#build4

Schneider Zelkova

Zelkova schneideriana

More Images Common Name: Japanese zelkova   Type: Tree Family: Ulmaceae Native Range: Asia, Russia Zone: 5 to 8 Height: 50.00 to 80.00 feet Spread: 50.00 to 80.00 feet Bloom Time: March to April Bloom Description: Green Sun: Full sun

BUILD/BEAUTY

This Asian tree is located in the Arnold Arboretum and caught my eye for a number of reasons. The first being how green the tree was for late November iin New England, and the second being as I got closer, its bark was pretty good looking, a mix between smooth and rough. It was smooth but scaled as pieces started to peel off, almost like a beech and a birch and a dogwood had a baby and came up with this thing. I will award it a 3 out of 3 for its bark. Its serrated leaves were nothing special despite being almost fully green. The color change didn’t seem to be present, and it gets a 1 out of 4 for leaves. The landscape uniqueness is high up at 2, because of its ability to hold onto its leaves, its foreign nature, as well as its cool bark. Total score, 6 out of 10.

Bark: (1-3) 3

Leaves: (1-4) 1

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 2

Total: 6 out of 10

For a building material, the zelkova doesn’t have a large resource of information due to its main uses being turned objects such as bowls, cups, and the likes. The wood is also great for furniture such as chests and amours, and takes stain well. This wood is most similar in my opinion to a teak, where it has good ornamental value. This tree will get a rating of 4 out of the possible 10, due to its ornamental value, but the wood does not have much structural uses.

Source:

1. https://www.uaex.edu/yard-garden/resource-library/plant-week/Zelkova-schneideriana-Chinese-Zelkova-04-14-2017.aspx

2. https://www.woodworkerssource.com/wood_library_show_tree.php?wood=Zelkova%2520serrata

Yellow Birch

Betula alleghaniensis

Family (Botanic): Betulaceae Planting Site: Residential and parks Tree or Plant Type: Tree Foliage: Deciduous  Native Locale: Chicago area, Illinois, North America Landscape Uses: Shade tree Size Range: Large tree  Mature Height: 60-75 feet Mature Width: 60-75 feet Light Exposure: Full/partial sun Hardiness Zones: Zone 3-7

BUILD/BEAUTY

This yellow birch found in the Arnold Arboretum is placed on the northern side of Bussey Hill. From a distance it did not look much like a typical birch, in that its bark wasn’t white or excessively peeling. The bark is that of a beech, but it does have a peely appearance to it, rather than being smooth. the gray reminds me of a graphite pencil, as it has some shimmer in the sunlight. It scores some points for this, gaining a 2 out of 3 for bark. Its leaves, aren’t exactly mind blowing. They look similar to many other birches, where they are simply pointed and yellow in the fall, earning a 1 out of 4. The landscape uniqueness is also around 1 out of 3. This is due to the fact that it blends in well with the landscape, the tree trunks splitting near the ground, and the color of the bark just doesn’t spark excitement.

Bark: (1-3) 2

Leaves: (1-4) 1

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 1

Total: 4

The Yellow birch has a janka hardness rating of 1,260lbs, making it a hard wood. This tree’s wood main uses include plywood, boxes, crates, turned objects, interior trim, and other small specialty wood items. The closest thing this wood comes to being a building material is when its turned into plywood. The wood is workable, but you have to be careful of the wood breaking down a a grain strip, where it wants to come apart on a weak spot in the grain. The MOE of yellow birch is 2,010,000 lbf/in2, which is pretty good. This wood gets a low 4 out of 10 score for buildability, due to it not being used in many building applications, but it has some uses in smaller woodworking activities and having good strength in general.

Source:

1. https://www.mortonarb.org/trees-plants/tree-plant-descriptions/yellow-birch

2. https://www.wood-database.com/yellow-birch/

Camperdown Elm

Ulmus glabra ‘camperdownii’

Type: Tree Family: Ulmaceae Native Range: Northern and central Europe, Asia Minor Zone: 4-6 Height: 70-100 feet Spread: 50-70 feet Bloom Time: March to April Bloom Description: Reddish-green Sun: Full sun Water: Medium Maintenance: Medium

BUILD/BEAUTY

This has to be one of my favorite trees I have run into so far. I have a soft spot in my heart for this tree, due to its whimsical nature, as well as how much I have ran into this exact type of tree this year. I moved my sister into a new apartment that happened to have a walkway lined with these exact trees. Then I find one on Northeastern Campus, of all places. I would have to say its the most unique landscape tree I have rated, due to it having leaves of an elm, the form of a bonsai willow, and the essence or Halloween built into its twigs. The tree gets a 3 out of 3 for landscape uniqueness, and a 3 out of 4 for its leaves, which is mainly boosted up by its twigs. The bark gets a 2 out of 3, for its gnarled gray appearance, with small plates covering the trunk. I enjoy this tree greatly, I would like a yard full of them someday.

