What kind of sun are you talking about?

ahhhh .. win some.. lose some ... as to ID guessing ... lol .. spend some time analyzing it this year.. and if on any level.. it does not please you ... GET RID OF IT ... when i bought my first house.. and loving history ... i was going to keep everything.. just the way it was .. it was the history of the yard .. crikey on that.. 5 years later.. i finally removed the last freakin nightmare left by the prior two owner.. and that ended up the happiest day in that garden ... moral of the story.. dont waste 5 years trying to make a bad situation better ... ken

Thanks, everyone. Carol, yes, I see that you commented based on my incomplete description. Good guess. NHBabs and macranthos, I'm sure you nailed it. There used to be a red oak close by and there are red oak (Q. rubra) everywhere and seedlings take root from the many acorns. I might have put a bit of round-up on some of the obstinate wild blackberry canes, and that could account for the damaged red oak. I'm going to yank it soon along with some other unwanted volunteers. Ditto the Vinca minor that I want to eradicate. I think I will mechanically remove things. Thanks again. I appreciate your time and talent. This forum is amazing.

Yup, probably W. Wine and Roses.