Cutting Poplars in the winter???

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Is it OK to cut Poplars in the winter (we live in Canada, where it gets to minus 40 farenheit. We want to use it for firewood next winter, and need to clear the brush anyway. Since there is not much to do in the winter, it would be helpful if we could cut these Poplars down now, instaed of spring. Any suggestions?

-- Ron Hill (hillsacres@sk.sympatico.ca), February 12, 2002

Answers

We used to live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and always tried to cut our firewood before spring. When spring arrives the sap moves back up into the tree and just takes longer to dry. Also, by cutting in the winter months the fire wood is all cut up and stacked before spring which is usually a real good drying time of the year. The humidity is relatively low. Jean

-- jean from Ky (dandrea@duo-county.com), February 12, 2002.

Poplar is not great firewood but it takes a while to dry. If you can keep it off the ground and covered from rain, it will be usable. Have you thought about using it as lumber? If it's nailed together green into what you want it will shrink around the nails tight! VERY tight!! Kept dry it will last for years. I've got 50 4 foot lambing pen gates made of poplar. Too cheap and work great.

-- Ross (amulet@istar.ca), February 12, 2002.

yes,, you can cut it in winter, just try to make sure its cut and split and stacked off the ground,,or it can rot easily,,polars arent the best firewood,, sometimes called yellow birch,, but I burn it at times

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), February 12, 2002.

I can hear my Grandfather groaning now.

-- Susan in Northern LP Michigan (cobwoman@yahoo.com), February 12, 2002.

Why, was he a poplar fellow?(sorry...couldn't help myself)

-- gilly (wayoutfarm@skybest.com), February 12, 2002.


Poplars, which we have in abundance here in NC (yellow or tulip poplar), I have used for firewood in the past. Here's my say so: Poplar driest out fast, if its kept off the ground. It will rot awfully easy, so old pallets or something need to be used to keep it high and dry. I found using poplar that has "seasoned" about a month and half to burn a little cooler than fully cured wood, but keeps going alot longer. Fully seasoned poplar will burn hot and fast. Make sure you are ready tyo damper that ole woodstove down! I have heard that some birches burn best when green cut, in fact, "green" river birch was reguarded as a "prize firewood." Poplar is best split when green- the day its cut is best. Split pieces dry much faster than round ones. If you don't have time to split when they are green, wait until they are fully cured (six months+) to try and split- they reach another stage in life that allows easy splitting. You might have to impliment a wedge or two in larger rounds- some poplar seems to bind its fibers together more than others (in particular, where ever there is rough bark on the tulip poplar. My theory is that the tree has a stress point there and reinforces itself by binding the fibers X ways). To make wedging easy as pie- sit the round upright (like you were going to split it normally) and make a X on the top with the chainsaw- run the blade in until the top teeth dissapear. Then drop the wedge in the groove you created and smack it with the maul (sledge hammer). I just figured that trick out- I wish someone had told me about that one, but I figured it out on my own. Since poplar burns so quick, make sure you lay in a big big pile!

-- Kevin in NC (Vantravlrs@aol.com), February 13, 2002.

Gilly, LOLROF, cute. No, I can't say he was poplar. But the whole county knew him and he came runnin' if anyone needed fence fixed or trees cut or whatever odd job done. I was remembering the first and LAST time he asked me to bring in firewood. I brought in some from the nearest stack (it was a blizzard out there) and he was not pleased at my choice. Good thing he loved me, even if I was a girl. Only the boys went for more firewood after that. Maybe I did good afterall? Never got asked again!

-- Susan in Northern LP Michigan (cobwoman@yahoo.com), February 13, 2002.

WE HAVE AN OUTSIDE WOOD BURNING FURNACE THAT HAS A FORCED AIR BURNING CHAMBER. I HAVE FOUND THAT POPLAR BURNS BEST WHEN SEASONED FOR A FEW MONTHS, NOT GETTING IT TOO DRIED OUT THEN MIXING IT WITH A LITTLE SEASONED HARD WOOD. I'VE FOUND THAT IF YOU SEASON IT TOO LONG THAT WHEN IT IS SO DRY IT MAKES A HOT FAST FIRE BUT DOESN'T LAST LONG. WE DON'T GO OUT OF OUR WAY TO GET THE STUFF BUT WHEN I'M CUTTING WITH AN EYE TO WOOD LOT MANAGEMENT IF IT'S THERE I USE IT.....RON

-- ron in ny (ronmister@hotmail.com), February 13, 2002.

