What kind of tree is this ?

Oldtrout · Oct 7, 2008

Ok, Luc,I had several of my counter parts look at the pictures;we all agree its speckled alder, however if you wish send me a private message and I will give you my snail mail add.; than I would request that you send me one leaf, I will send to the lab. and will have indentified to resolve all doubt. I will also send uses of alder,how to control,and anything else you would like to know. You wern't to far off the line by considering it swamp cottenwood they are related ....Good work.

Wayne...

luc2121 · Oct 7, 2008

i'm not sure when the next time i will be there? i live about 30mins from my property. I'm afraid the leaves will be off by then, but thanks for the offer. Any ideas on controlling them would be appreciated as i plan to plant more maples and ash tree's . i also have an area that has lots of poplar tree's that are pretty big and i'm going to remove some and replace with maple and ash, maybe some elm.I have 250 acres that i'm trying to clean up for when i start to build

ihookem · Oct 7, 2008

We call them tag elders in Wisconsin. They are good for sucking up lots of water in a low area. Other than that they are useless. The deer hide in the tag elder swamps and you can't see 20 feet in there.

Oldtrout · Oct 8, 2008

The most effective way that we have found to remove alders is to cut them in June,than spraying the small suckers with round up in September. It normally takes at least 2 treatments. I have also cut them and used my box blade to remove as much of the root as possible,however its impossible or next to imposible to get all the roots.I have also cut them as close to the ground as possible,and than used my rough mower to get the suckers once or twice a year. If you can get a more desirable species of tree planted nature will than control the alder,as they do not like competion or shade,I prefer to plant white pine because the are fairly fast growing with a fairly large crown,at least in this neck of the woods and will choke out the alder in a few years.
The Dept of Natural Resources in your area should be able to provide you with some more options,I know that the local DNR office has some handouts in this area; on my own woodlot I keep a few smaller areas of alder because several species of song birds prefer to nest in them so I guess they arn't all bad

.
Keep us informed as to how you make out,my starting point if I were you would check with the local DNR as they should have an extension forester on staff who could visit your site and make some more suggestions.
Good Luck
Wayne

studor · Oct 9, 2008

I have them on my property too and they grow like weeds beside the river and attract beaver - I have been cutting them down, piling the brush on the stump and burning the stump and brush later at the same time -- seems to work -- bush hog takes them out too and if you just keep cutting they seem to die eventually -- but not quickly -- they do make good walking sticks and rustic furniture

Steve

valley · Oct 3, 2009

Is the bark fiber like, cannot get a splinter? Is the smell of the bark somewhat aromatic?

smfcpacfp · Oct 4, 2009

ihookem said:
We call them tag elders in Wisconsin. They are good for sucking up lots of water in a low area. Other than that they are useless. The deer hide in the tag elder swamps and you can't see 20 feet in there.

I agree, they are what we call tag alders and they are definitely a nuisance, very much like kudzu. Good luck at getting rid of them.

keegs · Oct 4, 2009

I have them too. They seem to grow in clusters. Some clusters are large with the trees numbering well over a hundred. I was going to try to transplant the trees in one cluster for a screen (boarder) on one side of my property. Maybe I should reconsider.

Alder - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Egon · Oct 4, 2009

Import some moose. They should keep them down to about three or four feet.

dave1949 · Oct 4, 2009

Good Morning Keegs,

As Egon said, moose like them, some birds feed on the catkins.

I don't know if they are good candidates for a screening planting. Some alders I have here are not very long-lived. They grow in clusters off one root ball, then die when they get to be about 5-6" in dia. Then they are just a nuisance to deal with.

The wood has very little value as firewood. After it is dried out, it is very light in weight, so not much there to burn.

If you have a damp/wet area, it's a great wildlife habitat tree/shrub to leave in place.

Dave.