Firewood Logs Alder - A guide to burning firewood.

Poor heat and dwindles  quickly.

Alders consist of a group of 36 deciduous species, all part of the 'birch' family. They are native to the northern temperate regions of the world, where they grow in damp conditions, quite often alongside rivers and watercourses.

The most frequently found alder in the British Isles is the:

Alder, common

A native of Britain, but also found throughout the rest of Europe as far as Siberia, alder is a characteristic tree of wet places, marshes and stream-sides.

Alder, common

A native of Britain, but also found throughout the rest of Europe as far as Siberia, alder is a characteristic tree of wet places, marshes and stream-sides.

What other names does it have?

Can also be known as	Fern (old Irish) Aller Aller-Tree Whistle-Wood (northern England) Irish Mahogany
Generic name	Alder
Latin name	Alnus glutinosa
Family name	Birch
Latin family name	Betulaceae

What type of tree is it?

Is it a broadleaf or conifer?	It is a broadleaf
Does it lose its leaves in autumn?	Yes, it is deciduous

Species description:

Average height	18-25m

Leaf

Description	Racquet-shaped and leathery with serrated edges. The tip is never pointed and is often indented.
Shape	Oval
Colour	Dark green
Leaf bud	Generally mauve (but can be duller and grey). The buds are club shaped and stalked.
Leaf stalk	Long stalk
Leaf arrangement	Alternate

Flower, seed, and fruit

Type of flower	Catkin
Flowering season	February to early April
Fruit colour	Brown
Type of seed body	Cone
Seeds dispersed by	Wind Water

Bark and twig

Bark description	Dark brown. Square plated/cracked with the verticals dominating
Twig Description	Brown and notched. Hairless

What other trees are similar?

Can easily be confused with?	Downy alder - the leaves of which are larger, double toothed, and often downy

Where is it usually found?

Is it native or non-native to the British Isles?	Native
Where is its natural range?	Britain and Ireland
Preferred soil type or environmental conditions?	Wet areas such as river sides, wet woods, marshes and bogs. Often planted on land reclamation sites.
What is its British conservation status?	Common

Additional information

Human uses of tree and timber

Alder timber is very resistant to decay under water and was therefore used for water pipes, pumps, troughs, small boats and piles under bridges and houses. In fact, much of Venice is built on alder piles. The two other main uses of alder wood are charcoal and for making clogs. Alder was popular for charcoal as it was particularly favoured in gunpowder. Clogs made from alder wood were light, easy to wear and absorbed shocks well.

Tree lore and folklore

Alder wood is a lure for woodworm, (as the beetles lay their eggs in alder in preference to other wood), so branches were cut and put in cupboards to prevent woodworm in other woods. There are few other folklore assocations. Except, in Ireland it was thought to be unlucky to pass an alder on a journey. Possibly because alder grows in marshy ground!

Firewood Logs Apple - A guide to burning firewood.

Apple Splendid. It burns slowly and steadily with little flame but good heat. The scent is also pleasing.
Crab apple

The crab apple grows singly, sometimes woods will only have one tree. It is found throughout Europe and Asia Minor and can be easily confused with domestic apple trees which have ‘escaped’ from cultivation and become naturalised.

Crab apple

The crab apple grows singly, sometimes woods will only have one tree. It is found throughout Europe and Asia Minor and can be easily confused with domestic apple trees which have ‘escaped’ from cultivation and become naturalised.

What other names does it have?

Can also be known as	Wild apple Wild crab Aball (Irish) Gribble Grindstone apple Bittersgall Wilding tree
Generic name	Apple
Latin name	Malus sylvestris
Family name	Rose
Latin family name	Rosaceae

What type of tree is it?

Is it a broadleaf or conifer?	It is a broadleaf
Does it lose its leaves in autumn?	Yes, it is deciduous

Species description:

Average height	7-9m

Leaf

Description	Glossy with small rounded triangular teeth. The leaves are often folded or crumpled
Shape	Oval
Size	Up to 6cm
Colour	Green
Leaf bud	Brown with downy hair at their pointed tips
Leaf stalk	Short stalk
Leaf arrangement	Alternate

Flower, seed, and fruit

Type of flower	Clustered/grouped flowers
Fruit colour	Yellow-green often flushed with red and/or white spots
Type of seed body	Fruit
Seeds dispersed by	Wildlife

Bark and twig

Bark description	Purplish brown with scaly ridges
Twig Description	Green brown in colour with spurs and spines

What other trees are similar?

