Your Favorite Type of Wood to Burn?

[downeast]

Got a deadly case of O.E. ( Oak Envy  :( ). There's little high BTU wood along this Downeast coast so you "dance with the one who brung 'ya ".

When we closed on this woodlot in the 90's it was 80% "doghair spruce and fir", mixed with Red/Soft Maple and Paper Birch, few Apples, some Green Ash, and little Red Oak. Most of the firewood since has been Birch and Maple, saving the rare dead standing oaks for serious cold spells. With good woodland management the apples, oaks, ashes, and White Pines are finally getting growth.

*DanG, I'd die to have those oaks, hickories, beech, or hedges to burn. Our tiny Beeches die well before maturity.

[JakeLeg]

Hedge for me too. Almost all we burn like to mix it with locust,ash or hackberry.

[Cypressstump]

I became really fond of Pinion while living in the southwest. It's a pine of sorts, brushy, twisted grain usually, saps like crazy when the live bark is damaged, those sap balls make excellent fire starter even in wet snowing conditions, always keep a few in the backpack. The fragrant smell is something to behold in my opinion. Puts out a lot of heat, burns well, not a lot of ash, and lasts decently long Unlike normal pines, people use the Pinion for home heating firewood with great results and very little soot buildup due to the extreme heat it generates..

But down here in La. it's Oak I like best, red, water, white, any oak.

[wheelinguy]

My favorite type of wood to burn has been what we have used for the past six years since we put in our OWB, FREE!!! 8)

[gspren]

   Ive got about 30 acres of mixed oak and poplar and some wooded pasture that is mostly cherry and locust and in 26 years Ive never needed to cut a healthy tree just for fire wood, last years cutting was almost entirely cherry and locust. I recently paint marked 6 dead oaks to come down when it gets cooler. My favorite trees are the ones that fall all the way down without hanging up!

[Roxie]

We were grocery shopping at the Amish store on Saturday, and the owner of the store wrapped our ice cream carton in an old newspaper.  It was an Amish newspaper called the Die Botschaft and dated Dec 1, 2008.  It had the words to a song inside:

Beech wood fires are bright and clear
If the logs are kept one year
Chestnuts only good they say
If for long it's laid away
Birch and fire logs burn too fast
Blaze up bright and do not last
Elm wood burns like a church yard mould
Even the very flames are cold
Poplar gives a bitter smoke
Fills your eyes and makes you choke
Apple wood will scent your room
Will give an incense like perfume
Oak and Maple if dry and old
Keeps away the winter cold
But, Ash wood wet and Ash wood dry
A King shall warm his slippers by

[doctorb]

Love that, Roxie!

[WDH]

There are a lot of people that will be burning ash this winter thanks to that little bug :'(.

[mrcaptainbob]

I have yet to run across a wood that this burner will not eat. As for willow, I do have a supply of that. It's great to restart warm coals. Amazing how it flashes. Like paper. Good to start the 'real' wood. I believe I might try a whole stove full of willow this coming winter to see how it lasts. I suspect a hot flame like that might get the water up faster and the stove shuts down sooner. We'll see....

[thecfarm]

I saw a bunch of weeping willow,I suppose one tree, at the dump. I have plenty of wood,but thought there's some wood for a OWB. It was a big one too,like most are. The wife rook a branch off from her son's tree and wants one here. She grew up with one and it brings back a lot of memories for her. I have a place all ready for it. Never have burned it or cut one down.

[doctorb]

Plant it in moist rather than dry ground.  They love that.