[Greenbuilding] dry firewood

[YankeePerm at aol.com]

Actually, here in Florida, where we cook with wood fire for about six months 
out of the year and do a little heating, hickory is not of much use to us. It 
rots about as soon as it hits the ground.   I should say it is not much use 
for fuel.   It has important soil ecology and forest ecology values as it rots 
and I move the logs around for other benefits.   I'm considering trying it also 
for mushroom growing.

Mostly we burn oak and fruit wood, mainly cherry and plum, with 
cooler-burning woods when we can get them.   (A quick fire when it is cool in the morning 
cooks breakfast but does not heat up the house.)   Although we always have more 
wood than we need, I've planted black locust against future needs.   It puts 
out even more heat than hickory, which means we don't need to give it as much 
space to get the fuel we need.

I'm actually responding because I went outside and noticed that the hickories 
(mockernuts) are only now dropping their leaves.   So these definitely are 
not in the same class as pecans, another type of hickory, in this regard.   
That's fine with me, because the transpirational cooling that the hickories do 
when in leave saves us far more purchased energy than if we burned them.

Dan Hemenway

In a message dated 12/1/06 6:32:32 AM, roncascio at verizon.net writes:


> ... to a lesser extent the other hickories, as winter-harvested firewood.
> 
> Dan Hemenway
> 
> I've got a stash of hickory that was winter cut over 15 years ago and put up
> in the wood shed. We save it for those really cold nights... better leave
> alot of room between yourself and the woodstove.
> 
> Ron
> 





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