However, Russian olive wood still takes at least 12 months to dry and is difficult to split despite next to no sap production. Dont even bother. As with most BTU charts I have seen available, some of the numbers may be a little off, but are in the general ballpark. (Also, a number whose seed pods are only opened by bushfires.). The bradford pear can go to the dump along with the elm . Everyone has these charts but none of the wood listed is available here in Southern Cal. Burning green wood is bad for any number of reasons, but especially so when the wood has a high sap content. You know the one, thorny, ugly and wild and grows like a weed. Cal., I really miss having Live Oak and Eucalypyus to burn. as far as mulberry goes..i live in central nm and at some point in time someone started planting non bearing mulberry trees..the btu output is not even close to what the charts state above..our mulberry trees would be similar to burning elm wood..it grows verry fast and requires a lot of water..we dont even use it for cooking wood..of course most native wood in nm is verry hard because it takes hundreds of yrs to growthe growth rings are so small in some cases it takes a microscope to see them..some of the juniper trees we cut for firewood ive been told were around during the time of christ..so it naturaly is going to be extremely hard wood..ive been looking for the btu output for algarita..or desert holly..where i cut my firewood its not uncommon to find these trees from 5inches to two feet around..it takes at least a yr to season..ive seen gunstocks and stair rails made from itprety woodanyone know?? Much of the energy generated from burning green firewood actually goes toward evaporating the water held in the wood. Where does the hart-nut tree stand in the BTU scale? Though that is not to say that their moisture levels are exceedingly high. Or the thousands of different genus found in Australia . All you ever wanted to know about Russian Olive except its BTU's. I made the mistake of scoring a cottonwood many years ago and dont want to make that mistake again. Does anyone know anything about using it for firewood. Hardwoods, ideally should be two years old, but one year is a minimum in the northeast. In order to post comments, please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and reload the page. They died. It was a popular windbreak tree from decades past. It is a dense hardwood providing above average heat thats suitable for the coldest winters. If I can find ratings for those I will add them too. Once dried, it will burn clean and provide slow-burning coals. Great site. Your main consideration is that, to burn clean, any wood. It will burn longer than softwoods and will be just as effective as hardwoods. In the wild, Russian olive trees have been known to smell very sweet and strong. Also have lots (4 cord) of seasoned oak and cherry on hand. My chimney has never had to be cleaned because of burning hedge that has been dead for many years, plus the fact that it burns so hot. The limbs in the middle of the tree usually rest on the ground, providing stability. It will dry out for a season and then be split and distributed in 2018 or 2019. Which aspen is rated equally in your West and East charts? It smells great too . Just cut down a Shingle Oak Tree here in Ohio. I dug into it and have burned a face cord or so. These silvery leafed trees gulp up 75 gallons of water a day and eagerly push out native trees, including willows and cottonwoods. Someone asked about Avacado. The dense, deeply creviced bark makes a perfect hideout for spiders and insects. http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/elaang/all.html, http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/nativegardening/avoid.shtml, Want a masonry heater, Russian, Finish, kakelofen type, The Hearth Room - Wood Stoves and Fireplaces, Russian Fireplace / Masonry Heaterabsolute newbie. Campfires need much radiant heat to keep you warm on a chilly night . Store firewood somewhere constantly dry and airy. As a common invasive species, you have probably seen Russian olive often on a countryside walk. Wondering if anybody has info on the outdoor application or rot resistance of this wood. I grew up in central Illinois and we had a lot of hedge rows that were being cut. So the math:5 cords @ $180 = $900 // 5 tonsCoal @ $75 = $375. I have about 50 Euk logs for house heat. