How big are your trees ?

I mentioned last week the size of some of trees in one of our woodlots. A few people thought I "mistyped" when I mentioned 12'-14' diameter trees, and thought maybe I'd meant inches. Got several maples, hickorys, cottonwoods, and red oaks up to 14 feet diameter. Not a lot of fun when cutting and splitting into firewood, but I usually don't cut the big old trees and unless they're getting ready to fall anyway.

Had nice weather yesterday (for a few hours) and took our little 7 year-old kid on a nature-study out back. He's being home-schooled, so technically - according the State of New York, this was official schooling. We did some measuring a few nearby.

I'm sure there are people with much bigger trees out west, but some of these are pretty nice and big, for hardwoods.

This is a red oak that measures 13 1/2 feet diameter at shoulder-height at 15 feet at ground-level.

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_7036.jpg" target="_blank"> </a>

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_7036sm.jpg" target="_blank"></a>

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_7038.jpg" target="_blank"></a>


This one measures 11 feet at shoulder-height . .

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_7041.jpg" target="_blank"></a>

This red oak recently fell over. Thus the reason why I'm cutting some for firewood. This one is 14 1/2 feet at should-height.

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_7047.jpg" target="_blank"></a>

This is one our biggest shagbark hickorys. Measures 9 foot at shoulder-height.

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_7051.jpg" target="_blank"></a>

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_7052.jpg" target="_blank"></a>

This one is a soft-wood, i.e. white pine. Still a nice tree. Measures 14 feet at shoulder height. Got a few cottonwoods like this also.

<a href="http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m162/jdemaris/?action=view&current=100_6483whitepineadir.jpg" target="_blank"></a>

Think you mean circumferance. The distance around the tree vice "diameter" the distance from one side to the other measured through the center.

Nice trees...good photos...GREAT "subjects" posing with the trees.

I think the word should be "circumference" ... not "diameter".

How many cords of wood ya gonna get out of the fallen tree??

Rick

This explains the questions about the size of your trees.
The correct term for the distance around the trunk is circumference.
The diameter is the distance across the trunk through the middle.
Diameter is circumference divided by 3.14.

Yes, that probably explains why I did so lousy with math in school. I do know the difference when I really think about it, but often confuse the two terms.

Circumference divided by Pi (3.1416+) will give the diameter, i.e. distance straight through the trunk.

Nice tree, subjects, and photos and learning experience.

Since its "school", be sure to educate the young-un on diameter vs. circumference.

funny the show on the pennsylvania road just had a huge oak tree on it the other day they say years ago somebody back filled 4 feet of diet around it which would have killed most trees this one managed to survive they ran a tape measure around the bottom which is 4 feet above the original root system and it was a little over 22 feet

Mine are all hardwoods, Tallest one is a Shagbark hickory, 80 feet up, straight as an arrow.

Biggest in diameter and tall is a likely a Maple that is about 22 inches around and 60 feet up.

Anybody that can answer crawler questions like you is more than forgiven for a silly math mistake. Looks a lot like where I grew up in PA. We used to cut some huge oak

thats some really nice pictures ! Ill bet that boy did very well being home schooled, I commend you , best of luck to you and your family!!

He's already learned how to use Pi to figure areas of circles (3.14 times 1/2 the diameter squared). I know the difference when I really start thinking hard, but otherwise can barely do math, much less speak or type about it.

I just got done figuring the cubic inch displacement of an engine by calculating cylinder area times stroke. But it seems some parts of my brain do not alway connect with my mouth - or fingers on the keyboard.

Thank you for the photos ....

Some of the larger trees we have are shortleaf and loblolly pines with >48" DBH and over 120 ft tall ... we also have some red, white, post and water oaks that are about 24 to 36 inch DBH ...

Big is also a matter of species ... I have a dogwood that I have been tending for about 30 years ... it is now about 40 ft tall, has 4 main trunks ... the largest of which is about 12" diameter ... I'm hoping someday that I'll be able to have it listed as the state champion ... This tree is quite wonderful in the spring when it blooms ...

pkurilecz

I live near Pittsburgh, PA. In my back yard, about 15 feet from the back of the house, is a white oak, and i can only get my arms half-way around it. It is very high, don't know how to measure it, but it does stand tall above the other trees!
One day, a friend was walking down the driveway, and when he saw that tree----he looked up to the top area, then looked at the house, and said:"Why do you let that large tree stand that close to your home?"
I replied:" Well, its just too big to move--so there it stays!"
Seems in good health. I'm 86 yoa, and it'll probably be standing there when i get my last reward!

Are you confusing circumfrence with diameter?

Too bad the trees aren't that big but straight and smooth they would make some nice lumber.

A 13.5 foot circumference tree has a diameter of like what 4.3 feet. Pretty sizable tree.

UP here we have plenty of softwoods (and some hardwoods) that large that have beautiful and straight saw timber up to 70-80 feet.

All my big trees are Cottonwoods unfortunately. I've got a variety of small to medium size trees, and I'm planting maples and elms a few at a time for some hard woods. I also have a small area that I'm planting a small arboretum with different trees just as an area to stroll through.

Cottonwoods are the heavy hitters at my place. I live in northwest Minnesota so big trees aren't very common with our short growing season. Cottonwoods must do really well in poorly-drained soils 'cause that's what I got. 2 or 3 of em are 4 ft. in diameter.

Nice pics,i just hope you don't measure a bolt like this LOL

have a huge Elm tree over our cave spring where we get our drinking water. Never measured it but its been there for couple hundred years, at least. Prolly 8 ft' diameter. We live on an old Indian village & the spring supplied water to the tribe over the summer til they moved south every winter to Alabama. Lots of arrowheads, spearpoints, stone axes & stone tools in my roads & cowpaths.

Deep,
Ever been to the forest history center in Grand Rapids? It is worth a trip with the family sometime.
According to them back in the old days when the lumber barons took the forests off of the land the largest tree they found in MN was a White Pine that measured 6' 6" diameter at shoulder height.

I'd like to see a picture of the cave spring and tree. How's the water?

water is great. Most people here get their water from these springs but drilled wells are getting more popular as housing sites increase. Can't always find land with a spring nowadays. Would love to be computer-literate enuf to post pic. Have the digital camera & get pics up on puter but have no idea how to get'em online. Never took the time to learn.

It's been explained better on here before, but you need to make a free account on a site like "photobucket" and upload your pictures to that site on your account. Then you can copy that same picture and paste it to the "optional image url" space when making a post.