Started planning this winter's cutting

[Steve NW WI]

I thought it looked like what you had applied real good. Probably even better than what I ended up with. A weekend ago I just decided to go crazy and start falling dead ones, rather than mark them for later cutting. I might do that this week again, have a good sized ash for sure to take down. Want to get all the ash out before the rest of the leaves drop. The mulberry I will just cut down either way, if I need more wood. What I have taken down and skidded seems to be holding up real good for now, until I get my bucking saws fixed. No bug issues yet, that i've seen. But i'm going to be running out of room for new skidded trees shortly if I don't get the stuff bucked up.

Once the beans are off the field, I'll most likely have a couple weekends of drop and drag, and then a whole bunch of bucking and splitting. I really don't have a good trail to get anything bigger than the pickup in the woods while the crops are still in the fields, so till then I'll be cutting up down stuff. The beans are starting to turn here though, so it won't be too terribly long before they're ready.

 

[ProMac1K]

Once the beans are off the field, I'll most likely have a couple weekends of drop and drag, and then a whole bunch of bucking and splitting. I really don't have a good trail to get anything bigger than the pickup in the woods while the crops are still in the fields, so till then I'll be cutting up down stuff. The beans are starting to turn here though, so it won't be too terribly long before they're ready.

Me too.....have some ash, boxelder, and maple on the border of the grove, and ash in the tree lines, that are crowding the fields. For me, any work after the harvest season goes a lot better anyways. I like the weather then, only thing is that it gets dark a lot sooner, and is soooo damp in the mornings.

Beans have turned real strong here, some fields have a lot of stalks without any leaves on too. Corn has turned real strong all of a sudden, too. Must of had some frost conditions......

 

[garmar]

I have three rules when it comes to Elm Trees

1. Never cut down a live elm. Its bad enough what those darn Dutch did to them.

2. If you don't have to split the logs...bring them home

3. If you have to split the logs...don't bring them home

I cut a dead one down recently the size of the one in you blog. I had to noodle the rounds.

Is elm a good firewood comparable to oak and hickory? I hope so because I about broke my back getting that wood. :censored:

 

[Haywire Haywood]

Is elm a good firewood comparable to oak and hickory?

It's not Oak or Hickory, but better than most softwoods. Have a look here. http://www.chimneysweeponline.com/howood.htm

Ian

 

[garmar]

It's not Oak or Hickory, but better than most softwoods. Have a look here. http://www.chimneysweeponline.com/howood.htm

Ian

Nice link, thanks! I definitely won't be cutting any more elm unless it's dead and somewhere unsafe for a structure like woodcutteranon said. It almost doesn't look like it's worth the time and energy and I have a lot of dead oak on my 21 acre woodlot.

 

[Haywire Haywood]

I put it in perspective and compare it to the Douglas Fir that a lot of folk out west burn as their primary, but if you have a lot of oak at your disposal, not much point in messing with it.

Ian

 

[MJR]

The trees with the several colors on them remind me of some timber sales I have worked on....

 

[Steve NW WI]

Nice link, thanks! I definitely won't be cutting any more elm unless it's dead and somewhere unsafe for a structure like woodcutteranon said. It almost doesn't look like it's worth the time and energy and I have a lot of dead oak on my 21 acre woodlot.

As long as you can split it, elm burns very hot, it's just not as long lasting of a fire as oak. I will burn it even on the coldest days, but normally not overnight. It's "plus" qualities are that it's usually very straight wood, which makes for easier cutting and stacking (except for the occasional furball on a split) and standing dead elm, by the time the bark is falling off, is nearly ready for the stove. I rank it 3rd out of the trees common in my area, behind Ironwood and Oak, but ahead of most of the maples, birch, poplar, box elder, etc.

The trees with the several colors on them remind me of some timber sales I have worked on....

Sorry didn't mean to give you flashbacks! The good thing is neither me or my saws have any idea what the commercial meaning of that tree's markings may be, other than "coming down, but watch out for the widowmaker up there"

Haywire the columns on the chart you linked don't come out well, at least on my browser and monitor. Here's one I've got saved, it's better laid out to my eyes: http://www.**********/econtent/index.php/articles/heating_value_wood

 

[ProMac1K]

Haywire the columns on the chart you linked don't come out well, at least on my browser and monitor. Here's one I've got saved, it's better laid out to my eyes: http://www.**********/econtent/index.php/articles/heating_value_wood

Hmmm.....no Black Walnut, Eucalyptus, Green Ash, or Locust on that list? Those are some of the best, if i'm not mistaken. opcorn:

 

[Dalmatian90]

Here's the chart I use.

http://www.ianrpubs.unl.edu/epublic/live/g1554/build/g1554.pdf

No Eucalyptus though, probably not many Koalas in Nebraska.

