Peeling bark can be a sign of insect infestation or disease for some trees. For others, it's part of the charm. Most trees drop off some bark every year to make room for new bark. On trees like the shagbark hickory, a good portion of the bark stays on the tree, coiling upward and giving inspiration for the tree's name. If you want to know which trees naturally lose their bark, read on. Shagbark Hickory The shagbark hickory is a slow grower. With time, it creates crops of nutmeats enclosed in little hard shells covered by green outer husks. Like the tree's name, the bark changes into narrow, long strips that peel back from the trunk to give the tree a fuzzy look. The older the tree gets, the more its bark curls. Maples Several types of maples also have peeling bark, like the trident maple and paperbark. The paperbark is deemed an understory tree since it grows to the full height of 30 feet. Its bark is cinnamon color and peels to display lighter colored bark. River Birch The river birch has cinnamon-colored, peeling bark. River birch is more resistant than any other birches to the birch borer, a beetle that gets into birches' large limbs and trunks. River birch endures moderate flooding, making it the choice for erosion control along streams and rivers. Strawberry Tree The strawberry tree is an evergreen that grows to 30 feet tall. Classified as an ornamental tree, it grows round fruits in the autumn that are the color of strawberries and very appealing to birds. The tree's dark-green, glossy leaves are situated on limbs with gray-brown bark that peels away from the bark growing underneath. The strawberry tree grow slow and is best suited in well-drained soil in partial shade or full sun. When mature, the tree is very resistant to drought. Considerations Peeling bark on trees that don’t usually exhibit that trait may do it because of environmental factors. Peeling bark doesn’t mean death for a tree. Conditions causing peeling bark on trees with typically smooth bark are extreme drought, severe cold, and sunscald. Make an appointment with an arborist to determine if your bark is peeling naturally or there is a more serious issue. When selecting wood for your wood stove, you have plenty of choices. There are two main factors you should take into consideration when picking the best logs for your wood burning stove: wood moisture content and wood type. This is why it is crucial to know the best and worst wood for a wood burning stove. Why does what type of wood I burn matter? Picking firewood wood is more complicated than you think. What you burn is vital to your wood burning stove’s longevity and performance. It doesn’t matter if you harvest your wood or use a delivery service, you have to know about wood types. Wood types affect how well your stove does in many areas. Oak One of the most conventional tree types is oak. Even though they aren’t the tallest trees, they can still get quite big if well maintained. Oak is a thick hardwood tree so that it will burn for quite a long time. Maple Maple is a hardwood tree that has exceptional heating values. It can be a hard tree to split into convenient size logs. But once it’s done, it creates useful, hot-burning wood. Like oak, it can be hard to get a fire going using maple. It may necessitate kindle from a softer wood to begin the process. But once it’s started and going right, maple delivers long-lasting burning and warmth. Also, maple produces very little smoke, which is a plus when burning a fire in your house. Cherry As a fruit tree, this hardwood also creates very little smoke. And when it burns, it makes a pleasant aroma. Though, it doesn’t burn as hot as maple or oak. It burns at a medium heat, which is excellent on milder evenings when you want a fire more for ambiance instead of warmth. Elm Elm trees offer a suitable heat source, but it is well-known for being hard to split. Because of Dutch elm disease, it is also normal to see dead elm trees throughout certain neighborhoods. However, when removing these trees, it is conceivable to use them as firewood since the wood is quite dry. Contact a York tree specialist for more information on the best and worst firewood for your home. This huge choice of log cabin notches can create confusion about which notch to use. Picking the right corner, including scribe and notch type, for your log cabin is crucial as it will affect pricing, weatherproofing, and visual appeal. If you’ve not already read about the various log cabin construction techniques, begin by reading this article on using a saddle notch to build a wood structure. Why are notches critical If you are new to constructing a log home, then scribing is a method used to make a notch. When you build your log cabin, where every log wall connects, a notch is scribed to help with the wall locking process. Notches are best when joining the corners of your log cabin. Usually, every notch is scribed by hand or using a template/jog, to make an air-tight seal stopping air infiltration and weatherproofing your cabin. If you’re thinking about building a log cabin, you’ll have to know how to scribe logs. Mostly, you’ll do scribing for saddle notches which are used to join two logs perpendicularly (cabin corners). How to scribe a saddle notch You can scribe with a carpenter’s compass. It has all the necessary parts, including a point for scribing. Once you have the preferred depth of the notch, put