Doesn't everyone cut their wood in winter? The sap is down, & the wood can help keep you warm several times with all that work. I'd hate to be cutting wood in the heat of summer!

--->Paul

-- paul (ramblerplm@hotmail.com), February 13, 2002.


I grew up in far Northwestern Minnesota. We had a lot of what we called poplar, but is really what others call popple and most call Quaking Aspen. It is in the genus Populus (please consider that italicized), which may have led to some confusion. We are now moving to Southern Tennessee, which has no Quaking Aspen that I know of, but has a lot of Yellow or Tulip Poplar, a member of the magnolia family (genus and species Liriodendron tulipifera [ditto]). They are completely different woods, although both are light colored and light in weight when dry. If I had to rely on Quaking Aspen for heat, I would definitely have an alternative heat source.

-- Martin Boraas (boraas@miliserv.net), February 13, 2002.


Hi Ron, Sure you can cut poplar in the winter...AND the colder the temperature the easier it is to split the wood. We burn a LOT of poplar for firewood up where we are (also in Canada)(Saskatchewan) Because it burns rather quickly we stock up on as much of a mixture of different types of wood as we can. We have a back-up system of oil for our heat but we heat with wood a good 95% of the time. We live in a mobile and it helps to heat with oil just to get the pipes a bit warm under the house to keep the water lines from freezing. Yeah it can get mighty cold where we are. It looks from your email addy that you might be in the same province? (SK) In any event I've seen more from Saskatchewan on this forum in the past. I myself am not on here often but as often as I can. Great place...people...here!!! Be damned careful with that chainsaw though if that's what your gonna use! Cheers

-- k.ben (ikben@canada.com), February 13, 2002.

Around here I've found that winter is the only time to cut firewood. There aren't any bugs (a major relief), the swamp is frozen so you can actually move yourself and the wood around, there is snow to make moving sleds full of wood easy, and there's a lot less to do than in the birthing and growing seasons. Of course, sugaring season is right around the corner...

-- Sheryl in Me (radams@sacoriver.net), February 13, 2002.

Like Sheryl, we also cut our firewood in the winter...usually in February when it's easiest to haul out. But sometimes we don't get it cut up and split til the summer! Poplar (or popple as the old timers call it!) is one type of wood that we'd cut only if we had to. Around here it tends to die while standing and the woodpeckers and squirrels find it to be an excellent place to nest. We only use it for our cookstove if it's deadfall wood. White, yellow and grey birch are our favorite choices for cooking in our woodstove. For real heat we rely on maple, ash and oak.

-- Marcia (HrMr@webtv.net), February 13, 2002.

Dear Ron; Any time of the year is a good time of the year to cut firewood, with the exception to the winter time if by the unlucky chance you have happened to be stove wood poor. Burning wet wood is a pain, and with some kinds of wood flat out dangerous! Red Alser is one of those woods as it makes a quick buildup of creosote in the chimney and is the major cause if chimney fires around here. I am sure your wife is most anxious to have you do some wood cutting this time of the year if just to get you out from under foot for a few hours a day. Some folk around here have taken to growing poplar as a cash crop in making wood chips. The trees are most resiliant as a twig or branch from a fallen tree shoved into the ground will take root and grow a new tree. This may be used as an application for a wind break along your property line, You never know when you will run out of trees on your property, and it always nice to add a few back for every one you cut down, besides the smaller animals will love you for the thought. All of the others have given you good advice in the stacking and splitting of the wood, it may be a good idea to stack the wood mixed with other types of wood in each stack of stove wood, but not knowing what you have for your use I am unable to suggest which to be the best suited for the chore. Yes winter cutting is great, as it opens time in the spring and summer for you to go fishing! Wood is wood, from type to type it burns differently, in my area douglas fir is about the most favorite as it burns well, last quite a long time, and with it's inherent pitch wads it makes a delightful popping sound as it burns, in compariosn poplar is what I call paper wood as it burns almost as fast as paper. When you cut the wood be most carefull around the equiptment. An axe will cut twice, and chainsaws will kick back. The best medicine is to find a rythem and stick to it, trying to work fast will only tire you out much quicker, affect you swinging aim, and leave you with sore complaining muscles. Rusty.

-- Rusty (brookdale@qwest.net), February 19, 2002.

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