# Box Alder anyone ? or is it Elder ?



## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

And what to my bloodshot eyes would appear …....storm damaged ? NOPE…...just old age I guess.Severe splitting at one of the crotches…. Sorry about the picture quality ..I happened upon this site and only had my cell phone to capture things with.

















wireless remote controlled stump grinder and dozer/push blade




























My tape measure slipped off the stump just as I took the picture…the stump was actually 57"x56" in diameter.
The owner of the Tree Service is a very nice young man and was in the Marines prior to starting up his business. He hooked me up with a semi local sawyer with a portable band mill for future reference. : )
He and his crew made quick work of this massive old beauty…..I guess they felled it yesterday and were in the process of cutting up the gigantic tree when I happened by. He shared way too much of his time discussing the tree with me and I really appreciated it a lot : ) I told him about our site here at Lumberjocks and he was very interested in it . I also gave him one of my business cards and I might be getting some work from him on a bookcase for his and his wifes' new baby : ) I thought it would be cool if he were to cut down the tree from which the bookcase would be made from : )


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## GaryBuck (Jul 26, 2009)

Wow,,, I bet that made some noise and shook the ground when she fell. I wouldn't want the work involved but sure would of liked to get the wood. Thanks for the cool pics.


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## Julian (Sep 30, 2008)

Thanks for the pics! It's actually one word. boxelder.


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## OregonBurls (Oct 12, 2009)

Is That tree for sale? I will buy it!!!


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

Hi Gary ….the owner estimated the weight at 20,000 pounds !!! it was the biggest city tree that I can remember seeing….. there is a small piece of a branch in the 7th picture up from the botom that he gave to me…quite heavy for the size. I'll try to get some spec's on it tomorrow to share. thanks for your comment : )


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

Thanks julian : ) 
OB , too late …it was cut into smaller sections and delivered to a local home owner for firewood !!! : (


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

thats sacrilege! these people should be put on trial!

thanks for sharing. I have a neighbor that just took down a maple tree. medium size I would say. the large trunk is still on his lawn… but it's just too large for me to even consider doing anything with it. not to mention I have no where to let it sit and dry… the agony we sometimes have to endure… lol


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

Hi Sharon … the pictures don't do this beauty justice…...the dark areas are solid wood , just mineral stained is all…there was one piece of the upper section of the tree with some Spalting going on .I miss my pick-up truck so much at times like this. The Tree Surgeon had a chainsaw with at least a three foot blade on it and I know he could have sliced that huge butt into table tops in no time at all. Really nice guy to deal with : )


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## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

stop it… I already feel bad I can't get that maple tree across the street… no need to add to that…lol

sounds like quite a gem that tree was. hope it will at least keep someone decently warm this winter.


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

Sharon , just sneak over there with your chainsaw , slice it into manageable pieces and reassemble it behind your garage….no one will ever know …LOL


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## GaryBuck (Jul 26, 2009)

I agree what a shame. That neighbor should have been satisfied with the twigs for burnin and left the rest for us. L.O.L.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

Wow that's some hunk of wood.


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## hObOmOnk (Feb 6, 2007)

Boxelder is actually a type of maple - the Ash-leaf Maple (Acer negundo).
The spalted and red-flamed colored parts of boxelder are highly prized by woodturners and artisans.

There are tears running down my face…


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

Some great looking wood. Too bad that the sawer doesn't have conservation in mind first in his sawing.

But I've got a friend that has a woodmizer and he bought a 48" black walnut log from Lewes De The first city in De. It had so many nails in it that it wasn't useable.

The problem with city wood.


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## Daren (Sep 16, 2007)

Firewood ? What a crying shame.


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## cmaxnavy (Dec 23, 2007)

I love the name on the crane boom - tree hugger! Great! Your idea to make book shelves for this Marine is a good one. UhRah! Here's a site that might interest you. "http://www.gasperetti.com/index.html" This VT woodworker builds heirloom quality furniture from trees he cuts down on the client's property. The trees have been in the family for decades. They are part of the family history. He chronicles the project from tree cutting to finished heirloom and presents the photo journal with the finished heirloom to the client. Maybe that's a business model that will work for you too.


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## CharlieM1958 (Nov 7, 2006)

Man, that sucker could keep us all in our shops for a while!


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## GaryBuck (Jul 26, 2009)

Hey Charles, Thanks for sharing the tip to that other site. "IF" I get some time here I'd like to check that out.Sounds interesting. And drgoodwood I never new that was maple,see open your eyes and ears and ya learn something new every day. LJ'S are the best Thanks guys.


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## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

Wow, that was one big tree. I hope it is going to the sawmill and not firewood!
The one thing about Box Elder is finding the wood with the red color in it. it is the best for turning. Sometimes it is so red, the chips look like blood pouring off it. If you have some with the red in it, see if there are any wood turners who would want it.
Those were some really good pictures. I'm going to alert my friend Mel to look at this!!

Thanks, Jim


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## mattg (May 6, 2008)

I see a whole bedroom set, and then some!!!!


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

*Hi Karson* , I'm a little confused by your statement "Too bad that the sawer doesn't have conservation in mind first in his sawing."
It wasn't a selective harvest mission that he was on . 
He was hired by the Church to remove the tree because it was splitting at the crotch . The Church's insurance Rep told them that it had to come down before causing any damage to the Church and or its' people .We've had 30-50 MPH winds here this past week with more on the way in between heavy rains . A local man asked for the wood and received it thus keeping it out of the landfill. I'm not aware of any local mills that could handle a nearly five foot diameter log that branched off in so many directions and the sawyer would have had to call in some heavier equipment just to get this behemoth off of the ground. He estimated the entire tree to weigh in excess of 20,000 pounds . I got a small piece of a branch that weighs 63 pounds and it is only 10 inches in diameter by roughly 14 inches long . I hope this clears things up for you , my friend : )


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