

The cone is sold by Nova Jack and some other places have it , too.

Here is a recent thread about it
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=17332.0

The butt of the log still made a pretty good rut in the snow.
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

getoverit

I'm a lumberjack and I'm ok, I work all night and sleep all day

Coon

SB  You never cease to amaze me.  A woman to be doing harder work than many men I know.  Three CHEERS for Sprucebunny.


8) 8) 8)

Brad.
Norwood Lumbermate 2000 w/Kohler,
Husqvarna, Stihl and, Jonsereds Saws

sprucebunny

Thanks, Brad  smiley_blush   but if that was really true, wouldn't I be thinner ??? :D

I'll probably saw the logs into 4/4 boards. I have no particular plan for them but sure hate to see a good tree go to waste. The recent winds pushed over several 12"+ balsams and I hope to snake them out this weekend.

No one has asked what the Oldest tree will be ???
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

Tim L

Do the best you can and don't look back

sprucebunny

Yes, we are ;D We're catching up to Michigan  smiley_wavy
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

Murf

Didn't wanna spoil the surprise......   ;D

Besides, I learned long ago, if'n a woman wants ya ta know sumat she'll tell ya, an she don't always appreciate ya askin' if'n she's quiet some about it.  ::)
If you're going to break a law..... make sure it's Murphy's Law.

Tim L

I am jealous of your atv tracks, I have a Polaris Sportsman 500 but the wife won't spend for tracks !
Do the best you can and don't look back

sprucebunny

Don't think I can help ya, Tim..... Maybe if she thought they were a tool ???
I bought my x-husband a set so I'd have someone to go on adventures with ;D
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

Tim L

Im pretty sure the wife is convinced the tool is riding it !
Do the best you can and don't look back

SwampDonkey

Like Sprucebunny mentioned earlier in the thread, those white cedar keep growing after they fall over. I have some that have new cedar growing straight up from the trunk. SB's estimate of age in the rot, probably isn't far off. You'd be surprised how slow and dense them little cedars grow on wet ground. There is a section here on the old farm that was logged and has cat tails. I walked across the area a couple of weeks ago and there are little cedar starting to peak thier leaders up through them cat tails. Now that's pretty wet if there's cat tails. :D

So ya want some cedar? Here's about 3500 cords delivered in the last two weeks. ;D

"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

isawlogs

 Well Murf I will stick my head on the block and ask ...  If anything I have 7 to 8 hours to hide if sher decides to come and bang on my coconut .. :D

   Joan what is the oldest tree you cut down .  ???

  But what I want to know is  how can you tell the futur .  ???
A man does not always grow wise as he grows old , but he always grows old as he grows wise .

   Marcel

sprucebunny

;D Not to fear, gentlemen ;D

This is the oldest tree that I'm likely to ever cut down or up.



It's a yellow birch that I am told is likely to be curly.

MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

isawlogs

  How big is that yellow birch  ???

   I know that it will have nice boards , you want to see what is possebly inside .  ;) :)
A man does not always grow wise as he grows old , but he always grows old as he grows wise .

   Marcel

SwampDonkey

Looks kind of like it has some bunch knots or epicormic branches. Joan, does the bark have ripples. Might not see it if it's a really old scaly barked yellow birch. Where's the crown? Or is it a victom of sun scald after the woods were cut down? I find those usually have some pocket rot if the crown dies. I have one that looks similar to that, but it's loaded with male pollen buds for this coming season. It doesn't look very pretty and the wood pecker was hack'n away at it yesterday. :D I only have one really big old feller and he hasn't a dead limb on him. The reason it survived was because of it's dominance and it's crown shades it's trunk well to.
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

sprucebunny

This has no crown and I was expecting some kind of heart rot. The woodpeckers haven't been too tough on it, yet.
I think the DBH is 16". Ya ;D I want to know what's inside. ;D

MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

isawlogs

A man does not always grow wise as he grows old , but he always grows old as he grows wise .

   Marcel

SwampDonkey

Joan if it's not too far gone you might get some spalt. Might even get some foxfire up toward the top where it's been more exposed. Get out the wood lathe. ;D
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

isawlogs

 Joan , I have a boaed left here from a tree I sawed that had very similar features on it . I will have the camera back here over the weekend and will shoot you a pic of the board , the pics above are from that tree .
  I had a hard time deciding where and how to cut this , as all the faces of the logs where apealing to the eye .

 
A man does not always grow wise as he grows old , but he always grows old as he grows wise .

   Marcel

Black_Bear

What is foxfire?

Inquiring minds want to know.

SwampDonkey

"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

Black_Bear


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