help with a filbert

ward · Feb 27, 2012

Tualatin, Oregon: (Willamette Valley) filbert capital of the USA.

A customer has a large, central stemmed filbert on what was once an old farmstead. The DBH was 43", the circumference 125". Overall height: approx 50'. The Oregon Tree Register has the largest Corylus cornuta at 75" circumference.

The buds are fuscous, imbricate, slightly flattened, ovoid.

The bark was somewhat corky and especially around the older sucker branches, a layer of corky bark developed.

The bark was somewhat mottled, though becoming smooth grey higher up.

Sorry about no pictures: I'll post them later.

Any suggestions?

MR_TEA · Feb 27, 2012

Yup, i think i know. European Filbert "Corylus avellana" there are hundreads of cultivars so its going to be hard know exactly which cultivar it is.....

tomthetreeman · Feb 28, 2012

If it indeed a Corylus, it's most likely a C. mandshurica because of the size. I'm not versed in West coast trees, so I could be wrong.

-Tom

ward · Feb 28, 2012

Because the European Filbert is (every time I have seen it) multi-stemmed, and this Filbert had a pair of central stems and a nice assemblage of horizontal lateral limbs (like an oak), I cannot think that it is the Corylus avellana. It has corky bark--something I haven't seen in the cultivated Filberts....but it is a filbert. I have a hunch it might be a Turkish filbert (Corylus colurna), but it might also be a hybrid. Must be up to 100 years old.

I'm trying to find a good entry on C. mandshurica...I'd be curious to know if that species would have been available in the wild west back then..

Sorry no picture just yet.

tomthetreeman · Feb 28, 2012

C. colurna is generally a tree form, so maybe that's it... Once in a while you find giants that are not 'supposed' to be that big.

I found an 40" DBH X 80'+ Katsura here in RI.

-Tom