Nature Journal: Tree Rings

Woodcut by Bryan Nash Gill

What can a simple cross section of a tree reveal? Much more than just it's age to the savvy well-trained eye. Each year a tree forms a new tree ring, which is essentially a new layer of cambium, the layer of the tree responsible for moving food and nutrients between the roots and the tree itself. By counting these rings the tree's age can easily be determined. Spend a bit more time and examine the distance between the rings and you may learn about the tree's life.

Tight narrow tree rings indicate less favorable conditions than the wider more generously spaced rings.The spacing between the rings reveals a story about the tree's life and environmental conditions. A tree with narrow rings may be a tree that suffered through a multi-year drought or perhaps encountered difficulty finding enough nutrients, sun, or proper soil composition. Sudden widening of rings may indicate a larger competitor for light had fallen that year.

Enjoy the study of tree rings as much as I do? Check out the book Woodcut by Bryan Nash Gill. Gill is an artist who makes his own one of kind stamped images from tree rings.

Cabin of the Week

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Make a Mini Survival Kit in iPhone Case

Inspired by Field & Stream's Make a Survival Kit out of an Altoids Tin I decided to make a mini survival kit in an iphone case.

My case includes:

Extra tough extra large Band-aids
Several additional Band-aids
Waterproof matches
Mechanical Pencil wrapped in pink Duct Tape
Tube of Neosporin
Tube of Vaseline soaked cotton balls for fire starting

Ways to improve it and things to add:

fishing line
pocket knife
small compass
mini flashlight

Check out Field & Stream's article for a great comprehensive list on the last page of things to include in your kit.

The Art of the Holz Hausen Woodpile

If you have ever had a woodpile avalanche--- the sudden spill of your neatly stacked woodpile into a messy pile--- you've probably thought- there has to be a better way! Enter the Holz Hausen woodpile, a method of stacking wood in a cylindric pile that allows for better air circulation (think better drying!) and more security if built properly.

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The Holz Hausen's circular form allows air to "chimney" up through the center of the wood creating it's own circulation system, thus drier wood. It's considered more stable than your traditional woodpile because it utilizes a circle as a base. Plus, all those random small and oddly shaped pieces of wood have a home in the Holz Hausen! No more oddly leaning woodpile with random slices of wood sitting around waiting for a spot.

Quite frankly a Holz Hausen woodpile calls to the passerbys and onlookers. I can't tell you how many people used to comment on ours. It's sort of a backwoods tourist attraction.

Interested in a more detailed how-to? Check out this video....

Stacking Wood

There is nothing more satisfying than stacking your own wood into a neat little woodpile. It’s been several years since we have heated by wood, but I remember it fondly each time we venture off to one of our favorite vacation spots in Northern Maine.

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A carefully planned, stacked, and dried woodpile means easier living in the winter months. Placed nearby a door and you can pop in and out with the winter winds are blowing and grab a few pieces without freezing your buns off.

Wood is purchased by a measurement called a cord. One cord of wood is equal to roughly 4x8 feet of stacked wood or roughly 128 cubic feet. A few cords of wood will warm a small to medium sized house for a winter.

Just as there are this is more than one way to skin a cat, there is more than one way to stack your firewood.When determining where to stack your wood, look for someplace with a lot of direct sun to help dry out the wood. Having a garage wall or gate to line the wood up against is also a great idea and should still dry appropriately given time.

The most traditional way to stack wood is by creating a long single stack of wood. Stack a few pieces at a time and then turn the next line of wood in the opposite direction. This is called cribbing and is absolutely necessary to avoid an avalanche of wood when the wind blows. By the way, nothing stacks wood quicker than stopping to sip a beer. So I definitely recommend considering that as well.

Origins of the New England Stonewalls

A lifelong New Englander, I have always thought the many hundreds upon hundreds of stonewalls that litter our region were originally property markers that marked the edges of owners land. It turns out that these amazing (and backbreaking!) works were originally built for an entirely different purpose.

In the early 1800s the United States government placed a tariff on all goods from England and this included wool and wool products. The need for wool for early settlers was great as it was a good that could spun, woven, or knitted at home to create warm clothing and blankets. Roughly the same time, a small flock of merino sheep were introduced to the area and their incredibly soft wool was highly prized. Not long after, a "sheep craze" took over the area and nearly every small farm had their own flock.

Keeping the thousands of sheep in separate fields across the region was no easy feat. Acres and acres of forested land were cut down for grazing fields for the sheep. In fact, the deforestation of New Hampshire and Vermont in the mid 1800s was due, in large part, to this sheep craze.

Soon farmers were building very large (four feet tall) stone walls to keep their tiny hoved flocks together. Since a flock of sheep could ravage someones crops in short time, these high walls were enforced by law and fines were high for any field found lacking.

Doggy Bag

In case you've been missing Misty....

For the Love of Fire

If you’ve been to my pinterest boards lately you’ve probably noticed how obsessed I am with fire and wood. There is something so wonderfully rustic and honest about fires. Have you ever been on a long camping trip and come back to your site to build a fire? It warms more than just your body that’s for sure. Sitting by a fire does something good for your spirit. It builds you back up.

I had been planning on spending the month of February writing some bits and pieces about fire, stacking wood, and starting a fire, but I think I will start early.


My upcoming posts will include a little of the following:

• How to make a woodpile
• What’s there to a woodpile anyway?
• The Art of the Holz Haussen woodpile
• How to start a fire
• Starting a fire in harsh conditions- windy and wet

This week will bring record cold up here in the Northeast and thinking about fire will help keep me warm….

Cabin of the Week

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If you are not already a big fan of the Cabin Porn site you need to head right on over.