wood for stove

[clarea1]

Hi there,
We are just about to install a multi fuel stove and whilst ot walking the dog today I saw cut branches by the canal. I don't know what wood they were, I suspect Elderberry trees.

They were very wet so would obviously need drying out for next winter.... but are they even suitable?

The smaller branches (kindling size) are they worth collecting?

Does anyone go foraging for wood and if so how do you go about it?

Thank you.

I'm no expert on the different types of wood - but - I'm sure they'd be fine for kindling once dried. The wood I get is from a friendly farmer - it comes from all sorts of different trees and it all burns OK :-)

Pretty much any kind of wood will burn fine in a stove, but you need to remember a few things -

If they are newly cut, they'll need 6 months to a year to season before they can be burnt - it's also called "drying out" but it's not just about dampness, it's the resin in the wood as well, so even if they were cut on a dry day in midsummer they'd still need to "dry out".

Even if they are just lying there, they may belong to someone - it depends to an extent if they look like they've been neatly stacked, or just left where they fell. But if they're just lying where they've been trimmed from the tree, then you can probably assume they're not wanted and so take them.

You'll probably find once you get going you are never short of kindling, as you'll be trimming small bits off anyway, plus chunks of bark often come off the logs, so don't waste too much energy collecting kindling unless you're short.

My parents forage for wood near where they stay, but they know certain pieces of woodland are "fair game" as their owners don't want the fallen branches themselves. But we've only burnt stuff from our own garden so far, and waste timber from a neighbour. You can sometimes find cutoff planks etc in skips if there is renovation work going on in your area.

Thank you for your advice, much appreciated.

I am drying the wood for next winter - it was rather wet and recently cut.

Thanks again

Here's a traditional rhyme about which logs are good to burn:
Oak logs will warm you well
If they're old and dry.
Larch logs of pinewood smell
But the sparks will fly.
Beech logs for Christmas time,
Yew logs heat well.
Scotch (pine) logs it is a crime
For anyone to sell.
Birch logs burn too fast,
Chestnut scarce at all.
Hawthorn logs are good to last
If you cut them in the fall.
Holly logs will burn like wax,
You should burn them green.
Elm logs like smouldering flax,
No flame to be seen.
Pear logs and Apple logs,
They will scent the room.
Cherry logs across the dogs
Smell like flowers in bloom.
But ash logs all smooth and grey,
Burn them green or old;
Buy up all that come your way,
They're worth their weight in gold.

It might be alder which grows alongside watercourses on poor soil. We had a great big pile of it when I was a kid. Dreadful stuff. Spits and explodes sparks everywhere and not much heat.