# Wood scents while seasoning - my back yard smells like maple syrup



## newstove (May 8, 2009)

Gotta love it - I've got about 3 cords of sugar maple stacked and seasoning.  Nice breezy, reasonably warm sunny day today.  Whole backyard is starting to smell somewhat like maple syrup.

Of course, the side yard smells like, well, my wife's best description is puppy poop. ;-) 4 cords of freshly split red oak (still splitting some of it) and that's pretty much what it smells like right now (according to her.)  To me, it's not THAT bad. ;-) ;-)

Any other interesting wood smells anyone wants to share?  I'm always curious about how the various wood species smell...


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## smokinj (May 8, 2009)

newstove said:
			
		

> Gotta love it - I've got about 3 cords of sugar maple stacked and seasoning.  Nice breezy, reasonably warm sunny day today.  Whole backyard is starting to smell somewhat like maple syrup.
> 
> Of course, the side yard smells like, well, my wife's best description is puppy poop. ;-) 4 cords of freshly split red oak (still splitting some of it) and that's pretty much what it smells like right now (according to her.)  To me, it's not THAT bad. ;-) ;-)
> 
> Any other interesting wood smells anyone wants to share?  I'm always curious about how the various wood species smell...


willow smells just like crap!


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## LLigetfa (May 8, 2009)

I've got 12 cord of Black Ash bucked up that is releasing a nice aroma.  I've always liked the smell of Ash.  My very large leaf and grass compost pile is only a couple of turnings away from being done and it's at the stage that it has that nice earthy smell.

As for dog poop, I taught the groan to go in the bush so none of that to worry about.


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## Wood Duck (May 9, 2009)

Black Birch has a really nice minty smell - smells just like birch beer, of course. That is my favorite wood to work with because of the smell. I also have a lot of Eastern Red Cedar, which has a great aroma. The smell of cedar lasts a long while after the wood has been split. The smell of black birch doesn't seem to last nearly as long.


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## Brian VT (May 9, 2009)

Wood Duck said:
			
		

> Black Birch has a really nice minty smell


I like to chew on a branch when turkey hunting if I find one along the way. It's sometimes practical because when I go out hunting at 4:30 a.m. there's a chance I might've forgot to brush my tooths and black birch leaves a better scent than the leeks. LOL


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## CTBurner (May 9, 2009)

there's always piss oak


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## biggins08 (May 9, 2009)

Sounds like the time I pissed on your floor CT!


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## CTBurner (May 9, 2009)

Hard Woods said:
			
		

> Sounds like the time I pissed on your floor CT!



naw you couldn't have, you're still alv


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## Backwoods Savage (May 9, 2009)

There are not many woods that I don't like the smell of. Lots of people don't like red oak but I like it. About the worst I've ever smelled was hybrid poplar and hybrid elm. Cottonwood isn't too great either.


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## newstove (May 9, 2009)

Just picked up about 1/2-3/4 of a cord of Cherry today.

Smells nice.  I put it over in my to-be-split pile, where most of the oak is.

I now have a cherry-puppy poop smelling pile of wood. ;-)


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## myzamboni (May 10, 2009)

The oak I split a couple months ago smelled like empty wine barrels (that slightly sour wine smell).  I like it!


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## Flatbedford (May 10, 2009)

My back yard stack is now a mix of Oak, Birch, Maple, and Locust. It changes as you walk along the wood pile. the Birch is nice. The Oak is fading, and something smells a little earthy and kinda rotten.


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## joshlaugh (May 10, 2009)

I never noticed a good smell or any smell for that matter from sugar maple and I have over 5 cords of it right now.  It makes sense though.

My favorite would be black cherry.  It smells great cutting, splitting, and burning it.  I like to have some burning in an outdoor firepit even while I split would in the spring and fall.


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## firefighterjake (May 11, 2009)

Fresh cut and split cedar + = smells great 

Fresh cut and split elm - + smells like crap


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## karri0n (May 11, 2009)

firefighterjake said:
			
		

> Fresh cut and split cedar + = smells great
> 
> Fresh cut and split elm - + smells like crap




Where do we get this elusive Cedar Plus???

Must be a Maine thing.


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## firefighterjake (May 12, 2009)

karri0n said:
			
		

> firefighterjake said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Ah that would be a normal White Cedar . . . that has been peed on by the Great Albino Moose of the Unity Hinterlands . . . the moose pee (the "plus" in Cedar +) gives the wood a unique smell which appeals to the typical Mainer (i.e. the guy who has not shaven since the October 2008 or bathed in the last week or two). Since Connect-the-dots does not hae the Great Albino Moose of the Unity Hinterlands I am afraid you would only be able to use regular, ol' white cedar . . .  which is pretty darn close to smelling like Cedar +.


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## Tfin (May 12, 2009)

To me nothing smells better than freshly split red oak........intoxicating!


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## Flatbedford (May 12, 2009)

Tfin said:
			
		

> To me nothing smells better than freshly split red oak........intoxicating!



Yup!


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## Wet1 (May 12, 2009)

I have about 8 cords of oak (red and white) to split and stack.  I'm going to wait until it's really warm and all my neighbors (which are pretty close) have their windows down.  I hope they like the smell of oak!  :cheese:

I actually feel bad about doing this, but it has to be done...


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## PA. Woodsman (May 12, 2009)

Lots of good answers here; if I had my choice I'd go with Apple, Cherry, Sassafras and Black Birch for their aromas.


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## sweetheat (May 13, 2009)

I think my favorite is yellow birch (wintergreen)  then split piles of hard maple, beeches and oaks, and a shop full of spruce, pine, and hemlock timbers can't be beat. sweetheat


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## pulldownclaw (May 18, 2009)

I don't mind red oak either, smells like wine and money in the bank!  I've also been splitting some fresh cut southern pine, it smells great, like natural pinesol!


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## karri0n (May 18, 2009)

Ok I can agree that read oak kinda smells like wine. Probably why I don't like the smell of it. I can't stand the smell of wine.


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