Why does standing dead Ash become so brittle

[difflock]

But seasoned felled Ash is tough and strong.

What mechanism is responsible for the difference?

regards

marcus

[Stere]

Fungi that killed the tree?

[Paul in the woods]

Our wood has a mix of oak, ash, beech, sycamore and alder and the ash sheds the most live branches in the wind, anything from twigs to some hefty bits. I would regard living ash as a bit brittle, perhaps less flexible that other trees, I wonder if that has anything to do with dead branches being brittle. Are you sure seasoned poles are that strong?

[difflock]

Paul, based on shafting tools with riven or carefully selected lengths of round Ash saplings this 40 years, such knowledge being handed down from my father, also as an adolescent making reasonably successful longbows from Ash saplings.

I believe my father also recounted Ash being used, and of preference for cart shafts, due to its resilence.

Hence my puzzlement at dead Ash trees being "bruckle", which fact I also readily acknowledge.

Cheers

Marcus

Edited July 2, 2019 by difflock

[Mick Dempsey]

I’m on an American forum, and because of Emerald Ash Borer, they’re losing ash by the million.

 

A lot of the firms won’t climb them any more and will only use cherry pickers because of their perceived fragility when dead (even recently departed ones as well apparently)

 

Not answered your question, but adding to the debate I guess.

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

17 minutes ago, Mick Dempsey said:

I’m on an American forum, and because of Emerald Ash Borer, they’re losing ash by the million.

 

A lot of the firms won’t climb them any more and will only use cherry pickers because of their perceived fragility when dead (even recently departed ones as well apparently)

 

Not answered your question, but adding to the debate I guess.

Adding to my argument for trying to justify buying a tracked / spyder machine - Dhooooh!

[openspaceman]

42 minutes ago, difflock said:

I believe my father also recounted Ash being used, and of preference for cart shafts, due to its resilence.

Hence my puzzlement at dead Ash trees being "bruckle", which fact I also readily acknowledge.

Ash seems to attract boring insects very soon after felling, more so than any other timber in my log pile, and I suppose with that goes quick entry for saprophytic fungi that weaken it.

[AJStrees]

Reading the symptoms of Ash dieback, the pathogen stops the flow of fluid and nutrients to the tree and as a result the tree dies. One of the side affects is said to be that the trees once dead shatter to pieces when they are felled. Potentially the dieback is making ash more brittle than ever. 

[Steve Bullman]

This is far from scientific but I have always 'assumed' that an upright tree will dry out or season a lot quicker than a log laying horizontal due simply to gravity. Possibly talking out of my arse, but this is why I have always believed dead standing Elm makes such a great wood for burning, whereas you could cut and stack green elm and it will take forever to dry and still not burn as well.

[Paul in the woods]

2 hours ago, difflock said:

Paul, based on shafting tools with riven or carefully selected lengths of round Ash saplings this 40 years, such knowledge being handed down from my father, also as an adolescent making reasonably successful longbows from Ash saplings.

I believe my father also recounted Ash being used, and of preference for cart shafts, due to its resilence.

You make several good points and I know its also used for hurley sticks etc.

 

Still, living ash trees do like shedding branches for fun round here when it's windy. Perhaps it has weaknesses around the branch collar?

Edited July 2, 2019 by Paul in the woods