Poplar

[Stephen in SoKY]

Yes, I know it's hardly worth the fuel it takes to cut and split, but it was standing dead and almost certain to take out a fence when it fell. I let down the fence, dropped the tree across it, and then just couldn't bring myself to drag it back into the woods to rot. It will come in handy next spring and for that matter, since I retired 4 years ago it's just me & 2 Jack Russell Terrorists at home during the day & we really don't care how often we have to feed the fire so it wil get burned.

It was about 25 feet up in the woods, I dropped it out the hole to the right of the suburban and backed th tractor/splitter in between the log and the trailer. It was a downhill slope so I rolled the rounds out to the splitter and loaded the trailer as the splits came off.

 

[LLigetfa]

Ja, if I can drop one back into the woods to rot where it lays, OK but if I have to drop it where I have to clean it up then it goes for firewood. Before the woodshed with a concrete slab, I would use the Poplar as sacrifice wood to lay on the ground so that my good wood can stacked on top of it.

It all burns. Even after years of it sitting on the ground, when I took apart my old stacks, I put the punky Poplar in the shed to dry out and burned it too.

 

[Wood Duck]

I wouldn't pass up poplar. I like the fast burning woods for camp fires out in the yard, since adding wood to the fire is half the fun. Indoors, I might rather have something with a little more heat in it most of the time, but sometimes adding wood to the fire is fun indoors, too.

 

[glacialhills]

Poplar is great for those cool mornings in the fall and spring, when you just need a small blast of heat to take the chill off and where a higher btu wood would burn too long and get the place too hot. If it is easy to get to with the truck, split and load near the splitter, no reason to pass it up.It sure is fun to split, makes you feel like Paul Bunyan. Just keep it in the spring and fall shoulder season stack, so as not to have the kids or wife mistakenly bring in a whole load during a -20 degree January cold blast.( can hear the the phone call now, ...but I did fill the furnace up, the fire keeps burning up the wood and just wont warm the house, can you come home and take a look at it?)

 

[Summertime]

I'll trade ya some Cottonwood for that Poplar.. i burned some in the early season last year,It lights easy and is great to just take the chill out.

 

[savageactor7]

I've burned quite a bit of that... great wood for warming up the house quick on a cold morning. Plus shoulder season when you want the fire out cold by 1000am.

 

[BrotherBart]

There is nothing like it for setting that bed of coals for the overnight burn.

 

[North of 60]

I just use it to heat my house, I may mix it up with that shoulder season pine stuff but then again it really doesn't get cold here.
You guys are spoiled.
N of 60 where a wimpy oak could never survive.

 

[Stephen in SoKY]

We appreciate poplar more for barn boxing around here, but I'm pleased to have it added to the supply. It was in my little river bottom about 400 yards from the house so I just couldn't let it go to waste. Tomorrow I've got a right nice standing dead White Ash on the ground up by the tobacco barn to work up & then I'll work up the Ash I posted photos of a couple weeks ago. It's in rounds out in the orchard waiting to be split.

 

[caber]

We burn a lot of poplar. Great for the shoulder seasons. I'll use it in the dead of winter if I'm at home and willing to feed the stove every 2-3 hours just to save the good stuff.

 

[North of 60]

We burn a lot of poplar. Great for the shoulder seasons. I'll use it in the dead of winter if I'm at home and willing to feed the stove every 2-3 hours just to save the good stuff.

Caber, what the heck are you heating to load your stove every 2-3 hours. I'm just not understanding this shoulder season stuff.
I sure would like to try this hardwood stuff.
N of 60

 

[firefighterjake]

Yes, I know it's hardly worth the fuel it takes to cut and split, but it was standing dead and almost certain to take out a fence when it fell. I let down the fence, dropped the tree across it, and then just couldn't bring myself to drag it back into the woods to rot. It will come in handy next spring and for that matter, since I retired 4 years ago it's just me & 2 Jack Russell Terrorists at home during the day & we really don't care how often we have to feed the fire so it wil get burned.

It was about 25 feet up in the woods, I dropped it out the hole to the right of the suburban and backed th tractor/splitter in between the log and the trailer. It was a downhill slope so I rolled the rounds out to the splitter and loaded the trailer as the splits came off.

I have yet to meet a tree that doesn't burn . . . albeit some burn better than others. My philosophy is to take 'em all . . . they all have their uses. I wouldn't burn poplar in middle of the winter when it's 20 below zero and I'm banking the fire for an overnight burn, but nothing wrong with using it for the shoulder seasons or when I'm home during the day.

 

[gzecc]

Are you sure that poplar? Looks better than the poplar I've had!

 

[caber]

[quote author="north of 60" date="1248934460Caber, what the heck are you heating to load your stove every 2-3 hours. I'm just not understanding this shoulder season stuff.
I sure would like to try this hardwood stuff.
N of 60[/quote]

When it's 20 degrees or less out and you're trying to keep 1500 sq ft nice and warm in the 70s while burning poplar, I load up every 2-3 hours to keep it from dipping below 70.

