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Beaver dropped poplars

Started by TBark, June 13, 2019, 09:20:53 AM

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TBark

Hi folks, new member here from Alberta Can.
I have recently ordered my first mill, the Norwood MN26.
The biggest reason for the mill is that we have 320 acres in North Central AB with many many dropped polars in our creek valleys, dam beavers (bad pun) only use the top branches and the way these trees are stacking up, well its in such a way that most are off the ground and likely dry to the point of being mill ready.
So can I ask, does anyone have experience with these poplars it is a good wood for boards or projects?

Any opinions are appreciated.

TBark

Bruno of NH

I mill poplar and sell it.
I respect it as interior trim painted or stained. 
For building drawers
Some use it for trailer decking. 
Most don't like this kind of poplar 
Lt 40 wide with 38hp gas and command controls , F350 4x4 dump and lot of contracting tools

Southside

Spent too many hours in the woods too far from other people years back and I would look at those beaver dropped poplars and imagine ways I could get them organized / hired to bring the logs to a my mill and eliminate all logging costs.  ::)
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hacknchop

Welcome to the Forestry Forum , here in Northern Ontario what we call poplar is actually aspen ,so  make sure were talking about the same trees . Both trees definitely have value but also have different uses.
Often wrong never indoubt

sawguy21

You actually have aspen, commonly called poplar in western Canada. I would definitely like to see it milled and dried but have no idea what you would use it for other than trim. Most is chipped for strandboard.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

curved-wood

Not sure if it is poplar or aspen but I used it to do an inside door. I am very happy with the result, it easy to finish. It does not yellowish the color as pine could do with time. Also I did some 2x10 scaffolding planks in clear stuff. Not too heavy when dry but very strong. I've try it exposed to element : one of the champion on speed for rotting.  I wouldn't hesitate to frame as long as it is not exposed. I dont like to use small diameter because the tend to warp and I try to cut it in winter when it is solid frozen.

Brad_bb

Based on his location, I'd say he's talking about Aspen, not Tulip Poplar like in the south and east US.
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hacknchop

Yup we've cut aspen for mouldings and trims I have seen poplar while travelling to Indiana and Ohio but don't really know where the boundary is as far as how far north poplar grows but have seen aspen as far north as Kirkland Lake Ontario maybe some of our friends from Michigan can give us an idea of where it starts .
Often wrong never indoubt

LoneDuck

I grew up calling aspin, poplar. That is the main thing we logged in Wisconsin for pulp wood. We also used it to make tongue and groove paneling. Check out White Pine Mi vfw on Facebook. We did all the work in there.

alan gage

Sounds like it's another good time to post this link to sorting out aspen, cottonwood, poplar, and poplar:

Poplar, Cottonwood, and Aspen: What's What? | The Wood Database

Alan
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barbender

Heh heh we get to have this discussion every time poplar comes up😁 If it's in northern Canada, my money is on Aspen😊 In northern Minnesotan we have both quaking aspen and bigtooth aspen. They have minor differences but the wood is the same. They are both known commonly as "popple", which I think is the German word for cottonwood or aspen type trees. We also have Balsam Poplar, which can look similar to aspen. It is also known as Balm of Gilead, Balmy, or Bam. Sometimes it grows interspersed with Aspen, but it tends toward wetter sites where it can form pure stands. Tulip Poplar...I don't think that grows in MN, especially not the Northern part. Perhaps in the SE "banana belt" part of the state😊 Back to the OP, aspen makes a nice, bright paneling with contrasting brown and green knots. It is fairly weak, and kind of does what it wants when drying, but once dried and machined, it pretty well stays put.
Too many irons in the fire

Brucer

A local businessman built a large addition on his house and used Aspen for the ceiling. The larger Aspens around here have a long, straight lower trunk that is mostly clear. After milling, drying, and planing the ceiling looks great: it's naturally white and gives a very open feeling to his addition.

You can expect it to move while you're cutting it (and while it's drying -- unless you stack and sticker it right away).

It's also popular around here for horse barns.
Bruce    LT40HDG28 bandsaw
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John Bartley

Up here in North Eastern Ontario we have Balsam Poplar, and Trembling Aspen.  The B.P. is known as Poplar or Bam, because most people don't know that "Bam" is derived from "Balm" and that the natives used it medicinally (Balm of Gilead).   The T.A. is also called Poplar around here and neither tree is highly valued for anything other than pulpwood for paper mills, although ... if a nice stand of clear, tall straight T.A. is cut it usually goes for veneer (flooring ply).  Aspen makes good firewood if lt's left to dry properly.  It leaves almost no ash and almost no creosote.  It needs quite a bit more volume to get the same heat as the harder wood from the south (Beech etc), but not having to climb the roof every month to clean the chimney counts for a LOT!
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TBark

Hi again folks,
Here are a few pics.

TBark





TBark


TBark


TBark

Pics are some of our area.
Yes, likely aspen.

TBark

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