Need help identifying a tree

cenredash said:
But I like it .. I wanted to keep it, but the roots growing towards the house is in a spot I wanted to build.
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Maybe an experienced builder could advise you? Possibly remove the roots, build and keep the tree? Deeper roots could even be under your house right now but I'm just speculating.

I've experienced what tree roots can do to water pipes and house foundations. Not fun. Not cheap. Personally I'd just cut it down :/
 
MartyMarts said:
Maybe an experienced builder could advise you? Possibly remove the roots, build and keep the tree? Deeper roots could even be under your house right now but I'm just speculating.

I've experienced what tree roots can do to water pipes and house foundations. Not fun. Not cheap. Personally I'd just cut it down :/
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I hear you, but I bought into leafy suburb to have leaves not roots ;-) Hopefully can save them. Will talk to a builder, was told to talk to an arborist. Saw one starting at R600 per hour for consultation. Thought Eish.
 
cenredash said:
love the idea that it is an Ash of any nature :-) .. the google search does not show the roots as being above ground though.
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Roots above ground can be caused by other issues like low oxygen levels in the ground so I wont rule it out just from that. Lets see what the other guys come up with.

The article I linked to also mentions buttress roots.
 
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Beachless said:
Roots above ground can be caused by other issues like low oxygen levels in the ground so I wont rule it out just from that. Lets see what the other guys come up with.

The article I linked to also mentions buttress roots.
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Looking quite good! Thanks!
 
Hold your horses

cenredash said:
Thanks, I think a Cape Ash it is!
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Sorry to throw some doubt in the mix cenredash but it might not a cape ash (Ekebergia capensis) be. That my friend could also be a wild plum (Harpephyllum caffrum), an indigenous species that very closely to the untrained eye resembles a cape ash. The sickle shaped leaves are usually the giveaway and the fact that its leaves tend to be concentrated towards the ends of its branches.
Wild plum trees are very common in Cape Town especially on the Cape Flats where the water table is high as they do enjoy their moisture. They are actually indigenous to the eastern parts of SA, but grow very well in coastal areas of the Western Cape and inland where frosts are absent or not common.

The fruit of the wild plum and that of the cape ash are also quite different. While they both bear red berries the former has large oblong fruits whereas the latter has smaller more spherical fruits.

Take a look at this link and also on Google images
 
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@ OP

Pittosporum undulatum - sweet pittosporum, native daphne, Australian cheesewood, Victorian box or mock orange
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittosporum_undulatum

Flowers:

pittosporum-undulatum_small.jpg


Root system in this image

IMG_2701.jpg
 
There's an app for this called LEAFSNAP. Not sure if they have local species, but this looks exotic.
 
Thanks for letting us know about Leafsnap AntiGanda. I doubt it would be too much use over here though as their website says that they have lists of tree species for New York, Washington DC, or the Northeastern USA.
The vast majority of the tree species that one is likely to encounter in that part of the world are very unlikely to be encountered in Cape Town or most other places in SA and vice versa. They are in a cool temperate to boreal zone and we are more warm temperate i.e. Mediterranean to subtropical.
It would be awesome if someone could make an app like that specifically for South Africa! I have actualy thought about doing something like that in the past, but I would need to figure out how to go about creating an app first!
 
Thanks for the responses, I was hoping it is a Cape Ash but now @karooklonkie and @nanfeishen especially are making me doubt.

I'm still planning on getting an arborist to come for a site visit so hopefully will have a confirmed expert opinion in the next week.
 
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