Can easily be confused with?	Orchard apples- many varieties and hybrids which generally have pinker flowers and larger fruit

Where is it usually found?

Is it native or non-native to the British Isles?	Native
Where is its natural range?	Brtiain and Ireland
Preferred soil type or environmental conditions?	Frequent in old woods and hedges on heavier soils
What is its British conservation status?	Frequent

Additional information

Human uses of tree and timber

The crab apple was the most important ancestor of the cultivated apple, over 6,000 varieties having been bred over the ages (over two-thirds now extinct). The timber of the crab apple is uniform in texture and if dried slowly, is excellent for woodworking. At one time it was used for making set-squares and other drawing instruments. The fruit is excellent for crab apple jelly and wine. It has been cultivated since early times- a few crab apples were found in an early Bronze Age coffin. Crab apples can also be roasted and served with meat or added to winter ale or punches. In Ireland a yellow dye was extracted from the bark to colour wool.

Tree lore and folklore

Many beliefs stem from crab apples, mostly to do with love and marriage partners. An example is throwing pips into the fire whilst saying the name of your true love, if the pip explodes the love is true. Shakespeare also makes reference to crab apples in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Love's Labour Lost.

Firewood Logs Ash- A guide to burning firewood.
Ash The best burning wood providing both flame and heat and if necessary will burn when green.

Part of the Olive family, there are around 60 species of ash worldwide as grouped in the same family as the lilacs, jasmines and forsythias. Ashes have aerodynamic ‘keys’ like ‘maples’ but unlike maples they are symmetrical and not paired.

The most frequently found ash species in the British Isles is the

Ash, common

Ash is the third commonest tree species in Britain and is sometimes the dominant tree in a wood. It is found across Europe from the Arctic Circle to Turkey. This species is currently affected by a disease called ash dieback (Chalara fraxinea). To find out more visit our tree disease website at www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/treedisease

What other names does it have?

Can also be known as	Uisinn (Gaelic) Ask (Norse) Esh
Generic name	Ash
Latin name	Fraxinus excelsior
Family name	Ash
Latin family name	Oleaceae

What type of tree is it?

Is it a broadleaf or conifer?	It is a broadleaf
Does it lose its leaves in autumn?	Yes, it is deciduous

Species description:

Average height	15-30m

Leaf

Description	Six-twelve pairs of oval leaflets. Each leaflet has irregularly teeth.
Shape	Compound
Colour	Green
Colour of leaves in autumn	Pale yellow
Leaf bud	Characteristic black buds at the end of each shoot
Leaf stalk	Long stalk
Leaf arrangement	Opposite
Leaf burst usually occurs	May (one of the last native trees to come into leaf)

Flower, seed, and fruit

Type of flower	Other
Fruit colour	Medium green changing biscuit brown when ripe
Type of seed body	Large winged seed/key
Seeds dispersed by	Wind

Bark and twig

Bark description	Pale grey with fine lattice pattern of ridges and fissures
Twig Description	Grey or light grey in colour

What other trees are similar?

Can easily be confused with?	Other Ashes Elder- which hasfive-seven leaflets instead

Where is it usually found?

Is it native or non-native to the British Isles?	Native
Where is its natural range?	Britain and Ireland
Preferred soil type or environmental conditions?	Can be dominant on heavy or calcareous soils but also survives on poor soils where few other trees can grow. Abundant in most conditions except light sandy soils
What is its British conservation status?	Common

Additional information

Human uses of tree and timber	The wood is both strong and flexible. In the past it was used by the Anglo-Saxons for their spears and shield-handles. More recently other uses include tool handles, furniture, sports equipment, walking sticks, tent pegs, oars, gates, wheel rims, and even aircraft wings on the De Havilland Mosquito which flew in World War II.
Tree lore and folklore	In Scandinavian myths the ash tree was known as yggdrasil, the ‘Tree of the World’ and the ’Tree of Rebirth and Healing’ . In Britain, the ash was also regarded as a healing tree. In the past a naked child was passed through the split trunk of an ash in a ritual to cure a broken limb or rickets.

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Logs for Interior design 

All of the logs we supply come from our own managed woodlands. We can supply logs/wood items and feature items for most interiors design projects.