.... but tree rings can’t do it, because they would only show AGE of the trees at the time they were cut. Which is NOT at all the same as how long ago (from present date) the trees were cut. I don’t know if they can use something like carbon dating precisely enough to know how long ago the trees were cut down.
True!
In fact, the tree rings can and do give an exact date, as well as age that the trees were cut.
Crossdating - The Basic Principle of Dendrochronology
www.ltrr.arizona.edu/lorim/basic.html
Crossdating is the most basic principle of dendrochronology. Crossdating is a technique that ensures each individual tree ring is assigned its exact year of formation. This is accomplished by matching patterns of wide and narrow rings between cores from the same tree, and between trees from different locations.
http://www.ltrr.arizona.edu/lorim/basic.html