I Gotta Split

In a previous post earlier this year, I shared views from up in this tree as I prepared it for felling. I had let this one grow too close and too tall to the garden and it's shade and roots were sapping the garden's strength.
I should have cut it 19 years ago when it was smaller as it was obvious it would be a future garden shader, but I like trees and have a hard time removing them ... I usually do a lot of pruning first, before deciding to take a large tree out.
Those life extending prunings are sometimes enough, but in this case the laurel oak had gotten so tall that even I could not safely prune at the crown.
So she came down.

Now I'm busy converting the tree into firewood. This tree has already provided more than we will burn in our fireplace during a Florida winter, but still I saw and split.

I really like splitting wood.
Not on a hot day, but on a chilly day, ... there's something very satisfying about the WHACK/CRUNCH sound of a well placed axe pushing through wood fibers.

Sometimes the splitting of a log reveals secrets and artwork like the the split section below.


I don't know if it comes through in my photo, but the mix of patterns, colors, and textures caught my eye as I reached down to toss this piece on the pile. The neat tunnels running through it make me wonder just how many insects I roast in my fireplace during a single cold evening.

I'm also splitting some beautiful amber colored fatpine lighter wood into kindling sticks. I'll post pics of that and how I find it in another post.
The piney smell is heavenly and the fatwood practically spontaneously combusts.

My supervisor (who is still anonymous) during the splitting last Sunday.



So far no one has offered to help split wood although they all want a fire in the fireplace as soon as the temperature drops below 70 degrees.
Just as well ...
'cause I really like splitting wood.