The Moon and wood seasoning

[oldspark]

Some of the oldtimers around here cut in fall of year leaving the trees lay with the branches on. The thought was that the leaves still being green would suck up the sap as the tree died thus leaving
it dryer when harvester later in the year anyone hear of this? It seems to have some merit might be a way to get dryer wood and let mother nature help. Just saying????

Another old wives tale, cut, split, and stack as soon as possible in single rows in wind and sun is as good as it gets.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Some of the oldtimers around here cut in fall of year leaving the trees lay with the branches on. The thought was that the leaves still being green would suck up the sap as the tree died thus leaving
it dryer when harvester later in the year anyone hear of this? It seems to have some merit might be a way to get dryer wood and let mother nature help. Just saying????

We've experimented with this idea in the past but it didn't seem to make any difference. If you consider the amount of moisture in the trees, those leaves might have problems drawing much of it. Just watch the leaves in how quickly they wilt.


EDIT: Sorry oldspark, I didn't see your post before posting this or I'd just left it alone.

 

[billb3]

Sounds like someone invented a fine way to excuse sitting around doing little but drinking beer for two weeks a month.

 

[homebrewz]

Sounds like someone invented a fine way to excuse sitting around doing little but drinking beer for two weeks a month.

That is an excellent point. That's more time to play fiddle too.. it is Cape Breton, after all.

 

[-PB-]

Sounds like someone invented a fine way to excuse sitting around doing little but drinking beer for two weeks a month.

I've spent many an hour thinking of similar excuses...

 

[nate379]

Makes sense. Couple years ago I cleared some land in the spring before the leaves where in teh trees. Well I cut all the trees, bucked them and piled all the tops/branches to chip up. By the time I chipped them 3-4 week later they all had full leaves in them.

Some of the oldtimers around here cut in fall of year leaving the trees lay with the branches on. The thought was that the leaves still being green would suck up the sap as the tree died thus leaving
it dryer when harvester later in the year anyone hear of this? It seems to have some merit might be a way to get dryer wood and let mother nature help. Just saying????

 

[Duetech]

Some of the oldtimers around here cut in fall of year leaving the trees lay with the branches on. The thought was that the leaves still being green would suck up the sap as the tree died thus leaving
it dryer when harvester later in the year anyone hear of this? It seems to have some merit might be a way to get dryer wood and let mother nature help. Just saying????

Not an old wives tale. Mere scientific fact. However the amount of sap used by the leaves is something that cannot be verified unless the "before and after" m/c is specifically known. Leaves wilt as they lose moisture. Whether they stay firm longer because of excess sap or just normal sap levels cannot be verified by an opinion poll but the opinions given as related to experiential occurences help to clarify the direction that scientific study should first use to investigate. Oh...ssshhh the gov't has enough projects to use our money on... But if you were looking for work... hmmm!

 

[Sisu]

I have cut trees in the spring that had so much sap that it was shooting off the chain and spraying me. Never had had that happen in the winter.

The reason for that is is because water usually doesn't flow at temperatures below freezing. Instead it is locked in the wood fiber as ice. Trees that I cut down in the winter and left until spring time normally have water/sap dripping from the cut.

 

[oldspark]

Some of the oldtimers around here cut in fall of year leaving the trees lay with the branches on. The thought was that the leaves still being green would suck up the sap as the tree died thus leaving
it dryer when harvester later in the year anyone hear of this? It seems to have some merit might be a way to get dryer wood and let mother nature help. Just saying????

Not an old wives tale. Mere scientific fact. However the amount of sap used by the leaves is something that cannot be verified unless the "before and after" m/c is specifically known. Leaves wilt as they lose moisture. Whether they stay firm longer because of excess sap or just normal sap levels cannot be verified by an opinion poll but the opinions given as related to experiential occurences help to clarify the direction that scientific study should first use to investigate. Oh...ssshhh the gov't has enough projects to use our money on... But if you were looking for work... hmmm!

Old wives tale as in it will season quicker when cut, split, and stacked, no way is it going to season quicker that way!

 

[bogydave]

I've never cut by the moon
Not enough light to see well enough.
I like daytime cutting.
My mom plants the garden by the moon.
Fall & winter cutting. wood is driest. sap down in roots.
If you want to knock the bark off, spring is good. peels off easy.

