Sweet Birch?

[albertj03]

I decided to make a new trail going into an area of my property that is difficult to get to where there is a nice stand of mature oak trees, many of them with good sized off-shoots that are still attached but are dead, very dry and ready to burn. I cut a lot of this stuff last year right off my main trail and it burned great. I took a walk through the area where I'm going to make the trail and found an area of what I thought were cherry trees at first and then when I got closer noticed the leaves looked like birch leaves. Looks like these are some nice Sweet Birch or Cherry Birch trees. There a few good sized ones but most of them are fairly small so I'll avoid cutting them if I can but I was wondering if anyone has burned Sweet Birch before and how it is to burn? I remember hearing that it was great for firewood. I suppose it's probably very similar to yellow birch which I've burned in the past and was great.

Here is a picture of the leaves.

 

[PA. Woodsman]

Makes great kindling, quarter-splits and large pieces for main fuelwood. Burns nice, throws great heat, smells like Wintergreen candy....it's a winner.

 

[albertj03]

Makes great kindling, quarter-splits and large pieces for main fuelwood. Burns nice, throws great heat, smells like Wintergreen candy....it's a winner.

Does it smell like wintergreen candy when you burn it or when you cut it or both? This may be worth cutting one to smell that.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

Never heard of it. Is it the same thing as black birch?

 

[albertj03]

Never heard of it. Is it the same thing as black birch?

Just looked it up and it appears to be referred to as Cherry Birch, Sweet Birch and Black Birch. Looks just like a Cherry tree with the leaves of a birch tree.

 

[CTYank]

Around here, black birch is my favorite. Real depths-of-winter stuff for the stove. Excellent stuff.

IIRC oil of wintergreen was/is distilled from the bark & twigs; they're the source of the fragrance.
Nothing quite like fragrance of a woodshed full of freshly cut & split black birch. Or sugar maple.

Only one problem I've encountered with black birch- bees & wasps find the fragrance irresistible too.

 

[Wood Duck]

you can smell the wintergreen smell merely by scratching the bark on the twigs. You can also chew the twigs and enjoy the taste. No need to cut the whole tree.

 

[PA. Woodsman]

Makes great kindling, quarter-splits and large pieces for main fuelwood. Burns nice, throws great heat, smells like Wintergreen candy....it's a winner.

Does it smell like wintergreen candy when you burn it or when you cut it or both? This may be worth cutting one to smell that.

Both. I sometimes go outside when I'm burning it to get a whiff and it is like Heaven....