I know a lot of guys either complain about the smell of different trees when cutting and splitting or say how much they love the smell of certain trees. I love everything about cutting and splitting wood, especially the smells that come with different types of wood. I have never really thought there were types I didn’t like smelling. I won’t go as far as saying I don’t like the smell, but while cutting today I realized my least favorite and that is black locust. I also found myself sneezing a few times as I cut it as well and I will confirm that tomorrow when I cut more of it. My favorite by far is black cherry. So what are your favorites/least favorites based off odor alone?
There’s some Red Oak that smells like manure and makes me smell from cutting it. It could be a combo of bacterial flux and decay I don’t know for sure, but it reeks, and continues to reek until seasoned. White Oak smells the best.
Unlike many I love the smell of freshly split red oak. It reminds me of fall mornings with my dad gathering wood. I also really like the smell of pine, cedar and cherry. My least favorite would be black locust.
I really like the smell of black cherry, black birch, apple, chestnut oak and beech. Least favorites would be the small amount of tree of heaven I’ve dealt with (think rancid peanut butter stench) and black locust when it’s been down a while and the bark is rotting off.
I don't remember smelling too many that were offensive...but I'm in the "like Oak smell" camp...reminds me of going with my dad to the sawmill to get sawdust for cow bedding when I was a lil guy, I think they mainly cut Oak there...and I've personally only ever been into 1, maybe 2, Oaks that were a little stinky...and I enjoyed the shag hickory that smelled like a whiskey barrel! Honestly I rather enjoy all the different wood smells for the most part...just walked by my stacks earlier today and noticed a pleasant wood smell even though there is nothing super freshly split in there...we've had a good bit of rain the last few days and then the sun comes out between showers (downpours!) and starts drying the ends of the splits back off (can you say swamp like humidity?!) I think that's why I noticed the smell that isn't normally there other than after the first few weeks of fresh splits being laid in...
Favorite probably cedar , looks as good as it smells especially when made into boards Least favorite I would say elm, smells like pee and splits like chit.
Favorites: sassafras, black birch, white oak. Least favorite is black locust when bark just starting to loosen up and fall off (friggen putrid) although when bark is tight i dont mind the smell too much of fresh cut/split.
That would be pin oak. Have a mound of splits to be stacked yet from recent score. Pleasant stench coming off it still!
Me too BRAD Might have a couple lined up. I will find out Thursday when back in town and get to work. Keeping my fingers crossed it works out!!
If this is strictly a smell based on splitting and cutting my favorite smells are Douglas Fir and Cedar(Western Red). I don't smell much other woods but burning is a whole different ball game. Least favorite is Black locust. I smelled an elm set of rounds that smelled like a moldy batch of laundry. Red oak is one of the strongest I've smelled with that puke rotten cheese smell as well.
They all have their own unique odor, can't say I don't like all of them, except tree of heaven. Stinks when it burns too.
Fave is red oak, reminds of going to the circus as a small child, I love walking the stacks when its fresh split and bummed when it goes away. My least fave is locust but oh so worth it-followed closely by black (pizz oak)
Except for maybe poplar they all smell OK to me. Not that we have a lot to pick from here. Course, I like arugula and cilantro, so there's that.
I will say- green splits of Siberian elm stink like cat pizz with a smantering of puke mixed in for good (bad, really) measure.