Bark: (1-3) 2

Leaves: (1-4) 3

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 3

Total: 8

The building information for this exact elm is sparse, due to its rarity and value as an ornament. luckily, I did find some information on its close cousin the wych elm, which is not the softest wood, for being so ornamental. The wood scores a hefty 990lbs on the janka hardness scale. The wood holds nails and screws well, as its a dense wood, but you must watch out for grain tear out, as well as fuzz forming when working with machined tools. This wood is clearly too small to ever be used in construction, but its most common uses include boxes, baskets, furniture, hockey sticks, veneer, and pulp for paper making. The wood also looks great sealed up. I will award this tree a 4 out of 10 for buildability, a score that could easily be lower if it wasn’t so good looking.

Source: 

1. https://www.monrovia.com/plant-catalog/plants/2181/camperdown-elm/

2. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-british-trees/wych-elm/

3. https://www.wood-database.com/wych-elm/

Kansas Hybrid Elm

Ulmus ‘Kansas Hybrid’

(U. pumila X U. Americana)

Type: Tree Family: Ulmaceae Native Range: Kansas, I suppose Zone: 4 to 9 Height: 50.00 to 70.00 feet Spread: 40.00 to 70.00 feet Bloom Time: March to April Bloom Description: Reddish-green Sun: Full sun Water: Dry to medium

BUILD/BEAUTY

This Elm is a cross between the Siberian Elm and the American Elm, to create the Kansas hybrid elm. As you could guess, this elm has little to no information about it online, due to its sparse propagation and rare nature. The bark is multicolored, due to its ability to grow all sorts of mosses and lichens, creating a great mosaic of grays, browns, greens, and even some hues of steel blues. I will award this tree a 2 out of 3 for its bark. The leaves are similar to that of the american elm, which is a simple deep veined small leaf, earning a 1 out of 4. This tree is large in its landscape, but doesn’t do much for its self in terms of standing out. This tree gets a 1 out of 3 for landscape uniqueness, which gives a total score of 4 out of 10 for beauty.

Bark: (1-3) 2

Leaves: (1-4) 1

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 1

Total: 4

The Kansas hybrid has no information about its wood online, but I can parse out what it would be like by studying the American Elm and Siberian Elm wood together to deduce a combination. The picture below is from a Siberian Elm, which has very pretty grain.

(Photo source: https://wunderwoods.wordpress.com/2011/12/20/siberian-elm-and-american-elm-leaders-of-the-elm-revolution/)

This wood is in the middle of the road in terms of hardness, it dries wacky when being cooked, and is hard to work with. The biggest hurdle for Elm being a good wood is dutch elm disease, which has wipes out many varieties of elm, leaving no good samples to use. The wood isn’t structurally great so its not used for building materials, mostly just as decorative pieces such as veneer or small wooden boxes and such. This tree gets a 4 out of 10 for build quality

Source:

1. http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=a925

2. https://www.mortonarb.org/trees-plants/tree-plant-descriptions/american-elm

Dawn Redwood

Metasequoia glyptostroboides

Type: Tree Family: Cupressaceae Native Range: Central and western China Zone: 4-8 Height: 70.00 to 100.00 feet Spread: 15.00 to 25.00 feet Bloom Time: Non-flowering Bloom Description: Non-flowering Sun: Full sun Water: Medium to wet Maintenance: Low

BUILD/BEAUTY

This tree is located by a scenic little stream in the Arnold Arboretum, by the maple section. I love this tree because it looks like something out of Jurassic park, the height, the leaves, the color, everything is just so unique. The bark of this tree is similar to that of the bald cypress, with its veins striking up and down the trunk, it earns a 2 out of 3 for its bark/trunk form. The leaves (more like needles) act like coniferous needles, but fall off in the fall, and earn a 3 out of 4. For landscape uniqueness, this one definitely shines here with its height and illustrious history of being found in a back valley in China, after it was thought to be extinct. This tree gets a 3 out of 3 for landscape uniqueness for a total of 8 out of 10.

Bark: (1-3) 2

Leaves: (1-4) 3

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 3

Total: 8

This wood is similar to that of cypress, or redwood, in that it has a bright red colored heartwood with a lighter colored sapwood that is kind of soft. The wood doesn’t do great structurally, but its main uses include house siding, boat houses, anything that requires an ornamental sheathing made of wood. I will award this metasequioa a 4 out of 10 for building material score, due to it having some uses in construction, mainly aesthetic, but its not used in framing often, if ever.

