Giant Cottonwood 10+ cords 1 tree!!

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

If cottonwood is anything like Aspen, leave it there. You'll barely have time to drink a beer in between loading when winter gets here. :roll:

 

[CJRages]

Grif, technically any tree that loses its leaves in the fall is a hardwood. So yes, cottonwood and popple are actually hardwoods.

As I find it humorous to say: "The softest hardwoods are 'softer' than the hardest softwoods." For example the deciduous Cottonwood is less dense in terms of BTU rate (approx 13.5 mbtu/cord) versus the evergreen pine BTU rate (approx. 17.1 mbtu/cord). It all depends on our crazy definitions of these words. One could simplify things by saying "if wood burns, just burn it."

 

[toqua]

You burn what you got. I have been to wy,an that's about all thre is there. If thats all there is,tha's what you use.

Good score. Tom

 

[maplewood]

We like pictures. Even if it's cottonwood.

If we don't see pictures, it didn't happen.

 

[smokinj]

We like pictures. Even if it's cottonwood.

If we don't see pictures, it didn't happen.

Agree! 10 cord cottonwood without pic's? Just Saying...

 

[aaronl41]

Cotton wood is not worth the effort. It's hard to handle because of it's size. It rots very fast, and it takes a lot of it to heat with. It's very "stringy" when you split it if it's green. BUT, I do burn a lot of it. Here in MN it's all over. A friend of mine has about a mile of shoreline on a lake that has came up about 15 feet in the last 15 years or so and all of the cotton wood trees have died because they are standing in the water. What I do is cut them down when the lake freezes over in the winter, just drop them on the ice. Most have been standing dead for 10 years, and are completely dry and not rotten at all, except for about 2-3 feet at the bottom. Best part is when you drop them on the ice all the small stuff just explodes and you don't have to deal with much limbing. You just have to watch for widow makers when dropping them. He has enough cotton wood for me to heat my house for about 20 years. It's free and he wants it out before it falls into the lake. Win win for me.

 

[WARDNEAL]

Great score.

It will burn hot and fast if dry.

Don't let the nay sayers stop you.

Some people have to take what is avalible.

Oh if we all just had free high btu wood.

 

[midwestcoast]

Tackling an 8' diameter tree & not 1 lousy pic? I'm not doubting you, I just wanna see. We have many big Cottonwoods here as they are the only tree here that withstands getting buried by sand dunes. The trunks just sprout roots & the tree gains height faster than the dune can bury it.

 

[stihltheone]

Tackling an 8' diameter tree & not 1 lousy pic? I'm not doubting you, I just wanna see. We have many big Cottonwoods here as they are the only tree here that withstands getting buried by sand dunes. The trunks just sprout roots & the tree gains height faster than the dune can bury it.

I can not wrap my brain around how to put up a pix, but there is one posted on arboristsite.com. I had some one post it on there. I can email someone a pix if they wood post it. Thanks

 

[stihltheone]

Fellas, bear in mind the OP is from the wonderful state of Wyoming. They are not blessed with some of the wood most folks have. Cottonwood out there is good for them. So stihltheone, I believe you that it is fun and hope you enjoy the whole thing. I also agree it can certainly be fun bucking up those big trees.

+1

What makes this interesting is how ridiculously large the tree is. The type of wood irregardless. Although as mentioned earlier... there better be some pictures soon.

One thing about these MAN sized trees.... They are a lot of work, but actually not that bad once it is just down to the large stuff, just a lot of cutting.... but hey I have no problem with that I have a buddy or two that will fanigle the logs around and pitch the cut stuff. I noodle almost all of it, we actually split very little, just process it on site, we make heaps of noodles!! I can email a pix if someone can post it. Thanks

 

[billb3]

I have several poplars that may be cottonwoods ( based on the bark and fluttering and leaf shape leaves) . Most of the smaller ones are dead and seem to be rotting fairly fast standing.
The ones That either outpaced the pines in growth or didn't have to compete with any are huge.

Could be Quaking or Bigtooth Aspen too, P. Tremuloides or P. Grandidentata

I have a quaking aspen in the front of the house whiteish greyish smooth bark.
Older than me, I remember watching the leaves flutter in the same one when I was a kid .

The ones in one corner of the lot have the course bark and grandidentata might it be.
looks a lot like the bigtooth aspen in this pic : http://www.hubbardbrook.org/image_library/images/Bigtooth Aspen.JPG
These are only about 30 years old.

pics are tough. Hope to catch what the flowers (if it has any) look like this Spring.
They seem to rot pretty quick standing dead, so it's just nice to know what they are.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Tackling an 8' diameter tree & not 1 lousy pic? I'm not doubting you, I just wanna see. We have many big Cottonwoods here as they are the only tree here that withstands getting buried by sand dunes. The trunks just sprout roots & the tree gains height faster than the dune can bury it.

I can not wrap my brain around how to put up a pix, but there is one posted on arboristsite.com. I had some one post it on there. I can email someone a pix if they wood post it. Thanks

I sent a message that I would post those pictures but have not yet received them.

 

[the_dude]

Grows like a weed around here too.

Wood is tough to dry. I've found it often goes punky before it's really dry enough to burn.

I've literally seen water squirt out of cottonwood when the 25 ton splitter hit it. I agree with the above. It is either too wet or too rotton. I don't bother with it, not even for the shoulder season.

 

[Bspring]

Sounds like a job for ye olde blasting wedge! Seriously, though, that is how we split old dead lightning downed cottonwood logs about 6 ft in diameter. Sawed them into trailer lengths, then split from the end with a blasting wedge, then sawed the pieces and did some "finer" splitting with an axe. Long ago and far away, of course.

http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/black-powder-blasting-wedge-logging-55539862

I am assuming that you can not get these any more? Do you use a fuze? Was this a common practice for these large trees?

 

[Highbeam]

Burning dry cottonwood in a modern EPA stove is a good idea. It won't last as long as real good wood but it will last much longer than the time it takes to drink a beer or whatever other tall tale your grand daddy told you.

Cottonwood is like pine. People that haven't actually burned it or have burned it green have all sorts of bad things to say about it. Those of use that have properly processed it find it to be quite nice to burn.

 

[ckarotka]

Burning dry cottonwood in a modern EPA stove is a good idea. It won't last as long as real good wood but it will last much longer than the time it takes to drink a beer or whatever other tall tale your grand daddy told you.

Cottonwood is like pine. People that haven't actually burned it or have burned it green have all sorts of bad things to say about it. Those of use that have properly processed it find it to be quite nice to burn.

I have finally burned about 6 loads of it so far this year, many more to go. It's 12 month seasoned. I think it will compliment the better wood nicely but.....when they say the coaling properties are poor I think they should say non-existent. Burning a load of solely cottonwood, I have to add splits before it disappears. One CW I got last year was a pain to split, don't know when it was downed but was not fresh. The second one, this late spring, was freshly down from a storm and split like butter.

All-in-all I will take it if it's easy to get to.