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utECDaIoBFU, Too Much Charcoal Building Up in a Wood Stove, Does Burning Softwood Cause Creosote in a Chimney, Soaking Wood Chips for Smoking and Grilling. I think many of us are a little envious of the river bottom land you have and the great hardwoods you have access to. I will feed twice that amount of seasoned. Had it rebuilt for speed and efficiency but yet to use it. If you burn coal, you are leaving a destiny of death and starvation for your descendents and mine! Walnut (black) rates at 21.50/cord, my information is provided by Pocket Reference by Thomas J Glover printed in September 2006 ( 18th edition ). The ash burns hot and fast with a nice flame, the black locust burns without a lot of flame but lasts much longer. With the ability to adapt to any soil type, the Russian olives tree can tolerate more than 75 gallons of water daily. This is a project Ive been working on. But when burnt while still holding more than 20% moisture in its wood, it will continue to release that unpleasant smell. The better your firewood has been seasoned, the better it will burn. The speices discussion boils down to one quantitative parameter, I.e. So, Im of the opinion that there is no best firewood it really depends on your application and how you value the qualitative aspects of each speicies. Russian olive sprouts from the root crown and sends up root suckers. seriously other than the odd russian olive its rare to find a tree someone will let yah cut down around here that aint cottonwood though occasionally someone wants a maple or something . Lots of oak available here, but I still take what I can get. The density of Russian olive means that it can burn slower without losing heat. Does anyone have any experience with growing and maintaining a small coppice wood? Step 2 Lay small pieces of Russian olive wood in the fireplace with other types of wood. The small, more seasoned stuff burned with mid flame and burned very slow . BillNole. Its quite nice really, light to handle, splits like nothing and puts off a nice blue flame at the coals. All of them burn well. It also helps that its wood tends to be denser than other pines, taking longer to burn out. I have a few standing dead pin oaks. . This is my first year heating with wood. I have burned Ailanthus for several years. The ones in the western hardwoods chart are for the west coast varieties. So, give at least 1 year (12 months) for your Russian olive wood to season before use. Im in Northwest Washington; originally from Southwest PA. We have lots of cedar, fir, hemlock, silver maple, oak, and madrona. Be sure and let us know how your test goes. But have found fore killed spruce / pine that had topsburned off in forest fire but roots kept sending sap to tree gives best heat ! This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register. Brent C. Minard. Still have some pieces, which are quite dry by now. getting mostly ash, some cherry and some oak. Some do well, others not so well Any info on Sassafras? We use an outdoor wood burner. Is it worth it? While this cuts down on sparks, it still doesnt keep smaller ones from escaping thru the gaps in the doors. We have many native hardwoods here but this is the best, cleanest stuff Ive found. Take care when working with Russian olive, as it has thorns that can cause injuries. I want to leave it as natural as possible. Its okay for use in the depths of winter, but this wood is super-dense and takes some effort to get started. Its a very interesting subject you bring up Audrie that I would also like to hear comments about. Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices or on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. We do have one wood burning fire place, and when the big ice storm hit February 2021, knocking out our power for a week, we used that fire place for heat. It was partially seasoned so I really cant say if its good firewood or not . Persimmon is a good secret,burns hot and long. Currently you have JavaScript disabled. A hot and dry climate will help speed up olive firewood seasoning. In these states, selling or planting them is often illegal. We raise pecans, and they burn cleanly and well, as do prunings from our apple trees. It is a decent fuel, but very heavy when green and very light when dry. The gnarled, twisted nature of this wood makes creating a tidy stack of wood difficult. I believe that pecan should be very high in BTUs and close to the other hickories, only because its in the family. Ive only ived here for the last 4 years, It should have been pruned back many years ago but now to late and needs to be cut down. I consider myself as an expert in firewood as I have heated my home with wood for 30 years. BTUs or British Thermal Units are a measure of the amount of heat energy available in any given substance. This wood is twice as hot as anything else. Right now, I have neighbors interested in buying some wood from me, and am waiting for permission to harvest some mulberry (the devil itself to set on fire and man, does it