I am presently in Nashville, TN with our last day here this coming Saturday. We are visiting our son and his family here and we are from northern Michigan. There has been a major storm here with a fair amount of cut up downed trees and large limbs lying by the side of the roads and would like to take some wood types back to Michigan that we do not have there. I am not sure what the best species are to take back that are good in terms of good turning and nice wood figure. I am also unclear how to identify unfamiliar trees that I do not know by bark alone. Identifying by bark via the available apps has yielded conflicting results. Any suggestions or advice anyone could provide would be very much appreciated.
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Tennessee wood to take to Michigan
- Thread starter Dean Luplow
- Start date
They did have a probation on taking cut wood across the bridge because of invasive species of bugs. I'm not sure if there are restrictions coming from Wisconsin.
I am aware of the bridge restriction, but I am not aware of Wisconsin which is the way we are traveling back.
Take the bark off anything you want to take, or don't take it. That's exactly how pests like the Emerald Ash Borer and the Walnut whateveritis have spread. As mentioned, there are some restrictions on interstate hauling now.
We have a lot of maple here, but I think ambrosia maple is more of a southern thing. (worth bringing back)
Donna Banfield
TOTW Team
Ambrosia maple can be found is almost any maple tree, regardless of location. I have had it in trees in New Hampshire and Maine. I don't think that beetle that causes the colorful remains cares all that much about the location of the tree. In fact, their appearance in locations is likely caused by the original poster's question about transporting wood from one state to another location several hundred miles away. If it were up to me, I would respectfully request that he resist the urge to move wood from Tennessee to Michigan.
The emerald ash borer restrictions were lifted. The ban of wood transport did not stop them. I'd look for box elder, walnut, or white oak. Timber that been broken up in a storm is not worth the effort. It would be full of cracks, so be selective. Lots of ambrosia maple in Central IL, so I guess we are considered southern now. The bark will come off really easily this time of year, so shopping with a hammer to knock off some bark will tell you if there is any figure in the wood
Dean, I'd respectfully ask that you don't bring back any black walnut wood.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture forbids bringing walnut, in the forms that woodturners would generally want it, from Tennessee to Michigan. Transport from several other states is prohibited too, due to the risk of infestation of thousand cankers disease (TCD).
See this link for details about TCD restrictions: https://www.michigan.gov/-/media/Pr...tine.pdf?rev=06d074ab5ebc4994971248abb224e158
Here's some text copied from another State of Michigan website, explaining the reason for the restrictions:
Why we care: Thousand cankers disease (TCD) involves an insect native to the southwestern U.S. and a newly identified pathogen. It is a relatively new concern for black walnut trees. When tiny walnut twig beetles feed on tree branches, they introduce a fungal pathogen that causes TCD in live trees. The pathogen kills small areas of tissue, resulting in cankers. As more cankers form, branches die and over time, the entire tree succumbs.
What is at risk? Michigan's forests are home to approximately 8.5 million black walnut trees with an economic value of more the $86 million and ecological value as a food source for birds, mammals and other wildlife. There are also more than 80 walnut growers in Michigan with approximately 4,000 trees in nut production.
The threat: Black walnut trees in many western states, and in Tennessee and Pennsylvania, are dying from TCD. The beetle and fungus can be transported into new areas in walnut logs, firewood and staves used for woodworking. Black walnut is a valuable timber species and important for wildlife.
What could happen in Michigan? An effective control for TCD has not been identified. A high proportion of black walnut trees will likely die if TCD becomes established in Michigan.
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Agree with others about cutting off the bark to avoid taking insects into other states. Just about any hardwood in TN is good for turning as long as doesn’t have bug holes. A few good woods to look for are cherry, apple, any maples including flame red box elder, red bud, pear, osage orange, elm, sycamore, sweet gum, dogwood, mulberry, magnolia, white oak, pecan and holly to name a few. Many turners stay away from red oak since it‘s so plentiful and prone to cracking unless you have good ways to slow down drying. Suggest using Anchor Seal, wood glue or cheap school glue as a sealant when you get back home.
Dean, I am very grateful that you asked this question, and it's good to see so much caution and awareness of the ecological problems that transporting wood can cause. Taking off bark is a good precaution, but it's good to remember also that Chestnut Blight was spread by finished lumber. In the 19th century, the American chestnut represented 50% of the tree cover east of the Mississippi, and is now essentially extirpated.
I would not use official restrictions or lack thereof as a measure of what should or should not be transported. Use local wood. Or travel with your lathe so you can turn things where ever you go. (I'm not being not entirely facetious about traveling with a lathe; I designed my pole lathe to fit in the back seat of a very small car.) Or, failing that, there's always spoon carving in hotel rooms ...
I would not use official restrictions or lack thereof as a measure of what should or should not be transported. Use local wood. Or travel with your lathe so you can turn things where ever you go. (I'm not being not entirely facetious about traveling with a lathe; I designed my pole lathe to fit in the back seat of a very small car.) Or, failing that, there's always spoon carving in hotel rooms ...
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I would like to thank all of you for your replies to my post. All points have been well taken. Sometimes the better part of valor is to to nothing and that is what I plan to do. I appreciate all of your responses and will not contribute to the potential spread of pests that would endanger anyone else's ability to obtain good turning wood in the future.
If you were coming to Oregon, I would ask for black cherry!
robo hippy
robo hippy
good thread. good to know
Thanks for your caution. I share your interest in wood from other regions, but not at the expense of what we have locally.