Can i burn mountain laurel? Iv got some heavy spots on my land that im clearing. I dont know where i thought iv heard that its toxic.
It looks as though it would burn well even if its relatively small. See: Kalmia latifolia english Also see: Plants Profile for Kalmia latifolia (mountain laurel)
I have burned plenty in brush piles with no ill effect. The mountain laurel sure is thick in mason. Very pretty for a couple weeks a year...
One thing I noticed is it doesn't grow back once you cut it. Good if you are trying to eradicate not so good if you are looking to thin.
I never knew what that stuff was nor had ever heard about it until one spring we drove the Blue Ridge Parkway. I fell in love with it as the flower is beautiful. Sadly, we have none of it here.
It's similar to a azealas and rhododendrons. I have one in the yard. It gets a bit leggy, but with minimal selective pruning, it sprouts lower on the branch.
Dont know about its toxicity, but i think Midwinter has burned shrub stalks she has scrounged from the dump. I imagine its rather dense as its slow growing???
I don't know about her, but I'm beginning to wonder if some of the stuff that got burned back in the 70's was toxic or not... That might not have been Laurel though... I can't quite remember.
Search as I may, I've found nothing to say it's toxic when burned, just don't make a salad of the leaves and flowers!
I noticed that too, iv cut quite a few but never burned it. It was always while cutting trails on my land and would just toss it aside. Now that you mention it every now and then i have a mountain laurel stem that pops up on the trail from being cut 10 years ago and yea no regrowth
Here's some more info. It appears to be quite toxic to some animals when they eat the greens. Like I said, don't be makin' no dang salats otten hit! I have not found anything from credible sources that say it's toxic when burned. Kalmia latifolia - Wikipedia
I’ve burned small quantities of it in the stoves. Still alive. Quite a bit of it in Ct. It’s like the state flower or something, maybe state shrub? Heard one time it’s illegal to cut in Ct but that’s probably just an old wives tale. We go out of our way to not cut it in the woods but sometimes a tree will fall on a patch and take them out. The trunk, which is really just a stick, goes in the woodpile. It is a hard wood. Should be good btu’s.
