Hi Folks...can I ring trees this winter with an axe or chain saw to get a jump on seasoning my firewood for next year. I have a good wood lot but I seem to be very short on time to get a good supply of stove wood built up. If ringing would help the wood dry I will select the trees this winter and cut around them. Thanks for any advice. Franklin
Ringing trees to get a jump on seasoning.
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Franklin,
Generally speaking, ringing trees is a bad idea. Wood doesn't season well at all in log form. You might be able to drop the MC by 1% or 2% per year by doing this, but getting the wood cut and split will out pace this very, very quickly. At the end of the day, you're just creating a bad and dangerous situation in the woods by ringing trees. The last thing you want to do is kill trees you might not end up using or even getting whacked by a "widow maker" in the future from one of the trees you killed. For the tiny bit of seasoning you're going to get, ringing trees is generally a bad idea.
Generally speaking, ringing trees is a bad idea. Wood doesn't season well at all in log form. You might be able to drop the MC by 1% or 2% per year by doing this, but getting the wood cut and split will out pace this very, very quickly. At the end of the day, you're just creating a bad and dangerous situation in the woods by ringing trees. The last thing you want to do is kill trees you might not end up using or even getting whacked by a "widow maker" in the future from one of the trees you killed. For the tiny bit of seasoning you're going to get, ringing trees is generally a bad idea.
+1
If you can at least get the tree on the ground and cut into stove length logs, it will start drying. I try to do this with my hedge when ever possible. I've found in my climate, it seasons almost as fast in 22" full logs as it does when split - the tree is designed to move moisture up and down so most of the moisture comes out the ends anyway. I cut it, let it set (where it looses some water weight) then haul, split, stack, etc. at a later time.
If you can at least get the tree on the ground and cut into stove length logs, it will start drying. I try to do this with my hedge when ever possible. I've found in my climate, it seasons almost as fast in 22" full logs as it does when split - the tree is designed to move moisture up and down so most of the moisture comes out the ends anyway. I cut it, let it set (where it looses some water weight) then haul, split, stack, etc. at a later time.
Timing your felling to when the sap is down will help some. I've marked what I'll cut this winter, but I'll wait until the sap is fully down before felling. No point in waiting til the tree is juicy when it can be felled at its dryest point, then bucked & split as you have the time.
You've got some good advice! I also am in favor of felling the trees. It is still best if you can get them cut into firewood length but even being cut from the stump will help some. So cut them down and then start cutting them up little by little.
If possible, you might cut some poles and lay them down crosswise where you are felling the tree, This would keep it up off the ground and also makes easier cutting into firewood length.
btw, I've never been a fan of ringing either.
If possible, you might cut some poles and lay them down crosswise where you are felling the tree, This would keep it up off the ground and also makes easier cutting into firewood length.
btw, I've never been a fan of ringing either.
If you don't have time to split, start a "rounds" pile. I have a rounds pile and my split piles. The round pile gets built, emptied, then built again.
Hi Folks...someone mentioned cutting trees in the winter while the sap is down in the roots. If one did this wouldn't it give you a leg up on your wood drying faster because it wouldn't have the sap to dry out? Anyway cutting in the winter here in Maine ain't the most fun...especially if the snow is deep...
Franklin
Franklin
Yes, cutting during the winter there will not be as much sap in the wood so it needs less time for seasoning. And yes, there are times when we just can't cut at least part of the winter. But when we speak of cutting during winter, that can pretty much include all of November and even maybe half of October. January, February and March sometimes can be a challenge. I usually plow snow back to where I want to cut but there are still times when it is just too deep. That is when we kick back and enjoy the wood heat.
Sap is lowest now til end of Dec. Get them cut.
When the days get longer the sap gets stronger (up).
When the days get longer the sap gets stronger (up).
!!
just drop them and buck them up so they dont rot and or get stolen ,your wasting your time ringing them and hoping it will have some magical drying effect.
The only time I've found ringing to be of any use is ringing them deeply during winters end as it buys you a bit more time if you can't get to it before the sap starts to rise. Overall I agree it's hardly worth the effort.
Joe
Joe
I cleared my lot in early march, The oaks were still dormant, the sap was not being pushed up the trunk. The splits were noticeably dryer than splits from trees taken down in the later in the spring. So if I can I take trees when there dormant, also the branch cleanup is much better without the leaves. It has to help a lot with the seasoning time.
Hi xman23...and all...I still don't understand why it wouldn't be a big help to girdle yer trees in the winter when the sap is in the ground. It seems to me that the wood would be well on it's way to being seasoned when you cut it because it wouldn't have all that liquid that has made it's way up the tree. Anyway...I usually don't get enough wood cut to get it seasoned well before I use it anyway... I Have a mid-moe Allnighter smoke dragon that has served me well for 12 years and Lord knows how many years it served before I bought it used. Franklin
I Have a mid-moe Allnighter smoke dragon that has served me well for 12 years and Lord knows how many years it served before I bought it used. FranklinBetter than girdling a treee (for you summer time procrastinators) is leaving it unbucked and limbs on with the leaves on it until the leaves die. The leaves will suck out all the moisture they can before they die. The difficulty with tis approach lies in getting through the understory that springs out of the ground to hide the tree you cut down only a few days ago.
The last thing I do in late winter is to girdle three or four large (28"-32") hedge trees for early cutting in the fall. If I drop them, the canopy opens up and I have excessive weed growth below that takes lots of work to clear out before I can start cutting. They are then dead when I fell them and the brush is nice and brittle and much less cutting is nessesary. Plus then the sap wood and bark contains very little moisture. I am also cutting in fence lines that if I drop them in the winter they get into our farmers fields and have to be all cleaned up before spring planting. I say put a girdle on those fat girls.
My take . . . if I'm going to take the time to girdle a tree (i.e. ring the tree) with a saw I might as well take an extra minute or two and just cut the tree down . . . and then from there it's only a little more time to buck it into stove lengths . . . my opinion . . . even if I don't get that wood split up right away, the sooner I can remove the tree from its watering system (i.e. roots) and the faster I can get it into smaller pieces with more exposed interior wood (vs. bark) the better off I will be.
Good = Tree cut down right now
Better = Tree bucked up to stove length
Best = Tree bucked up and split and stacked
Good = Tree cut down right now
Better = Tree bucked up to stove length
Best = Tree bucked up and split and stacked
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