 

[gpcollen1]

Are you sure that poplar? Looks better than the poplar I've had!

Well, many folks call Tulip 'poplar' by mistake so maybe it is some tulip. If it is tulip, it looks young.

 

[Slow1]

I've yet to burn poplar, but I now have about 1 to 1.5 cords stacked up and seasoning that I plan to break into for 10/11 heating season. I'm rather hoping that it will be decent burning in my new stove... Perhaps I'm living in denial, but I'll choose to listen to N of 60 and hope I can load up the stove a bit less frequently than every 2-3 hours with it - not expecting the same burns as the pile of oak seasoning next to it, but still.

Looking at BTU/cord it seems it has around 60% the BTU/cord. Thus if oak can give a 10-12 hour burn (the published spec for the fireview), shouldn't poplar give between 6-7.2hrs per full load? Assuming same moisture content and volume of wood loaded...

 

[SolarAndWood]

Looking at BTU/cord it seems it has around 60% the BTU/cord. Thus if oak can give a 10-12 hour burn (the published spec for the fireview), shouldn't poplar give between 6-7.2hrs per full load?

Don't go sharing that analysis in my neighborhood until I get 5 years ahead with hardwood. Until then, I will rely on the good for nothing will burn your house down better left to rot wood except when a long hot burn is needed.

 

[Stephen in SoKY]

Here, at least, it's Yellow Poplar. As I mentioned it's used frequently for barn boxing, as well as support structure where the loads are fairly low. It's very lightweight & has good rot resistance as long as it doesn't sit in water. As stovewood it's considered just about the bottom of the barrel, right there with Sycamore & Gum. As to age, it was exactly 20" across the the stump, at 66' out what I consider the log ended at exactly 11" across. Split and stacked loosely it yielded one 4.5'X12' rick and one 4'X8' rick all cut to 20". I simply threw the top and what few limbs remained back into thewoods as I didn't feel they were worth the effort to bring in.

 

[maplewood]

I've burned poplar too. It's quite light when it dries out. Fluffy ashes - little to no coals.
Doesn't burn too hot, like pine or tamarack or alder.
I'd mix it with your hardwood.
And the price is right!

 

[North of 60]

[quote author="north of 60" date="1248934460Caber, what the heck are you heating to load your stove every 2-3 hours. I'm just not understanding this shoulder season stuff.
I sure would like to try this hardwood stuff.
N of 60

When it's 20 degrees or less out and you're trying to keep 1500 sq ft nice and warm in the 70s while burning poplar, I load up every 2-3 hours to keep it from dipping below 70.[/quote]

I still cant imagine it. You must have very little insulation and half your heat is going up your chimney on your older stoves. Small fire box?
What do you do when it gets cold and winter comes? To burn a load in 2-3hrs would mean that your draft would be open and have a stove top temp over 700-800F. That will only get your house to 70F. Yikes!

 

[LLigetfa]

To burn a load in 2-3hrs...

Could be a simple matter of throwing on 2 or 3 sticks at a time and not loading the stove.

 

[wendell]

Or, he has a small firebox. No, wait, that's me. Darn. :shut:

 

[North of 60]

2-3 sticks aint loading up, I also mentioned a small fire box. That would make the most sence but big old Kodiak and Country Flame dont sound small to me. I still think for the origional poster that its worth heating with his find. The milder climates where most people are from should have no problem with it. Shoulder seasons etc...etc...20F is only -7or-8C isnt it? Thats a warm winter day in my books.
Sorry if it is taken the wrong way Caber.
N of 60

 

[SolarAndWood]

While we don't have the winters you have up north (we are just shy of 43 degrees north), we have no problem getting 5-6 hours running 600+ in the winter with low density wood. Keeps the house warm even though we are in the middle of a major rehab and the shell is far from tight.

 

[gpcollen1]

Here, at least, it's Yellow Poplar. As I mentioned it's used frequently for barn boxing, as well as support structure where the loads are fairly low. It's very lightweight & has good rot resistance as long as it doesn't sit in water. As stovewood it's considered just about the bottom of the barrel, right there with Sycamore & Gum. As to age, it was exactly 20" across the the stump, at 66' out what I consider the log ended at exactly 11" across. Split and stacked loosely it yielded one 4.5'X12' rick and one 4'X8' rick all cut to 20". I simply threw the top and what few limbs remained back into the woods as I didn't feel they were worth the effort to bring in.

That 'Yellow Poplar' is not a poplar at all - it is an American Tulip, Liriodendron Tulipifera. When dried properly [and maybe even when not] it burns HOT and FAST and like to pop coals out at you on occasion. Common poplars around here are Quaking Aspen, Big Toothed Aspen, Cottonwood...

I guess that tree was not that young - the bark just did not look thick and mature but pics sometimes do not do it justice.