spark, but abundant here and as energy-rich as white oak). Lit my first fire of the season. Do they make good firewood? Burning Russian Olive Wood Step 1 Hit the wood against the wood box or ground before bringing it indoors. Many places consider it evasive now and are trying to get rid of it. It has kept us plenty warm every winter, we ensure we have a chimney sweep come out and check the wood stove and chimney once a year. They have a wierd looking fruit that is bright green and and can be as big as a cantaloupe and just as heavy. Apple is another good secret. Jul 16, 2013. Are Rosewoods (and Bubinga) really banned by CITES? First find you a steel bucket with a metal lid . Is It Okay To Burn Russian Olive In A Fireplace? Not a true mahogany at all. I cant locate any ratings for this wood. Keeps for a couple years at best. Split each log into two to four pieces, depending on the log size. Can I Only Use Seasoned Firewood For Burning? I have alot of leelan cypress trees that like to debrach themselves. A week later he tried to burn it and told me to never burn oak , because it burned terrible and smoked bad . here in washington all the old timers and people that heat there houses just with wood buy douglas fir and the hipsters burn hard wood because they think its better. Anyway, I find it interesting that not one mention of mountain mahogany has been posted-until now. One BTU is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit. The olive woods sweetness helps balance the slightly bitter hickory smoke. Likewise, wood that does not burn clean, including unseasoned wood, produces more creosote. Ponderosa Pine, commonly used to heat homes in this area, burns at 21.7 British thermal units (BTU), which in simple terms, means it burns hot and long. I look for fallen trees that are gray and smooth. When Russian olive wood is first cut, it released an unpleasant, overwhelming odor. After three sittings I have read through all the comments on this site. Russian olive is usually a straight grain wood, but as it grows older, the trunk tends to grow extremely thick and stringy, making it almost impossible to spit with a maul. I burn 24/7, and use about two cords from Nov. thru Mar., with several 3-day breaks every three weeks or so when the temps are a bit higher. The drawback is that the trees are small and have thorns . These firewood BTU charts compare the heat energy ratings and weight of common firewood species. My husband and I have been cutting alot of Pinyon pine this yearit burns great!! Ive burned wood for heat much of my life, but in my new house my focus is on wood for cooking. While we have quite a few woods available to us, what weve settled on for the fire place is a 50/50 mix of Oregon Ash and Black Locust. One BTU is the heat required to increase the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit. George, its a bit cooler up here in the lower Hudson Valley, and weve been burning in the 18th C. Dutch hearth since Hurricane Sandy. In mid-summer, after the sap has risen and saturated the stump, cut it. By time it is dry, there is nothing left. Love reading the comments from Andy. 1) Ironwood and Hornbeam are considered the same species locally. THAT IS THE SWEET-SMELLING AROMIC CEDAR THEY LINE CLOSETS WITH. Mild food is best as it doesnt overwhelm the subtle smoky taste. Firewood is easier to split while it is still green. But unlike other woods like birch, Russian olive catches fire very slowly. This varies with the size and shape of the wood, and how tightly it is stacked. interesting site. Can the latter possibly split 36 diameter 2 drums? Stay warm and dont worry about it so much. wanted free hard wood firewood near lebanon,pa area After the moisture evaporates the logs burn great . Every year we have to cut several down. OLIVE. (Im assuming it rates as a soft maple) Luckily, our home is passive solar with super-insulated walls so it will still be worth burning. Im here in S.E. We also leave the basement door partially open so as not to encourage the water pipes to freeze. rating for mountain mahogany. They don't produce as many large pieces of firewood as taller tree varieties, but the branches make good kindling. I seem to remember that all wood has roughly the same BTU content PER WEIGHT. I live in an area surrounded by Russian Olive trees. It does have thorns and it is easy to work. There are varieties of those species in the Eastern US but there are also varieties on the west coast. Have a friend with a fireplace?, bundle about a dozen of the fat lighter sticks with a ribbon and this makes a great gift. Be sure to poke a couple holes to vent the gases .Then get a 55 gal drum or make a small kiln to put your bucket in .Start your fire then put the bucket in.