your compass at that distance. Put the log to be scribed precisely where you want it. If one end of the log won’t be scribed, even it out with blocks to the height of your compass. Drive a screw to keep the log in place while you scribe. Next, holding the compass still, follow the outline of the bottom log and scribe the top log. Go to the other side and repeat. Before you move the log, scribe the other end if you have one more notch to cut there. Once you’ve created all your scribing marks, release the log and turn it over. Gently unite the scribe marks on every side, so you see where to start your cut. Create straight cuts each half inch to the deepness of the scribe marks. Turn the log over and fit it into place. Practice before you begin working on your log cabin. It takes a while to get the just of cutting and scribing. If you want professional help, contact a York arborist. Sitting around a wood burning fire has its appeal. The bright flames, glowing wood, and warmth create a distinct experience. Though, this pleasing experience can rapidly turn unpleasant under incorrect conditions. Using unseasoned wood instead of seasoned wood could ruin an impeccably good fire. What are the differences between seasoned & unseasoned firewood? To be seasoned is to be dry. Wood that has been newly cut has quite a bit of water. Nearly half its weight is water. This sort of wood is deemed unseasoned and burning it can be difficult since wet wood smokes a lot and doesn’t burn well. On the other hand, seasoned wood has been stacked, split, and stored in a dry area. Softer woods, such as spruce or pine, can be seasoned in around six months. Hardwoods like oak will season in about two years. Seasoned wood necessitates more effort and time to prepare which is why business offering tree services typically charge a little more for it. The Problem with Burning Unseasoned Wood The first hardship you’ll encounter when burning unseasoned wood is the problem in start burning the fire. Water won’t catch on fire. Since it makes up almost half the weight of the wood, it dramatically affects the lighting process. Even if the wood does catch, the fire needs constant care to make sure it doesn’t go out and adding any new logs might snuff all the hard work you put into lighting it. Seasoned wood doesn’t cause any of these issues, producing an enjoyable, natural fire. Next, the burning unseasoned wood creates a large amount of smoke. The fire has to vaporize the water as it burns in the wood. Therefore, the smoke is packed with water vapor that hurts the respiratory tract when inhaled. Also, the smoke contains a large concentration of creosote. Also, unseasoned wood doesn’t create as much heat as seasoned wood. For those depending on the fire to heat their homes, using unseasoned wood only creates a cold night. Wet wood burns at a cooler temperature since much of the heat of the fire go for evaporating away the water instead of burning the wood. On the other hand, seasoned wood has minimal or no water, so it burns quite hot. When you're ready to have some trees cut down for firewood, contact a tree removal company to get your trees evaluated and cut down for you. Did you realize that the woolly bear caterpillar’s coat and its color are all clues to the sort of winter we’ll have? This time of year, these caterpillars are looking for a sheltered and dark spot to hibernate as larvae during the winter months. The caterpillar is also called the woolly bear caterpillar, the banded woolly bear even a hedgehog caterpillar since it coils into a tight ball and acts like its dead when bothered. Do woolly bears predict the weather? According to legend, they do. The caterpillar has segments of black and rusty brown. Typically, there is a rust-colored section in the middle and black at both ends. The Farmers Almanac states you may see them almost all rust or all black. A myth says that the broader the rusty brown band, the minor the winter. The bigger the black band, the longer, snowier, severer, and colder the winter will be. How Woolly Bear Caterpillar Winter Weather Prediction Works If the head part of the caterpillar is dark, the start of winter will be harsh. If the tail is dark, the winter’s end will be cold. Also, many tree care professionals believe that since says the woolly bear has 13 segments to its body, it corresponds to the 13 weeks of winter. It's also said that the coat of the woolly bear caterpillar will display the following winter's brutality. The more luxurious the coat, the colder the winter. Lastly, take a look at the direction the caterpillar is traveling. If the woolly bear's creeping south, it's attempting to escape the cold winter of the north. If the woolly bear's crawling north, the winter is going to be milder. Woolly bears get their name from their fuzzy look. Every fall, woolly bear caterpillars take shelter beneath leaves and other vegetation. During the springtime, they finish their conversion and become Isabella tiger moths. Folks who think that woolly worms can foresee the weather believe that a narrow red-brown band indicates a lousy winter. The bigger the red-brown band is, the milder the coming winter is going to be. How accurate are woolly worm caterpillars at foretelling the weather? Truth be told, not so right. Scientists who have tested their predictions have discovered that there is no connection between winter and a woolly worm's bands. |