what the heck is this?

Kathy_Holzer · Oct 29, 2009

hi all. this one stumped the whole crew. very vigorous tree (like 4 ft suckers from poor cuts in one year) in a too-small spot, which we removed this week. mature leaves quite different from younger leaves, not even lobed. we kept thinking mulberry of some kind (no fruit tho). for size/vigor i could only think cottonwood or willow. bark was a bit like a willow. not much to go on - any ideas?
thx!

k

Kathy_Holzer · Oct 29, 2009

another

SMAdams · Oct 29, 2009

Was it opposite or alternate? I don't suppose you have any other form or bark photos. That's a good one.

Kathy_Holzer · Oct 29, 2009

yeah, i know. i failed to make a note of opposite/alternate and now the tree is in the back of my chip box. my bad. form was decurrent, kinda droopy. that's all i got.

cerviarborist · Oct 29, 2009

The leaves look very much like hibiscus. Here in Florida, the latest trend is to shape them into little trees, rather than their normal bushy habit. I'm sure I'm wrong 8 ways to Sunday, but that was my first impression of the leaves.

tomthetreeman · Oct 29, 2009

Some of those look identical to mulberry, so it could be a male (no fruit), which is pretty common. The thing is, the maple-looking leaf is throwing the whole thing off... Almost looks like it could be a Viburnum.

-Tom

Blinky · Oct 29, 2009

Mulberry was my immediate impression too, but I've never seen the maple shape either... they are pretty variable though.

Paul Biester · Oct 30, 2009

Could it be box elder? Acer negundo. Twigs would be bright green,and the bark would be willow (ish). tan to light brown

Kathy_Holzer · Oct 30, 2009

not unless it's some pretty weird one - i can ID acer negundo. glad to hear i'm not the only one stumped! sorry there's not much to go on..

treegazer · Oct 31, 2009

it looks like a mulberry to me.
Did it have a milky white sap?

Jman · Oct 31, 2009

[ QUOTE ]
it looks like a mulberry to me.
Did it have a milky white sap?

[/ QUOTE ]

I'll second that.

theXman · Oct 31, 2009

Look into Paper Mulberry.

I think that's what it is.

Invasive specie.

I saw the first one in my area a year ago and was stumped by it for a while.

Apparently, they are pretty common in other states.

If I saw a trunk/bark picture, I could tell for sure, but I think that's what you have.

Kathy_Holzer · Oct 31, 2009

thanks guys, i'll check that out. not sure on the milky sap as i was not the climber. gotta love the buzz

CalLiveOak · Nov 10, 2009

I would say Mulberry for sure. They have very vigorous sprouts, sometimes 15 ft. out here.

Jamin_Mayer · Nov 12, 2009

It came from the Tree Buzz tree. I can tell from here!

Sorry, I had to. Every time I see that tree, I want to trim it.

But, I'm leaning towards a Mulberry cultivar as well...

Dan_Ray · Nov 12, 2009

I would almost bet my life that it is Mulberry. Grows like a weed here.

Kathy_Holzer · Nov 12, 2009

well, i'd say that's a pretty conclusive id then - postmortem anyway. first one i've seen up here, though i'm sure there must be others. hopefully not invading from calif/oregon...
thx again.
k.

Pstuffel · Nov 12, 2009

Throw a rock in any direction and you will hit one here in Austin.

Treelimbjim · Nov 18, 2009

Its near the top of the list of trees that have distinctly different leaves on a single tree.

Poison ivy and Mulberry. Hmm.

In Dallas they seem to attractors for bad pruning techniques and their proprietors.

Habitat: fence lines, adjacent to foundations, sidewalks and driveways (able to crack flat surfaces in 8 years), and above and below-ground utility services.

TroutBrook · Oct 12, 2014

That is an Amur maple which grows invasively as a short shrub and has NO milky sap AND has variable leaves exactly matching within the range of what you pictured