Tree patterns?

[Pilgrim]

I had some trees cut down recently.  Does anyone know what causes the strange patterns in this maple?

[DC Concours]

Could be borer infestation inside the tree. I can't tell if the patterns are hollow or dead wood. The larvae and adults can do this depending on the type of borers infesting the tree and how long it has been going on.

That is far from a normal ring pattern.

[Boomer]

Or if the trees were ever tapped for their sap, either by people, bugs or birds.
Cut thin slices and see how far each pattern carries on.
Can also be caused by lightning strikes but those dark patterns tend to be more random.

[cra-z1000]

Some of that looks like burn marks from the saw . Maybe dull chain ?

[Conrad]

I had some trees cut down recently.  Does anyone know what causes the strange patterns in this maple?

I recently had three Maples in my yard removed. My wife and I planted the largest back in 1986, this one was HUGE and had a 43" diameter stump!!!

All three of these Maples had that inner light gray wood that you are showing. Not the darker strange looking wood that you also have.

[Pilgrim]

DC,
Bug damage. Yes, certainly a possibility.  It is not hollow, the dark wood is hard.

Boomer,
Being tapped by a previous owner is certainly possible.  The pattern goes for about 20 feet in that tree, and there are similar marks in a couple other maples, but not that length.  I don't believe lightning caused it.

Cra-z,
The saws were very sharp, went thru them like butter.   They had to be sharp to go thru these dense maples, which is heavier than the white oaks that got cut/trimmed.

Conrad,
Trees that large provide a lot of wood.  What did you do with it?   This wood will go north to the ski house for burning.

Thanks for the replies.

[Conrad]

DC,
Bug damage. Yes, certainly a possibility.  It is not hollow, the dark wood is hard.

Boomer,
Being tapped by a previous owner is certainly possible.  The pattern goes for about 20 feet in that tree, and there are similar marks in a couple other maples, but not that length.  I don't believe lightning caused it.

Cra-z,
The saws were very sharp, went thru them like butter.   They had to be sharp to go thru these dense maples, which is heavier than the white oaks that got cut/trimmed.

Conrad,
Trees that large provide a lot of wood.  What did you do with it?   This wood will go north to the ski house for burning.

Thanks for the replies.

We have a large centrally located wood stove in the house. If necessary I can pretty much heat the entire house with this thing, except for the basement that is. I'm all set for wood for the next few years... 

[Pilgrim]

Cut down another cluster of maples, there were six growing together.  They all had the markings.  These are sugar maples.   I'm leaning towards insects as the cause, but can't confirm yet.  The markings run thru most of the length of the trees.

[maxtog]

You have a lot of trees

I only had one significant tree on my 100x75 lot, a silver maple, like all my neighbors (at one point).  They are unofficially called "trash trees" due to their brittleness, limited life, and susceptibility to issues.  It was already 40 years old, 20 years ago.  Sure enough, it was infested with mistletoe and dying, like all the other silver maples in my neighborhood, and I had to take it down.  Now there are probably only a few left in a square mile.

What I have left are medium-sized- a few crate myrtles, Japanese privets, and Nellie Steven holly.  Things look so much different from 30 years ago.

[Conrad]

Cut down another cluster of maples, there were six growing together.  They all had the markings.  These are sugar maples.   I'm leaning towards insects as the cause, but can't confirm yet.  The markings run thru most of the length of the trees.

That's so strange!

I hauled the remainder of my cut up trees to the back of my yard yesterday. I'll have to rent a splitter to get it all split. Fun stuff.

[VirginiaJim]

Looks like lightening damage based on what I've read about on the 'net.  Not all lightening blows a tree up.

[maxtog]

Looks like lightening damage based on what I've read about on the 'net.  Not all lightening blows a tree up.

I don't think the odds are great that all his maples were struck by lightening, though.

[greenie]

It appears that the color spreads outward from the center than inward from the bark. Maple trees can host several diseases - my vote is Verticillium Wilt.  "This is a much more serious disease that affects all kinds of maples, but Sugar Maple and Silver Maple are the ones most commonly affected. It can also affect Japanese Maple. This disease is another fungus that enters through the roots and blocks the water passages inside the tree. The lack of water and nutrients flowing through the tree causes branches to die; at first small ones high up in the tree and later whole limbs lose their leaves and die. Often this is first noticed when a branch starts to show fall colors in late summer, long before other trees begin to color at all.

After a few years no more leaves will grow and the branch will die. Sometimes the disease spreads quickly and a tree may die in a few years. Other times a tree may live for a long time, slowly becoming weaker and less attractive, but never dying completely. You can often confirm that you have Verticillium Wilt by taking a branch that is showing these symptoms and cutting it across. You will see brown staining of the wood in a circle a little below the bark. This confirms you have the disease, but its absence doesn’t mean you don’t." https://www.thetreecenter.com/maple-tree-diseases/




 

[VirginiaJim]

I don't think the odds are great that all his maples were struck by lightening, though.

Why not?  Lightening does strike in the same places all the time.  Maybe it's that strange lightening that floats around looking for Maple trees.

[Pilgrim]

I checked with a reliable source in the tree business, and in his professional opinion, he said the initial wound is caused by a borer, not sure which one, and the discoloration is fungal, not sure which one.  There are two things that stain wood, mineral streaking and fungus.

In searching for the cause, I stumbled across someone on Etsy selling slices of wood with a star pattern on them for $30.  Hmm, I could have a gold mine here 

[Strawboss]

Sell it don't burn it.

[Conrad]

There you go! Slice up a few of those things and offer em up for sale.

What's the worst that can happen? Um, never mind answering that.   

[Pilgrim]

Sapstreak Disease.  https://northernwoodlands.org/articles/article/sapstreak-disease

[VirginiaJim]

Well that makes more sense but lightening is more exciting..

[Pilgrim]

Confirmed this is caused by a native species of Ceratocystis.  A very common pathogen in the environment, but not overly aggressive and rarely kills trees alone.  Aside from the staining, there is no significant damage to the wood as it is likely just as structurally stable as the surrounding wood. 

https://www.fs.fed.us/ne/newtown_square/publications/research_papers/pdfs/scanned/OCR/ne_rp675.pdf  Ref figure 12 for similar

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceratocystis_coerulescens

Thanks to all replies.