 

[ziggy19]

I've never cut by the moon
Not enough light to see well enough.
I like daytime cutting.
My mom plants the garden by the moon.
Fall & winter cutting. wood is driest. sap down in roots.
If you want to knock the bark off, spring is good. peels off easy.

your Mom watches the moon cycle when planting her gardenshe must be crazy lol. Actually quite a few people here do the same thing and I would as well if I had a garden.

 

[mayhem]

Doesn't make any sense to me that the phase of the moon would affeect anything like sap in a tree...regardless of how much the shadow of the earth falls across the moon, the whole darn thing is still there, exerting the same gravitational pull it always does. If there were actually enough difference in the gravitational pull of the moon at certain times to actually change the flow of sap in a tree, there would be alot of other things we could measure...like we would weigh less on the bathroom scale.

Best time to cut down trees for firewood is in Autumn/early Winter when the sap is down, this will assist greatly in seasoning. Quite a few varieties of tree will be ready to burn by the following Autumn if they are felled, cut, and split before Christmas the previous year.

Isn't this more due to the fact that the wood has been seasoning for a full year plus instead of 6-7 months if you cut in the spring?

 

[oldspark]

Doesn't make any sense to me that the phase of the moon would affeect anything like sap in a tree...regardless of how much the shadow of the earth falls across the moon, the whole darn thing is still there, exerting the same gravitational pull it always does. If there were actually enough difference in the gravitational pull of the moon at certain times to actually change the flow of sap in a tree, there would be alot of other things we ,measure...like we would weigh less on the bathroom scale.

Best time to cut down trees for firewood is in Autumn/early Winter when the sap is down, this will assist greatly in seasoning. Quite a few varieties of tree will be ready to burn by the following Autumn if they are felled, cut, and split before Christmas the previous year.

Isn't this more due to the fact that the wood has been seasoning for a full year plus instead of 6-7 months if you cut in the spring?

LOL, best time to weigh your self is when the moon pulls on your fat ass!

 

[mayhem]

^^ Best not to do it during an eclipse...the sun is opposite the moon at that point and the extra gravity boost will add an easy 10lb.

 

[gpcollen1]

I don't think a full moon has any effect on photosynthesis as moonlight is just a reflection. However, the moon, especially a full one, has a powerful pull as reflected in tides.
Our friend from Nova Scotia can vouch for this. The Bay of Fundy, which lies immediately west of Nova Scotia has the highest tides in the world. I have seen the tides actually reverse the flow of rivers in Nova Scotia. Anyway, it makes sense to me that the moon could also have a great effect on the flow of sap.

The threat of bad things happening on and around March 19 is real enough. I disregard all predictions based on astrology, but astronomy is another thing. The moon will be the closest to Earth in 18 years which would already have a strong effect on tides, but it is also going to be a full moon at that point. The pulling force of the moon can quite possibly create terribly high tides, but also have a pull on the earth's plates. It doesn't take much pull along a fault line to cause an earthquake. Fault lines are already under enormous stress.

Tides appear to reverse the flow of many rivers depending on how far up river you are. The Hudson river appears to reverse flow as much as 60 miles inland.

 

[gpcollen1]

dont know much about how the moon affects wood but Blue Moon makes a good beer! Garnish with an orange slice. Does that help?

Have you tried their Winter Seasonal - "Winter Abbey Ale" yet? Copper-colored ale,with selected roasted malts,a hint of Belgian sugar & touch of wheat.I like it as much as Guinness & it ranks right up there with any real Belgian Ale I've had so far.It was just released in late 2010 for the first time.I think the season's over now,luckily I grabbed a case of it before distributers started stocking the Spring Ale in local stores.

Those Coors brewed Blue Moon beers are not even close to the quality of the authentic Belgian Styles. While I consider this 'Hearth Advocate', try Beer Advocate for the best in beer.

 

[nate379]

My grandparent's do that.. They farmed potatoes commercially from childhood (1920s) until retirement in 93. Maybe is true, maybe isn't... but it doesn't hurt I figure.

My mom plants the garden by the moon.
.

 

[homebrewz]

The lower portion of the Hudson River is a tidal estuary, so its directly influenced by the tides.