I don't know how much climate makes a difference, but I live in SE Michigan.
Welcome to the forum Ray.
Lots of varying advice given by many good fellas. So it is time to give mine. First, you should know that most of our wood is dried up to 7 years in the stack and I'm the guy who started preaching that everyone get 3 years ahead on their wood stacks. Fortunately, many have taken the advice and have reaped the benefits, which are many!
So here is how we do things. Our cutting starts usually around December 1 and ends usually by March 1. We just pile it up in the winter and do all the splitting in the spring. We cut saplings in the woods and lay those down to stack the wood on. The big thing is to just get the wood off the ground and it helps to get some air circulation because air circulation is the biggest key to drying wood. Even more important than sunshine. This is why it is bad to cut wood then stack it right away in a barn or shed. It needs to be outdoors so the wind can do its thing. Also keep in mind that wood won't dry until it is split so it is important to get the wood splits as soon as you can.
After stacking the wood at a height of around 4 1/2', we simply leave it alone. The following fall or early winter we will then cover the top of the stack using old galvanized roofing but one can use many things for covering. Tarps are the worst though.
We then simply forget about the wood and let Mother Nature do her thing to complete the drying. In October we then move enough wood for the winter's needs into the barn. Naturally we normally use our oldest wood. So why do we do things this way?
1. Cutting wood in winter means sap is down, birds have gone south and we don't have to slap skeeters nor dodge yellow jackets. It also is a better time to do the hard work rather than doing it in the humid summers.
2. Giving our wood plenty of time to dry means we are never concerned about which wood to burn nor are we wondering if the wood will really burn. Too many go through this annually. In addition, we do not have to continually resplit the wood so we can check it with a moisture meter. There is no need for the meter. We know our wood is dry.
3. We do burn a small amount of oak and for sure we will not attempt to burn oak until it has been split and stacked for a minimum of 3 years. Any time shorter means the stove needs more draft to burn the wood. This means you are not getting the maximum amount of heat from the wood because lots of that energy is used to just keep the wood burning and goes right up the chimney. Burn it dry and you get the full benefits of the wood and you will also find you burn less wood and get more heat.
4. I stated it above, but it bears repeating. You will burn less wood and get more heat. This means a lot less work that you have to do.
5. You won't be fighting the stove or the fire. Put wood in the stove and it will light off right away. Too many times we read or hear of others who can't seem to get their fire to burn or can't get the stove top temperature even up to 500. We have no problem getting our stove up to over 600 and can do that with 3 splits!
6. What will you do if some year some bad luck falls your way? Will you have wood to burn? If you are 3 years ahead and something bad happens so you can't cut wood that winter, you have some to fall back on and do not have to either buy wood or ask for help. We've seen this scenario with several guys on this forum!
I could go on and on but do not want to bore anyone. But if you read my signature line you can see we've burned wood for a couple years and have learned much. We are also thankful that we are still able to learn more!
Good luck.