could it be a camphor tree?

I was thinking camphor too.

The big tree is a Camphor, suckers are from a Cherry Laurel.

thank you all for your help. Now I am wondering where the Laurel suckers come from, they are right at the base of the Camphor. If the Laurel was taken out by previous owners how long will the roots keep suckering?

Maybe they had the camphor with a cherry laurel hedge surrounding it. I cut down a cherry laurel hedge from under a tree in my yard 1.5 years ago and had to keep at it cutting the suckers out. It stops sprouting for a while and then just starts up again as soon as you take your attention off of it. It still trys to regrow till this day. This is what makes them popular choices for hedges. They can tolerate lots of abuse. They might even be into it! Lol

Might not be suckers; cherry laurel also provides multitudes of viable seed contained in fruits that attract wildlife, which eat the fruits and conveniently plant the seeds in their droppings. Additionally, as FL Joe states, it grows back vigorously from its roots, so if you simply cut one down, it'll send out tons more sprouts in retaliation.

Can you guess how I know this?

hahaa, I guess there is no way soon to get rid of those suckers but with the lawn mower. The plan of a bromeliad bed around the trunk is not going to work :-/