The dogwood tree is a flowering tree that is native to North America. It is a member of the genus Cornus, which includes about 30 other species. The dogwood tree usually grows in moist, shady areas and ranges from 3 to 20 meters in height.
Even though it might not be on your firewood stack, dogwood firewood makes an excellent choice. There are, however, a few minor disadvantages to using wood.
Depending on its moisture content, dogwood is an excellent firewood choice for your fireplace. If you cut down a tree, the center of the wood may still be quite wet since they seem to die very slowly.
Typically, firewood types take about a year to season, and your dogwood should take about the same time if it has moisture in its center. For best results, stack the wood and let it dry until next year if you cut it down this fall.
Is Dogwood Wood Good For Firewood?
I love dogwoods. Here, it grows large. Material with a high BTU and density. My favorite part is that it’s hard to split and a little hard to get started, but I love it all the same. It would be great if I could have some more often.
The fact that it’s usually small in diameter prevents people from going after it much. So many of them are scattered about, and I’ll grab them when they’re dead (the bark has fallen off.) The leaves still cling to life, however.
There will still be a thin strip of bark feeding the upper limbs, even if the middle of the trunk is gone. It was a little challenging to start, but I thought it might have been due to the wood not being fully dry.
Given the density of the wood, I figured it would take longer to dry out, but even when dry, it may not start right away.
Instead, it Burns for a long time and throws a lot of heat. So even though it is a little difficult to split, this fuelwood is definitely an excellent choice.
Dogwood Firewood Burn Qualities
The smoke produced by dogwood that has been properly dried will be very low if the wood has been properly dried. Therefore, outdoor campfires, open fireplaces, wood stoves, or wood stoves will all benefit from this product.
Dogwood should always be seasoned before being added to a fire. Smoke will be produced if there is too much water content. A fire that burns unseasoned wood consumes the most energy, evaporating water rather than generating heat.
You can’t go wrong with dogwood unless they are diseased, or you are concerned about storing them at your home. My yard contains a few trees that I burnt. It was a great burn.
You usually do not have to split them because they are small in diameter. It might be best to dry them for at least a year. As compared to hickory, this wood does not appear particularly dense.
My guess is that either the moisture has been lost quickly or it checks, and splits open easily. Maybe it’s not that dense to begin with. The fire pit is often a small one, which makes it easier to start a fire.
Dogwood vs. Other Firewood: How Does It Compare?
By far, dogwood makes the best source of heat, outperforming most oak and ash trees. A lower sap content also makes it safer to burn with little smoke or creosote buildup than maple firewood.
The small diameter of dogwood will allow it to season more quickly than other dense hardwoods despite its density. Dogwood won’t take as long to burn as chestnut or oak, so you won’t need to wait as long.
Dogwood Fire Characteristics
This wood has great density and weight, which makes it a great choice. Due to this, the firewood won’t become depleted quickly. Dogwood produces high-quality coal, as one might expect from wood of such density. That is why it lasts so long on a fire.
After a dogwood fire is extinguished, the coals will remain hot for a long time. Hence, starting a new fire will be easier if the previous one dies. It will also produce a few sparks but cutting them down in the winter reduces them even further.
The sap left in a dogwood tree will cause it to produce more sparks if cut in the spring or summer, but the wood will still not produce a dangerous number of sparks.
Heat Output
It’s important to consider heat output when looking for the best firewood. People who have to endure cold winters especially need it. It’s essential to stay warm whether you are relaxing at home or enjoying the great outdoors.
Compared to hickory, oak, and Osage orange, dogwood produces impressive heat output. However, depending on the variety, the amount of heat varies.
BTU Rating Of Dogwood Firewood
Due to its density and weight, dogwood wood makes excellent firewood. People who heat their homes with firewood prefer dogwood, which has good coaling properties and produces around 24.8 million BTUs per cord.
The Pacific dogwood produces a heat output of up to 27.4 million BTUs per cord. There is a potential energy saving of up to 31.1 million BTUs per cord of flowering dogwood.
In the shoulder seasons, this heat may be too high. Combining dogwood with low-BTU woods such as catalpa or alder might be a good idea.
How Much Sap Content Does Dogwood Have?
Like many other blossoming trees, dogwoods have the highest sap content from spring to autumn. Despite this, the sap is still manageable.
Dogwood is best harvested in the winter when the sap is not as abundant. It will be best to avoid dogwood trees leaking copious amounts of sap, as they are damaged and trying to repair themselves.
