Our traditions mean a lot to us and traditional wisdom can help you choose a better log and light a better fire this Autumn & Winter.

Choosing the best logs to burn

Logs bought from DIY sheds will probably have been imported and are unlikely to have been seasoned but, critically, they're likely to be low grade, softwood logs.

It's important for you to understand not only where your logs have come from but also what kind of wood they're cut from. Not every wood will burn in the same way nor give off the same amount of heat. All our logs are cut from hardwood to ensure that you get a long, warm burn. We're a business built upon traditional values and there's little to beat traditional wisdom to help you choose a better log and light a better fire. Below is a traditional English poem that tells you everything you need to know about choosing the best logs for your log burner or wood burning stove.

"Logs To Burn" - Traditional English Folklore

Beechwood fires burn bright and clear
if the logs are kept a year:
Store your Beech for Christmastide,
with new cut Holly laid beside.
Chestnut's only good, they say,
if for years 'tis stored away;
Birch and Firwood burn too fast,
blaze too bright and do not last;
Flames from Larch will shoot up high,
dangerously the sparks will fly.
But Ash-wood green and Ash-wood brown
are fit for a Queen with a golden crown.
 
Oaken logs, if dry and old,
keep away the Winter's cold;
Poplar gives a bitter smoke,
fills your eyes and makes you choke;
Elm-wood burns like churchyard mould,
e'en the very flames are cold.
Hawthorn bakes the sweetest bread-
so it is in Ireland said;
Apple-wood will scent the room,
Pear-wood smells like flowers in bloom,
But Ash-wood wet and Ash-wood dry
A King may warm his slippers by.

Oak and Ash

Oak and Ash are the best woods for your to burn in your log burner or stove. Our log deliveries will be made up from the best quality hardwoods, a mixture that is predominantly ash and oak but may also include hardwood logs to burn of hornbeam, sycamore and beech. We call these white woods.