Ash for haft material?

[Square_peg]

I was led to believe salvage logging only involved dead and dying trees.

No, they preemptively mowed down healthy American Chestnut forests to get the lumber before the blight did. But we know now that a small number of trees had some resistance. If we had more of that genetic stock available now it would be easy to bring the Chestnut back.

Hindsight is 20/20. But maybe knowing this now can improve our foresight.

 

[Square_peg]

well, he very well could have been mistaken, but i tend to take his word on matters related to trees. a recent forestry graduate, but one who learned 100x more about the forest in the field than via his courses at uni by actually working and living in the (eastern) woods since a very young age.

maybe it's that i WANT to believe

He undoubtedly knows the difference. There are a few scattered around the west coast where the blight never reached them. I've harvested a few chestnuts each of the past two years (for roasting on an open fire ).

 

[300Six]

No, they preemptively mowed down healthy American Chestnut forests to get the lumber before the blight did. But we know now that a small number of trees had some resistance. If we had more of that genetic stock available now it would be easy to bring the Chestnut back.

Hindsight is 20/20. But maybe knowing this now can improve our foresight.

45 years ago Europe-introduced DED (Dutch Elm Disease) came through Ottawa and devastated the elm population. Here we are 45 years later and round two of DED is cycling through. There were isolated elm survivors but most of the trees affected/killed currently are less than 45 years old! As a boy I remember a mile long country dirt road (now become a major 4 lane arterial) near here that featured a mature elm every 50 yards along both sides of the road. All but one of these trees died in the space of 2 years (1970-72) and not even the stumps remain. But one (and only one of some 60-80) particular tree weathered the 'storm' and as still out there and now 120 feet high and remains magnificent green. I alerted U of Guelph to this obviously resistant tree 10 years ago and their DED cross-breeding/resistance program has been gathering seeds. I'm not a religious man but revere and pray for that beautiful survivor every time I drive by. DED is a fungal disease that is spread by bark beetles and how one tree can fight off infection and millions of others not is really a natural wonder.

 

[Square_peg]

I remember Dutch Elm disease coming to the NW 45 years ago. It took a lot of trees. But many remain. In central WA they are like weeds. When I was a boy our property was covered with elms. I dug out dozens of stumps. We splits cords of elm wood, mostly with sledge and wedges as it's miserable stuff to split. My dad would cut up the trunk with the chainsaw but left the branches for my brothers and I with our bow saws. That's how I learned to work.

 

[300Six]

I remember Dutch Elm disease coming to the NW 45 years ago. It took a lot of trees. But many remain. In central WA they are like weeds. When I was a boy our property was covered with elms. I dug out dozens of stumps. We splits cords of elm wood, mostly with sledge and wedges as it's miserable stuff to split. My dad would cut up the trunk with the chainsaw but left the branches for my brothers and I with our bow saws. That's how I learned to work.

I my university student days I too learned about the splitting properties of elm. The cottage my buddy rented was heated entirely by wood and dead elms were everywhere and free to those willing to deal with them. Only when it's about -20 degrees outside does elm cooperate when trying to split the stuff.

 

[wdmn]

A gov't of Canada (Cdn Forestry Service) agency holds the patent on the only tree-injection pesticide (TreeAzin) that was allowed for the past 10 years. Costs a fortune for any other competitor to get a pesticide gov't-approved but Bayer Chemical managed to do so 2 years ago. Their stuff (Confidor 200SL) is 1/2 the cost (per dose) and the ease of injection and cost of equipment of about 1/10. Few private folks are willing to spring $20 per inch of trunk diameter at breast height (DBH) to keep their trees alive especially now that Bioforest Products (makers of gov't of Canada patented TreeAzin) is recommending trees be treated every year instead of every second year like they did in the past. One stately White Ash tree growing nearby me is 48 inches across! I can protect it for $305 VS the TreeAzin $960 version! City of Ottawa has shown no interest in efficiency or economy and continues to pour $millions into treating public space trees with the expensive stuff. But word of mouth is definitely keeping me busy during the summer.

I talked to an urban forester today regarding this issue. He said one company waited seven years before getting approval from Health Canada. However, he also said that each municipality is free to decide which product they will use (only three have been approved). How much corruption influences this choice I do not know, but if it's as cut and dry as you make it sound you'd hope that more municipalities would be choosing the cheaper, easier to use product.

 

[300Six]

I talked to an urban forester today regarding this issue. He said one company waited seven years before getting approval from Health Canada. However, he also said that each municipality is free to decide which product they will use (only three have been approved). How much corruption influences this choice I do not know, but if it's as cut and dry as you make it sound you'd hope that more municipalities would be choosing the cheaper, easier to use product.

Bioforest Products (makers of TreeAzin) do have a wonderful and extensive support network in place to encourage sales and provide PR and names of applicators, and they also sponsor most Town and City EAB open houses and information sessions. Bayer on the other hand makes no effort to support or advertise it's product nor list names of applicators. Maybe this helps keep costs down but $1000 per litre + tax and shipping is hardly a bargain. The TreeAzin application system is proprietary (ie the product label says you are required to use their very expensive and costly to maintain equipment) whereas Bayer only suggests that you use whatever works. I sometimes suspect that Canucks are right up there with the Brits when it comes to lack of ingenuity. The Yankee system I use (built around a made in Switzerland syringe) is inexpensive, virtually foolproof, easy to service and not prone to leaks.

 

[Alocksly]

I my university student days I too learned about the splitting properties of elm.

In my university student days I spent a great deal of time looking for a fine piece of ash for my haft.

I also may have split some wood once or twice.

 

[Steve Tall]

Interesting to me that the railroad specs for auger handles list
Ash that has less than 16 annual rings per inch,
and Locust with less than 11 rings per inch.

I'll try to keep that in mind if I make handles from ash or locust.

...

 

[300Six]

In my university student days I spent a great deal of time looking for a fine piece of ash for my haft.
I also may have split some wood once or twice.

I take it this is a "memory lane" resurrection of a memorable half century old (Playboy magazine?) joke where one woodpecker (a red-crested rendition of a tree-climbing bird) says to another "Nicest piece of ash I've had my pecker into in a long time".
Obviously you weren't born yesterday, either.

 

[Alocksly]

I take it this is a "memory lane" resurrection of a memorable half century old (Playboy magazine?) joke where one woodpecker (a red-crested rendition of a tree-climbing bird) says to another "Nicest piece of ash I've had my pecker into in a long time".
Obviously you weren't born yesterday, either.

As I recall the original joke the woodpecker was called upon to settle a dispute as to whether a particular tree was a "son of a birch" or a "son of a beech" prompting his above reply. That's some quality woodsmans humour right there.