Loving Larch

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ohlongarm

ohlongarm

Minister of Fire
Mar 18, 2011
1,606
Northeastern Ohio
I cut a huge Larch tree down in July about thirty inches across,I've never ever burned anything in the pine family in any of the five woodstoves I've owned since 2004.Today I was checking the stuff out in looked bone dry,I took about six pieces and threw them in the BKULTRA one super cedar under them in five minutes I had a huge beautiful fire ablaze just roaring cut the king back after an hour to 1.5 she's cruising at 450 and the house is 75,had to open the door what a great shoulder season burner.
 
I know of only one larch tree growing in my area & it was planted in a cemetery.
Was it easy to split? I got a few pieces of pine that I'll burn this spring.
 
I have a friend who is using Larch for poles on a new barn. He claims it is as good as treated. He is 65 so it will probably last his lifetime. Has anyone else used larch or poles? We can get it here from the Amish fairly reasonable. I wood like to build a pole barn soon.

Edit...the Amish also sell Tamarack which I believe is quite similiar (?)
 
I'm surrounded by Western Larch = Tamarack. Its the primo firewood in my area. Burns hot.
Often it has twisted grain, which can make splitting tough. I'm going to throw some in the stove right now.
 
I use to burn Larch (Tamarack) all the time, but it only grows in certain areas around here and I have to drive way up in the mountains to get it. I've since switched to lodgepole pine which has nearly the same BTU rating as Larch and with the abundance pine beetle kill pine, the fact that I can get it much closer, and I can get the beetle kill stuff that is pre-seasoned it just doesn't make sense to go after Larch anymore.
But Larch is great wood, for both head and shoulder seasons. ;-)
 
My wife saw a tamarack growing beside the road the other day . . . for some reason she had never seen one and liked the look of it . . . guess I'll be trying to find one growing on the family land and will transplant it this coming Spring . . . I never thought they were a particuarly pretty tree, but hey . . . what do I know . . .
 
Have quite a few larch on our property. Have not burned any yet but from what I have seen,
it does not resist decay very well. Maybe he is thinking about locust.
Either one makes good firewood though.
 
KTLM said:
Have quite a few larch on our property. Have not burned any yet but from what I have seen,
it does not resist decay very well. Maybe he is thinking about locust.
Either one makes good firewood though.
Click to expand...

I was just reading about them to see if I have any around here and I read this

The seed-bearing pine cones of the Tamarack Larch turn from bright red to brown as they prepare to release their seeds. The wood is flexible and very rot resistant, making it a great choice for making snowshoes [back when people actually needed snowshoes]. Today the Tamarack Larch is often used for ornamental purposes, and is also a favorite for bonsai. The word Tamarack is of Native American origin.

Although Eastern Larch Beetles are known to attack Tamarack Larch, the beetles prefer already weakened or dying trees. If your trees are properly cared for and in decent health, you need not be concerned about beetle infestations.
Click to expand...
 
Jack Straw said:
I have a friend who is using Larch for poles on a new barn. He claims it is as good as treated. He is 65 so it will probably last his lifetime. Has anyone else used larch or poles? We can get it here from the Amish fairly reasonable. I wood like to build a pole barn soon.

Edit...the Amish also sell Tamarack which I believe is quite similiar (?)
Click to expand...

All larches are called Tamarack to the best of my knowledge.

I haven't burnt it, but love the tree. There's just something cool about a deciduous conifer that will grow in and out of water. I like the little knobs on the branches too.

Matt
 
A friend of mine gets tamarack slabwood from an amish sawmill.They told him he would like it because it burned hotter than the hemlock they had.
 
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