 

[Agnes]

Keep it simple

Mark all the trees that will be taken down in blue..... cuz when your done there is nothing but blue sky above!

Yellow for the trimming cuz ya have to watch out for hazards!

Just my 2 cents

 

[Steve NW WI]

Here's the chart I use.

http://www.ianrpubs.unl.edu/epublic/live/g1554/build/g1554.pdf

No Eucalyptus though, probably not many Koalas in Nebraska.

Thanks! I used to have that one, but it got misplaced somewhere on this newfangled typewriter...It seems like probably the most comprehensive I've seen, and from a very reputable source. Notice that the elms are "middle of the road", along with green ash, cherry and birch.

 

[ProMac1K]

No Eucalyptus though, probably not many Koalas in Nebraska.

Is that why they've been hibernating for so long now?

 

[Haywire Haywood]

Haywire the columns on the chart you linked don't come out well, at least on my browser and monitor.

Here's the same one in PDF format. http://www.chimneysweeponline.com/howood.pdf

Ian

 

[VAJerry]

I'm sure your right. I do most my splitting by hand and only borrow a splitter once a year.

Here is an entry to my blog on furnaces. It is about the elm tree. I haven't been active on this blog since Feb when I got the flu. I will fire this back up once the snow flies. Let me know what you think.



http://ohiowoodburnerowb.blogspot.com/2009/01/splitting-elm.html

Thanks

Looking at your blog I have three comments: 1. Nice blog. 2. Cut your Elm rounds shorter and noodle them in half. 3. Build a raised garden over yor hot water pipes and have fresh veggies year round. Or a least early.:greenchainsaw:

 

[Hickorynut]

I like that reminder

I always struggle with my colors..I like the blue suggestion..the utility companies use it around here to mark the ones that need cutting.....

 

[Steve NW WI]

As promised, here's a late fall pic, most of the leaves gone, about the same perspective and sun angle. My opinion is that the orange stands out best, followed by yellow and blue. The blue just seems to be a "duller" shade that doesn't jump out at you. All three are doing the job though, I could stand and see the marked trees quite a ways off no matter the color.

Hopefully I can get a "snow" pic in about two weeks, on opening day of "Holy Week" (WI gun deer season)!

 

[ProMac1K]

Wow, i've been out of touch on here for awhile. I've put down the saws, man priorities can throw a guy around. Our opening day for shotgun is today, but I don't bother. I think I went out with a legal all-season permit one or two seasons, didn't see a thing. Now, I just watch the people chasing their tails driving around, when i'm out working in the field. Didn't hear one shot today. Usually when you hear something, you basically hear someone unload their whole mag. Maybe even two people at the same time. Like they're spraying slugs to try and corral something. Sounds pretty pathetic. Since we're relatively flat land, rifles are prohibited until you get up north aways. Which I guess, if they think inhumane shot placement out of a smoothbore .410 is fine then so be it. Funny, they don't seem to prohibit rifles when someone wants to coyote hunt. But whatever, I suppose it's fine that I don't have soft-points flying by my ears all weekend.

I'm having the best luck with my shade of blue that i've used. After that, maybe the Chev Victory Red. The canopies are wide open it seems, so the sun can make the real bright colors fade out from the darker colors. I guess what works the best is different in each mind, and each forest.

In your case, i'd scratch the yellow. Your orange doesn't look to bad, but you may want to find a lighter shade of blue. Honestly, I think if it weren't for the task of picking which color is best and having them all next to each other on the same tree, I think you couldn't go wrong with any of them. So long as you know which shade you're looking for. That works with me. I have Blue, Orange, and Red in use. I think the other colors that i'm using stand out more than the Orange. The key is consistency in the placement of the mark, and also having a strong coat and wide stripe.

Bottomline for me, i'm real happy with the dark pastel blue color that I found, which was designed for an automotive application. I also didn't go thrifty with my paint choice. I was recommended to go that route, but it was a failure.

 

[iCreek]

We just use the red/orange marker paint. They really stand out in the winter. Here is a shot from today, 11/08