Another tree ID - Chittum?

[cowboy]

Here's a tree I've been wondering about for quite some time now. It's a white wood for sure - cause I hacked into a limb on one, had good lookin rings. The bark closely resembles osage, but without the orangy tint to it. The leaves resemble live oak - it has black berries on it about a quarter inch in diameter, thorns everywhere limbs branch out. I've seen them around northern TX and southern OK - may be wide spread but I just wasn't looking for em anywhere.
  Just curious if anyone knows what this is? I've gone online and tried to drill down to it, but keep getting live oak. All I've been able to find out is the old timers used to call it Chittum .


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[welch2]

I think chittum is another name for buckthorn. Is this it?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckthorn

Ralph

[cowboy]

Wow Ralph - that was fast! But no, don't think that's it. The leaves don't look the same and the berries are singles - don't grow in cluster's. thanks.

[welch2]

There many forms of buckthorn ,look further down the page ,for the clustered berry,  purging buckthorn.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Rhamnus_cathartica.jpg

Ralph

[cowboy]

Hmm, nope stil not a match. I'm going to dig into that a little deeper when I have more time - fixin to sign off and hit tha hay .

[deerhunter97370]

I dont know very much about trees but the thorns in your pic look the same as thorns on a Washington Hawthorn I have in my yard. Maybe yours could be a southern Hawthorn of some sort.

[CHUCKER]

COWBOY: IT SURE LOOKS LIKE ONE OF THE bUCK THORNS, IN VERMONT THEY DON'T GROW SO BIG, tHE TYPE WE HAVE HERE IS DARKER AND THE SAMPLES i HAVE AIR DRYING lOOK QIUTE ALOT LIKE OSAGE. i HAVE SEEN bUCK THORN ALL OVER THE US.
     THE HEART WOOD ON MINE LOOKS JUST LIKE SOME OF THE PHOTOS YOU & OTHERS HAVE POSTED, BUT THERE SEEM TO BE A LARGER PERCENTAGE OF SAP WOOD. I WILL TRY TO POST A PHOTO.

[tradrick]

I can't help with IDing the tree but do have a question.Not knowing different tree species is one major thing I need to learn for bow building.There's very few trees I could identify in the wild and I would like to change that.Does anyone have a recommendation on a book or website to learn about this?Sorry Cowboy not trying to hijack your thread just seemed like a good time to ask.tradrick

[DanaM]

Tradrick, go to all Walden bookstore and look thru them, Audbon is good, golden book is ok and there are lots of others.
As fer internet do a Google search for "Tree Identificatiom"

[TRACY]

It is definitely some variety of a buckthorn, not sure which. Looks like good bow wood to me! Give it a try

[CHUCKER]

This is our local Buckthorn. The heart wood was more orange when freshly cut!

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[CHUCKER]

Well how bout that it worked! This is from a 2" diameter sample. The smaller ones have a paper like bark while older 6" stuff has bark more like trunk in your photo. Do a search for invasive trees. You should find it there.

[Hrothgar]

Cowboy, I think what you have there is carolina buckhorn, also sometimes called indian cherry because of the berries.The University of Missouri tree catalgue lists it as an ornamental, doesn't say anything about the wood properties.

[Calendargirl]

have any of you gone to enature.com it will help id trees. 

[cowboy]

No Marie, but I'm fixin too . I need pictures - don't think this is a buckthorn (then again who know's? Haha). May just be an odd South Central brand - I'll get to the bottom of this if it's the last thing I do .