Can I Burn Dogwood In A Fireplace?
Dogwood seems like the perfect choice when it comes to burning wood in a fireplace. It releases a minimal amount of smoke and does not produce many sparks. As far as smell goes, it can sometimes be overwhelming, but it’s never unpleasant.
A dogwood fire can, however, become too hot. Undoubtedly, its heat output is dangerously higher than that of many oak and ash trees. If you monitor the flames to make sure they do not get too hot, you will be able to get a long-lasting fire.
Almost all fireplaces allow you to adjust the airflow, so use these features to control the fire if you wish to burn dogwood.
Aroma
People either love or hate the pungent fragrance of living dogwood trees. However, many people find the fragrance of burning dogwood pleasant due to its milder aroma.
Dogwood is an excellent choice for cooking meat and other foods. These coals are ideal for smoking meat, grilling, and burning fires. Dogwood doesn’t add any flavor to your cooking, however. You might consider using mesquite or hickory for this purpose.
Splitting Difficulty
Splitting the wood can be somewhat challenging. It takes a decent amount of effort to process most of the pieces.
Some aren’t too bad, but most are stringy. Splitting dogwood by hand can sometimes be challenging. This wood is dense and becomes extremely hard after drying. When the firewood is green, it’s best to split it.
Due to their location in the tree’s crotch, some rounds may be nearly impossible to split.
In this area, branches and trunks weave together to make a knotty, gnarly structure. Therefore, a heavy-duty maul or hydraulic splitter may be necessary if you land on your crotch.
Creosote Build-Up
When burning a fire, creosote builds up inside your chimney. Your chimney will need to be cleaned out more often as the build-up accelerates. Creosote levels are very low in dogwood when it has been sufficiently dried.
Coaling
As a result of the dogwood, heat is produced throughout the night as the coals burn well. The feature makes it easier to keep the fire going without having to throw logs on it constantly.
We think dogwood is comparable in coaling properties to oak and beech, firewood heavyweights. So, the next morning, you shouldn’t need to restart the fire from scratch after adding a large log before bed.
Drawback
However, wood has one disadvantage. A few small limbs and the small base of the trunk make processing this tree difficult, and you don’t get a lot of firewood for the effort.
It is estimated that the firewood produced by an oak tree of average size will be the same as that produced by dozens of dogwood. People avoid burning dogwood for this reason or don’t mess with the wood in any way.
If your dogwood is dead from disease or has been damaged by a storm, its wood makes excellent firewood.
How Can I Identify A Dogwood Tree?
The bark of dogwood trees has a grayish-scaly texture, which some people compare to the skin of an alligator. Having smooth-edged oval leaves with pointed tips, it has smooth-edged leaves. In the spring, you can find four-petaled pink, red, or white flowers.
A distinctive feature of the wood is its interlocked grain and narrow, reddish-brown heartwood. In addition, this tree has a wide sapwood area that is pinkish or cream-colored.
When Is The Best Time To Chop Dogwood For Firewood?
If you are looking for firewood between winter and early spring, you may want to consider cutting down a dogwood. The wood will season faster at this time of year since it contains less sap and moisture.
How Long Does Dogwood Need For Seasoning?
When it comes to dogwood, patience is required to season it. It takes dogwood 12 months to season in warm, dry climates. It is recommended that cooler areas with lots of rain allow two years for the soil to dry. Compared to logs, split dogwood will dry out much faster.
A dead dogwood tree won’t need much seasoning if it’s been dead for some time. It will already be mostly dry since most of the water has evaporated.
Tips For Seasoning Dogwood For Firewood
Here are some quick and easy tips to help you season dogwood faster.
- Your wood should be positioned correctly by avoiding shady spots and facing the wind with the exposed wood.
- Snow and rain will be kept out of the wood if the wood is covered with a tarpaulin.
- Maintain a 3-5″ gap between rows of wood to allow air to circulate.
- By stacking the wood on pallets, you will get extra airflow below the wood and reduce rotting.
- To increase the surface area exposed to sunshine and wind, split the logs into small pieces first.
Final Words
Splitting old dogwood trees for firewood is well worth the effort. Heat is produced by the wood, which burns cleanly and produces excellent coals. However, without a hydraulic splitting machine, splitting wood can be challenging.
When splitting dogwood, grab a maul or axe that’s right for the job if you’re splitting a large amount by hand.
The majority of commercial firewood sellers don’t sell dogwood. As a short tree with a trunk that typically measures one foot in diameter, it doesn’t provide a lot of timber.
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