Got Some Cedar Elm In! Updated w/photos

Dave Hoskins

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Parker County, Texas
Yesterday got some cedar elm in. It's still real green so it will be a bit before the first piece is finished. Just gonna guesstimate the weight as being a 3/4 ton pickup bed full. So, probably around 500 lbs. ? ? Maybe??? Sure felt heavy unloading it. :D
 
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Thanks, Vaughn. Yeah, from past experience with this stuff it is time to use the 440 Magnum on it. Just crank 'er up, lay it in place digging the teeth in, and let 'er rip. No pain, no strain. Well, not much. Certainly easier than trying to wrestle it with the smaller saw. This wood might have an interesting looking red tint to it, but only time will tell on that. We just rolled it off the truck under some trees for now. But, I'll see about getting a photo of it so you can see what I'm talking about.
 
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Took these two photos this afternoon. This piece is about 16" in diameter and about the same in length. The bark is neat looking as well as the color of the wood. You can see some of the reddish tint in it I was talking about earlier.

Cedar Elm 10May19 A.jpgCedar Elm 10May19.jpg
 
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I hope to get at least one roughed out tomorrow. We have been really wet as of the past 3 weeks. Not complaining about the rain, but a friend of mine needs it to dry out a bit so he can spread a Bermuda Hybrid seed on all of his newly chiseled and disced pastures. It required relatively dry ground to germinate he was telling me. I wish him luck with that.
 
Wat iz "cedar elm"? Isn't cedar cedar and elm elm? :huh: I know there are several woods called cedar. Locally is the aromatic eastern red. Can be pretty but I don't like to work it for a variety of reason. Don't believe I have ever seen elm wood, the trees are pretty scarce here, if any at all.
 

Interesting. I'm in north Arkansas which explains why we don't have it around here. I'm not a fan of wiki as it's 'facts' are sometimes gobedly gook. As this sentence illustrates: The common name 'cedar elm' is derived from the trees' association with juniper trees, locally known as cedars.[5] I never knew trees associated with one another. ;-) And, juniper is not cedar even though that is widely misunderstood. Juniper is a bush version of the red cedar tree. But, I am interested in seeing that hunk of 'cedar elm' turned and finished.
 
Frank, this is what Texas A&M Forestry Service says about cedar elm:

Tree Description:

A large tree to 75 feet tall with a tall straight trunk 2 to 3 feet in diameter and stiff branches that form a narrow, oblong crown.
Range/Site Description:

The most common elm tree in Texas, distributed widely in East, South, and Central Texas. Most often found near streams, in solid stands on flatwoods near rivers, or on dry limestone hills. Also planted widely as a landscape tree.
Leaf:

Alternate, simple, 1" to 2.5" long and 0.75" to 1" wide, oval to elliptical in shape, finely-toothed or sometimes double-toothed along the margin, and blunt at the tip. The upper surface is dark green, shiny, and rough, while the lower surface and petiole are pubescent. Twigs sometimes have thin, corky "wings" and the leaves can turn gold to orange-red in the fall.
Flower:

Appear in late summer or autumn as hairy, short-stalked clusters in the leaf axils.
Fruit:

An oval "samara," 0.25" to 0.5" long, the seed centered in the middle of the wing, deeply notched at the tip and hairy all over, especially along the margin. Seeds are borne in the fall, which distinguishes this species from the other native elms.
Bark:

Light brown to gray, with flattened ridges that break into thin, loose, flaky scales.
Wood:

Reddish-brown, brittle, with a thick layer of light-colored sapwood. The wood is sometimes used to manufacture wheel hubs, furniture, and fencing. Commonly sold in the nursery trade as a landscape tree.
Similar Species:

Winged elm (Ulmus alata) has larger leaves and seeds that mature in spring; varieties of Chinese elm (U. parvifolia) have similar leaves, but the bark is distinctly orange and flaky.
 
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