Source:

1. https://www.arborday.org/trees/treeguide/TreeDetail.cfm?ItemID=914

2. https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=a396

Norway Maple (cultivar, Goldsworth Purple)

Acer platanoides

Family (Botanic): Sapindaceae (formerly Aceraceae) Tree or Plant Type: Tree Foliage: Deciduous Native Locale: Non-native (invasive) Size Range: Large tree Mature Height: 40-50 feet Mature Width: 35-50 feet Light Exposure: Full sun/partial sun Hardiness Zones: Zone 4-7

BEAUTY/BUILD

This specific Norway Maple was found in the Arnold Arboretum, where it still luckily held on to a few leaves, so that I could document it. The leaves of this specific cultivar are more of a purple in the summer months, rather than the maple’s traditional dark green. The leaves are the highest scoring in the categories, with a 3 out of 4, due to them being on the tree in late November as well as being purple. The bark is similar to that of other maples, its gray bark isn’t deeply ravined, but it sure has its ridges. The bark gets a 1 out of the possible 3 score. For landscape uniqueness, this maple gets a 1 out of 3. Its lucky it even scores a 1, as I do not like maples all that much, but this ones pretty in the summer rather than just the fall.

Bark: (1-3) 1

Leaves: (1-4) 3

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 1

Total: 5

The building properties of Norway Maple include veneer, boxes, crates/pallets, musical instruments, turned objects, and other small specialty wood items. This wood isn’t used as structural members. The wood can be easily worked by hand or machine, although it has a low burn temperature so you have to watch what machine tools you use on it, as to not burn it. The wood is not either a hard wood or a soft wood, but somewhere precariously in between, more similar to a field maple than to that of a hard or soft wood. Unlike its other maple brothers, this wood is more prized for its sapwood rather than its heartwood. The wood gets a rating of 4 out of 10, as it has some uses, but its a nuisance and isn’t a great wood to work with for building.

Source:

1. https://www.mortonarb.org/trees-plants/tree-plant-descriptions/norway-maple-not-recommended

2. https://www.wood-database.com/norway-maple/

American Redbud

Cercis canadensis

Family (Botanic): Fabaceae  Planting Site: Residential and parks Tree or Plant Type: Tree Foliage: Deciduous  Native Locale: Chicago area, Illinois, North America Landscape Uses: Massing, Patio/sidewalk, Shade tree, Specimen Size Range: Medium tree  Mature Height: 20-30 feet Mature Width: 25-35 feet Light Exposure: Full sun, Partial sun/shade Hardiness Zones: Zone 4-9

BEAUTY/BUILD

The American Redbud is a small to medium sized tree, which is evident in the example shown above. This example is found on Northeastern University, where it resides next to dogwoods, red pines, and river birch. The tree is known as a red bud due to its showy floral blooms in the spring. unbeknownst to me, this tree is in the pea family. The tree’s bark is not anything special of merit, it is mildly flaky with medium to shallow ravines in the skin. The color in the ravines is a nice light brown, to teak color. The rating for bark will be a 1. The leaves aren’t substantial, but as noted in other posts, floral qualities are designated for this area. Since in the spring it blooms so well and the large heart shaped leaves are still present, It will get a 4 out of 4. For landscape uniqueness, the redbud blends in well with its surroundings. The Tree must be a spectacle to see in the spring, and I will award it a 2 out of 3 for seasonal excitement. I am looking forward to seeing this tree in bloom next spring.

Bark: (1-3) 1

Leaves: (1-4) 4

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 2

Total: 7

Building qualities of the American Redbud include bowls, cups, handles, and anything else that’s ornamental. The burls of the redbud are gorgeous when smoothed, sanded and polished. This tree is not exactly big enough to be turned into a building material, but that hasn’t stopped people from using its beautiful wood for decorative pieces. The wood is a dark brown even before staining, so with stain it reaches a nice lovely deep brown. The heartwood is much larger in these trees compared to others of its size and stature, which is a great choice for people who are looking for a reasonably priced decorative wood to put on a lathe. The Redbud earns a 4 out of 10 for buildability.

Source: 

1. https://www.arborday.org/trees/treeguide/treedetail.cfm?itemID=912

2. https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=ceca4

Beach Grass

Ammophila breviligulata

Growth rate: medium 

Can be grown in 1, 2 or 3 gallon

Grow in well-drained, sandy or light media

Watering: keep evenly moist

Fertilizing: slow-release fertilizer, low-medium rate

Possible pests: no major pests

Height: 1-2 feet tall

Spread: a single plant can be many 100′s of feet across, due to its rooting nature.

Zones: 3-9

The beach grass is another type of plant that has no business being in a field guide about structural woods. But, like hudsonia, it is also crucial to the success of dune structure, being the most important piece of the front dunes, the ones that protect the land from the strength of the ocean. I will award it one notch above the hudsonia, at 4 out of 10, due to its critical nature of holding the beach together.

The beach grass is also aesthetically pleasing as well, it flows in the breeze and creates great patterns as it does so. The underside of the fronds are much more pale than the green skyward side, and they have a rough texture to them when you run your fingers opposite of the frond.

I see these occasionally out of context, in planter boxes in cities or in urban landscape yards. These are good additions and create a diverse type of plant life in a planter box.

Bark: (1-3) 0

Leaves: (1-4) 4

Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 3

Beauty score: 7 out of 10

Source:

http://hoffmannursery.com/plants/details/ammophila-breviligulata