Properties of wood\uses

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Mat

Forager
Nov 20, 2003
121
0
52
Hampshire
Hi,

There have been plenty of discussions on the burning properties of wood (such as (here ) - how about starting a thread on the uses of certain trees? Here's my (limited and probably wrong!) starter:

Willow - inner bark can be used for cordage. Wood is good for carving
Beech - nuts (also known as masts) can be eaten raw or cooked.
Conifers - the topmost branch usually points north (or is it south?!)


ummm .... that's it ....
 

Roving Rich

Full Member
Oct 13, 2003
1,460
4
Nr Reading
Good plan Mat

Ash - Hardwood, very springy -used for bows, cart-shafts, canoe frames
Lime - Softwood The BEST carving wood
Elm- The Hardest of the hardwoods, used for seats and floorboards, very difficult to split

anyone else?

Cheers
Rich
 

Buckshot

Mod
Mod
Jan 19, 2004
6,466
349
Oxford
This thread will get the brains working...

Beech again - leaves can be eaten when young
Hazle - good spindle for bow drill
Birch - well.......bark for firelighting, bark for containers including canoes, sap for drinking, wood for carving..

come on then, all aboard

Mark
 

Mat

Forager
Nov 20, 2003
121
0
52
Hampshire
Excellent replies chaps - keep 'em coming!

I've been compiling a sort of crib sheet that lists all the common trees and gives the burning properties of their wood and common uses. I'll see if I can post it when we've exhausted this thread.

The replies so far have already filled in a few blanks, so thanks muchly :)

How about:

Hazel - used for basketry, charcoal and polish
Horse Chestnut - Saponins in the seed are used as a soap substitute. Chop the seed into small pieces and infuse them in hot water. This water can then be used for washing the body, clothes etc


These forums are excellent and I love reading them. I wonder if it's possible to build into it some sort of database to hold all this info, rather than searching the threads?

I'm going away for the weekend now, so I don't want you to think being rude by not replying!

Have a good 'un.

Mat
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,570
S. Lanarkshire
Nice idea :)
Alder, good for piles that are half submerged but greenheart is better.
Sweet Chestnut inner bark makes excellent fishing lines and nets, so does willow. Strongest natural rope from an indigenous British tree is made from the bast of small-leaved lime.
Rowan makes good arrow shafts and small tool handles.
Hornbeam was used for gear teeth and butchers chopping blocks.....it'll blunt knives though.

Cheers,
Toddy
 

shanec

Member
May 11, 2005
31
0
37
Didcot, Oxford
Nice thread :) you should put everyones repply in your first post so its easier to see them all rather than having to read every post again :p
 

Edi_M

Member
Should've read all posts but managed to miss one.

Willow bark contains aspirin (as already mentioned) & oak bark contains tannin.

"These forums are excellent and I love reading them. I wonder if it's possible to build into it some sort of database to hold all this info, rather than searching the threads?"
Sounds simpler than it would actually be - potential administration nightmare! Good idea though.
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,570
S. Lanarkshire
PeterW said:
And all those years my Grandad swore by Preparation H...... :D

I'll get me coat....

Peter

:D :D
Actually, in *thread* he needed horse chestnut bark.

Piles for piers, I ought to have been more explicit :eek:

cheers,
Toddy
 

Marts

Native
May 5, 2005
1,435
32
London
I haven't heard anything more from this thread so i thought I would start to compile suggestions so far. Hopefully we'll get lots more ideas which can be added to the list.


ALDER
good for piles (Such as the ones supporting piers!) that are half submerged but greenheart is better

ASH
Hardwood, very springy -used for bows, cart-shafts, canoe frames
can be burnt when green. Better than Oak for burning. Bark can be made into containers etc.

BEECH
nuts (also known as masts) can be eaten raw or cooked
leaves can be eaten when young

BIRCH
bark for firelighting, bark for containers including canoes, sap for drinking, wood for carving

ELDER
Flowers for tea
Berries for jams, wine etc.

ELM
The Hardest of the hardwoods, used for seats and floorboards, very difficult to split.
Wych elm good for bows

HAZEL
good spindle for bow drill
used for basketry, charcoal and polish
Nuts edible.

HORNBEAM
used for gear teeth and butchers chopping blocks.....it'll blunt knives though

HORSE CHESNUT
Saponins in the seed are used as a soap substitute. Chop the seed into small pieces and infuse them in hot water. Nuts great for conkers!

LIME
Softwood The BEST carving wood
Strongest natural rope from an indigenous British tree is made from the bast of small-leaved lime

OAK
Great for burning – good coals. Acorns can be roasted as a coffee substitute

ROWAN
makes good arrow shafts and small tool handles

SWEET CHESNUT
inner bark makes excellent fishing lines and nets
nuts edible

PINE
pine knots good as firelighters, sap is antiseptic
Resing or Glueing and sealing esp. when mixed with charcoal

WILLOW
(WHITE) bark chewed for pain killer (natures asprin)
inner bark makes excellent fishing lines and nets and cordage. Wood is good for carving.
Very flexible when young – basketry etc.

YEW
good for archery bows
Do NOT eat fungi from a Yew tree

Marts
 

FeralSheryl

Nomad
Apr 29, 2005
334
0
62
Gloucestershire
Good list Marts.

A little thing that amazed me recently. I found some small branches that were cut from a Black Ash (beautiful white wood) at the end of the Summer last year. Figured they'd make some nice pieces for practice carving. Astonishingly the wood was still green.

How long can a cut branch actually stay green?
 

Brixton

Need to contact Admin...
Jul 3, 2005
77
1
62
Edi_M said:
"These forums are excellent and I love reading them. I wonder if it's possible to build into it some sort of database to hold all this info, rather than searching the threads?".

an excellent idea
plus having looked at other forums there are a lot of "where around...... can I camp, practice, light fires etc." type messages
Another database opportunity
 

led

Settler
Aug 24, 2004
544
5
uk
Sycamore. The wood was often used for dairy items (buckets, butter pats etc) because the white wood doesn't taint foodstuffs.
 
Jul 18, 2005
9
0
58
Ok, Here's a few more....

Willow...cricket bats, charcoal, weaving, river bank protection, furniture.
Cherry and crabb apple, fence poles
Sycamore butchers blocks, and firewood.
Poplars Post and rail fencing
Alder (here's a useful tree!), Bark as a die, or as a laxative, hedge stakes, Fencing. Firewood, floor planks, horse jumps (the wood doesn't injure horses when they bang it, so no hoof damage)

Come on you lot................
 

Venger

Tenderfoot
May 30, 2005
64
0
54
Nottingham
Yay! My turn.

Lime - young leaves can be eaten, collect flowers for tea, good for colds
Tea from inner bark is good for kidney stones,gout, and coronary heart disease (under medical supervision)

Peach - Well the fruit of course! Peach - leaf infusion is good for stomach aches, a sedative, diurectic and laxative.

Pear - fruit, wood is valued for its hardness

Plum - fruit, inner bark good for mouth sores and sore throat (decoction)

More later

Venger
 

isotonicpies

Tenderfoot
Jul 28, 2005
65
0
52
Scot's Pine.

The pulpy Inner back can be scraped off, ground down, and used to make a type of unlevened bread.

Not exactly a conservatory method as early nordic human migration routes could be traced by following the trail of dead scots pine trees, as the debarking killed the trees..

The pine needles can make a good tea with a very high Vitamin C content (best natural eurpopean hangover cure around - or so it is written).

Silver birch look for the hoof fungus (tinder bracket) which grows on this all year round.
 

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