Many species rely on English elm for food. Mature trees grow to 30m and can live for more than 100 years.

Symptoms Of A Dying Tree

1. Cracks in the trunk or peeling bark.
2. Mushrooms growing near the tree’s roots.
3. Multiple branches that have no living buds.

Dutch elm disease is caused by the the fungus Ophiostoma ulmi that clogs the vascular tissues within a tree preventing water movement to the crown. Both species of beetles are attracted to stressed or dying elm trees and dead elm wood.

If you have living elm over 20″ they may be more valuable to leave standing. If nothing else I suggest finding a market first, cause elm is not a highly valued wood, and the trees may be of more value for ascetics than for the dollars for pulp.

Is Elm good firewood? Elm is relatively poor firewood. It has a low heat output of 20 million BTUs per cord of seasoned wood, which is much lower than dense hardwoods like Hickory and Oak. Elm is also very difficult to split, and it produces a moderate level of smoke.

Sweet gum trees are found throughout the eastern United States. It’s considered a valuable tree used for lumber and furniture production, as well as for ornamental purposes. The wood has a unique reddish brown color with sapwood that’s nearly white and black grain running through the hardwood.

Sweet gum balls do not catch fire very well by themselves and tend to smolder. However, this makes them a great fuel for hobo stoves as they burn hot enough to cook with, but with minimal flame. Tossed into an already hot fire, they’ll burn just fine.

From many perspectives the sweetgum is a good tree for the urban landscape. It grows fast in almost any soil, has good fall color and has few serious insect or disease problems. But the typical seedling sweetgum has a flaw – it makes sweetgum balls.

Sweet gum trees bloom with inconspicuous, yellowish-green flowers in the spring that turn to seedpods — which are often called gumballs — in the fall. The tree is not toxic to dogs and cats, but the seedpods do present a different type of health threat if your pet were to step on one.

There was a time not too long ago when the Sweet Gum was a popular choice for suburban yards. It grows relatively fast, has a pleasing symmetrical shape and fabulous fall color.

Snipper is an injectable product that de-balls a sweetgum. It can be used by a homeowner but hiring a certified arborist might be a better solution. Another alternative for you is to cut down the offending tree and plant a fruitless sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua ‘Rotundiloba’) in its place.

Triclopyr, imazapyr and glyphosate-based herbicides work best in killing sweetgum trees. Before mixing herbicides, wear safety equipment, such as goggles, work gloves and long sleeves. Mix the herbicide according to package instructions and funnel the mixture into a tank sprayer.

If you’ve encountered some round, spiny balls under a tree or maybe still on the plant, and you’re wondering what it could be, it’s likely one of several options: buckeye/horsechestnut (Aesculus), chestnut (Castanea), or sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua).

Although sweetgum trees are often planted as street trees, they have shallow roots that can lift sidewalks and curbs. Sweetgum trees are considered pioneer trees. These are trees that can become invasive in an area because they take root easily from seeds and grow quickly, often excluding all other plants in the area.

Once sweet gum trees are fully mature, they don’t require a lot of care. They don’t require fertilizers every year and don’t require a lot of pruning. However, younger trees do require pruning, mostly for shaping to encourage healthy tree growth.