Cottonwood, basswood, either way 13.5-14 mbtu per cord. That's pretty much the lowest btu wood on any firewood scale, so it's best used for shoulder season. However, if that's what you have to burn, you burn it when you have to.
Scrounging 15-20 cord/year is impressive. With that busy schedule, you must have no problem falling asleep ... aside from finding the time for it.
Imagine trying to get a year or two ahead so your burning dry wood! That was the real challenge. I've got a friend who helps with the big stuff. A tractor, dump trailer and a good splitter definetly helps. Sleep? What's that?
Basswood is what I used for miniature carvings. It is a soft white wood, excellent for dollhouse making and for other hobbies.
The center of this tree is a dark orange or dark red. On a 20" split, 6" of sapwood isure white, but center 8" is a dark orange color. I was always under the impression that basswood was white all the way through. As you can see from the pics, every cut turns an orange color but the color only is on the surface.
American Elm? That has a h sometimes orangish color. Nope. The more I look at that basswood leaf, the more I agree with that. The sometimes stringy splits and the serrated leaf edge made me think it might be elm.
