Will felling and leaving the tree for a couple of weeks help dry it out?

[cabinman]

rocket science,?

Amen to that ! Lighter means more wood goes on quicker and it's easier on the back.

If it saves time and doesn't make for more work , I'm for it.

I dont see any rocket science here,. Until the leaf turns brown,. its drawing moisture, and SUCKS on the trunk, and its limbs, period,...Eric

 

[Wet1]

I'm so new to firewood it's funny that I'm posting on a technical thread like this. But I thought I'd share an experience I had today.

The woods I cut in is nearly all hickory (half is shagbark) and red oak. I've cut several cords of shag and red oak already. Today I cut up a hickory that I by chance let wither. Now, I "believe" it was a red hickory instead of shag. Can't find any info on whether red is lighter than shagbark. Leave were fully withered and a dark brown. About a week's drying, but memory gets foggy.

When cutting it was noticeably drier...and it was much much lighter than hickory normally is. (I know this because with my current setup I pick up EVERY log by hand and carry it usually about 20yards) I'll split it tomorrow and see what I think.

I sure thought it was a shagbark, didn't really give it a second thought until it was on the ground and I noticed it had serrated leafs!!!! So from my modest research it's a red hickory?


Of course, the catch 22 that has been mentioned on every page so far....is would it be just as dry after a week in the pile.

Either way, with my current way of doing things, I plan on trying to keep my felling a week ahead of my bucking. Picking up light logs was a big treat today. Can't hurt gas mileage either.

I think you hit the nail on the head when you mentioned you'd like to keep felling a week ahead of bucking. In my case, there's no way I have time to buck and split everything all at once that I have available to me right now. The guys that say the wood dries faster cut and split MIGHT be right (I now really question that during the first week or two), but it sure won't dry any faster while the tree is still alive and standing when I haven't had a chance to get to it yet, that's were I find withering to be potentially very helpful. It only takes me a minute or two to fell a tree, I can make time to get the targeted trees on the ground and withering so they are as light and dry as possible for when I do get to them... So far I'm amazed at how much difference withering seems to make.

 

[Alex_reds]

So, 13 years later. What's the consensus on the topic?
The argument hasn't cooled off. And the majority still follows the mantra - cut it, chop it, buck it, done

 

[muddstopper]

So, 13 years later. What's the consensus on the topic?
The argument hasn't cooled off. And the majority still follows the mantra - cut it, chop it, buck it, done

I dont know what the consensus is, but I do know how it has worked for me in the past. Cutting down a live tree that is fully leaved and letting it lay for a few days will speed up the drying. It will not in any circumstance dry the tree out enough to be considered dry. 13 years ago the OP asked if he cut the tree and left it lay for a few weeks would the leaves draw out moisture and the answer is yes. My first impression was his intentions was to make the tree a little lighter for handleing. To that question I would say yes. Will it make enough difference to amount to a hill of beans, not likely. Cut it, buck it, split it, and throw in a pile if you cant get it out of the woods will dry the wood faster than cutting and just waiting for the leaves to pull the moisture out.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Muddstopper said, "Cut it, buck it, split it, and throw in a pile if you can't get it out of the woods. That will dry the wood faster than cutting and just waiting for the leaves to pull the moisture out."
--------------------
Yes indeed. If you cannot split it there, haul the bucked rounds to the splitter. Only a few species fail to split when green (elm and cottonwood, for example). These two need to check up.

 

[trains]

I realise this is an older thread, but in relation to the original question, it all depends on the species of the tree.

On Euc, / gum trees, dropping it, and then letting it sit for a few months till the leaves dry off will leave the wood still relatively soft and easy to cut, but there will be much less resin to clog up the chain.

Splitting is a totally different story on these.

 

[savageactor7]

I've been told that a fallen leafed tree will suck moisture out of a tree until the leafs dry then the drying by leafs is over...

...but who really knows.

 

[Marine5068]

After felling, bucking, and moving 2 cords of oak by myself this weekend, I was thinking there has to be a better way (cost-free) of doing things to help save my back.

I got to thinking today (this doesn't happen often), would felling the tree and leaving the branches & leafs intact for a couple of weeks draw any significant moisture out of the tree? I know a mature oak draws a lot of water out of the ground everyday, so is it safe to assume by leaving the branches/leaves on the tree and letting it sit for a couple of weeks, that some of the moisture will be pulled out of the trunk to feed the leaves?

If this does work, I would think it would help expedite the seasoning process as well as make it a little easier to move...

Any thoughts?

No, not really.
Oak usually takes 2-4 years to season before burning too.

 

[Mad Professor]

Girdle them the summer before you'll drop them. Then you'll have standing dead wood.

 

[ericm979]

My experience with trees that have fallen is that there's no appreciable drying that happens until the wood is split. At best it'll dry enough that water does not gush out when I cut it or squeeze out of the wood like a wet sponge when I split it. Or maybe it won't! But it's still wet, and heavy.
Even rounds cut and left in our hot dry summer air for a month don't dry much. There will be checking from drying on the ends but it's only 1/2" deep.

 

[muddstopper]

One other thing if your going to cut and leave whole. If the tree has large limbs that keep the main trunk off the ground, it will dry faster that way to. If the trunk is touching the ground, it will just act like a sponge and suck water out of the ground.

 

[LoneOak]

From my experiences I'll vote for Drop it, Buck it, Split it, Stack it ASAP!! As the fastest way to season/dry firewood. I have cut into oak trees here in S.E. Texas and seen water pour out of them after being on the ground for several months.

 

[Marine5068]

From my experiences I'll vote for Drop it, Buck it, Split it, Stack it ASAP!! As the fastest way to season/dry firewood. I have cut into oak trees here in S.E. Texas and seen water pour out of them after being on the ground for several months.

always