# Tamarack tree?



## ohlongarm (May 9, 2011)

I have a tree about 60 feet tall looks like a pine to some extent,it loses its needles in the fall and they grow back in the spring.The needles are soft,tree cutter says its Tamarack has anyone any experience in burning this type of wood. Thanks


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## Thistle (May 9, 2011)

ohlongarm said:
			
		

> I have a tree about 60 feet tall looks like a pine to some extent,it loses its needles in the fall and they grow back in the spring.The needles are soft,tree cutter says its Tamarack has anyone any experience in burning this type of wood. Thanks



Another name for Eastern Hemlock,sometimes called Larch if I'm not mistaken.None around here that I know of.Can be tough to split at times people tell me.


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## Wood Duck (May 9, 2011)

Tamarack and Eastern Hemlock are different trees. Tamarack, aka Larch, loses its needles in the fall and regrows them in the spring, like the OP wrote about his tree. Eastern Hemlock (like all hemlocks) is evergreen - it keeps lots of needles all year round, although like all conifers it does drop each needle after a year or two, but never goes bare. In fact, a healthy hemlock should look more or less uniformly thick and green year round. Tamarack grows cones and is related to pines, spruces, hemlocks, and so it is a conifer,  but it is a deciduous conifer, a bit different from the usual evergreen conifers.

Tamarack is one of the better conifers for firewood, higher in BTUs than most conifers.


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## Mt Ski Bum (May 9, 2011)

Don't burn it around here- tamarack/western larch is much more prevalent west of the divide in Montana. If you have a deciduous pine tree, then it has to be a tamarack/larch- they're the only decidous conifers around.


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## firefighterjake (May 9, 2011)

Wood Duck said:
			
		

> Tamarack and Eastern Hemlock are different trees. Tamarack, aka Larch, loses its needles in the fall and regrows them in the spring, like the OP wrote about his tree. Eastern Hemlock (like all hemlocks) is evergreen - it keeps lots of needles all year round, although like all conifers it does drop each needle after a year or two, but never goes bare. In fact, a healthy hemlock should look more or less uniformly thick and green year round. Tamarack grows cones and is related to pines, spruces, hemlocks, and so it is a conifer,  but it is a deciduous conifer, a bit different from the usual evergreen conifers.
> 
> Tamarack is one of the better conifers for firewood, higher in BTUs than most conifers.



What he said . . . 

Tamarack and hemlock are quite different . . . in shape, needle size and look, etc. once you see them together you will never mistake them. 

To answer the original poster's question . . . pretty much what WoodDuck said . . . Iv'e burned some tamarack . . . it's a softwood, but it's not bad . . . then again my view is all wood is good wood.


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## nrford (May 9, 2011)

+2 I'm with Jake and woodduck, tamarack/eastern larch should be some of your better conifer as far as firewood goes.


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## mtarbert (May 10, 2011)

I have burned a few cords and it compairs with silver maple. It is actually fairly hard and burns nice


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## ihookem (May 10, 2011)

Tamerack. no doubt. I never burned it but hear it burns very hot.


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## okotoks guy (May 10, 2011)

I sold 10 cords of it. It was refered to as "Buckskin Larch" because it came from dead standing.
The trees can remain standing for 30+years after dying. The stuff was fresh cut and when I put
the Moisture Meter to it, it was <10%  It burned great; Long,hot,tall flame and very little ash.
Good firewood is VERY,VERY hard to come by in Southern Alberta. The people who bought from me
later told me it was the best firewood they had ever burned. Mind you, the best firewood that is available
locally is white birch and it commands a hefty sum when purchased. Good firewood is trucked in from
100's of miles away which is why the price is so high.

I don't think the Larch would compare with the Oaks,Hickory and Beech type woods found out East,
but I think just about anybody,anywhere would be happy with how it burns.


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## Marsh Rat (May 12, 2011)

We have lots of it here in northern wisconsin, and when I find some that are easy to get at I cut'em up.  Good burn times for shoulder season when you don't want a long fire like oak would give ya. Burns 2x as long as white pine,birch and aspen. I usually mill quite a bit of it up and make furniture out of it.  Very pretty wood.


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