Found some Cottonwood in the bottom of a stack that I’d forgotten about. I forgot how much I like it for really quick and hot restarts! Great for kindling and getting the stove really hot before reloading in the morning before leaving for work. And for when the wife lets the the stove burn down to far.., couple a splits of cottonwood and instantly back up to temp. I’m going to try to keep a face cord or so if cottonwood around !
Huh. First ever "I love cottonwood" post. Congrats. I think the light btu woods that burn fast and hot definitely have a place, so I agree with you. Almost like filling up with cardboard, but without all the terrible side effects. It's pine here - I've got a ton of it. Dries fast, burns down to nothing, and nobody wants it so it's always free.. Great supplemental fuel for warmer days or when you want to keep the temp up without committing to a long burn.
My recollections of cottonwood from a half century ago is that it is hard to split, it is stringy, does not fall apart easily and could only be burnt in the wet months because of large flying embers that could set a shake roof on fire.
Same stuff different century lol. New stoves do a lot better with it though. I'll still burn Pine instead though. Easier to work with imo.
Ive burned a couple cords of Tulip poplar over the last 5 years. Filled the stove with it yesterday morning. Fast heat and lasted about 4 hours. CSS's easy. Dries in 9 months! Whats not to like? Now, dont think i went out of my way for it! It was left piled up in log length in the log yard 100 yards from my house when the neighbors logged...
I have few charitable feelings for Cottonwood. People in eastern WA in the prairie areas burn it because every little gully or hollow has Cottonwood trees and few others. If it is all you got and it's free, then I guess you burn it and like it! Here in western WA, adds for free firewood go unanswered forever once people find out it is cottonwood. My impressions are that it is heavy and hard to handle when wet. If you hand split when wet, wear a raincoat. Not terrible to split dry if it is smaller rounds, but kind of stringy. Stinks to high heaven when seasoning. When it is dry, it is very light weight and you have to run to keep the stove full. If split small, and the stove is stuffed, be careful of a chimney fire. Cottonwood and Alder are right down at the bottom of the list with Alder being slightly better! Just my opinion, Mileage may vary!
I have lots of cottonwood growing around here. Almost every drainage ditch, creek bank, or riparian area has large cottonwoods growing. If I have to cut it, the majority goes to the local sawmill; the remaining large pieces get cut up for the local boyscouts(7’ long pieces and they cut and split from there), then I take the 4-6” limbs, cut them into 8” long pieces, and split them up into tiny pieces for starting a fire or for burning coals down(the strings help to catch quick). The remaining brush gets pushed into a pile to dry and become a bonfire when the farmer decides to burn the area. Charles
This post reminds me... I still have a large cottonwood to cut up that was dropped last spring. Glad you like it! I like it for the same reasons too....and it helps getting rid of those spring fluff ball producing trees. I'll second the praises for tulip poplar as a GREAT alternative to cottonwood, boxelder, willow, and the usual suspects low on the totem pole that are a pain in the azz to deal with. But by all means, please keep burning the aforementioned trees for the sake of someday ridding the world of their presence. You would be doing a great service to fellow wood burners, our forests, and humanity in general.
Lots of free cottonwood around where I live also. Most don't mess with it unless it's very close to home. Alot of the farms and ranches have alot of it. Cottonwood makes better shade than firewood, but as the saying goes it burns alot better than snow.! I have burned poplar before, although I'm not sure what subspecies it was. It was ok, but I would choose pine over poplar.
