7 Types Of Firewood That Will Fill Your Home With Fragrance
If you've recently purchased a home with a fireplace or had that feature added to your existing property, you're probably already enjoying the feeling of a warm fire on a cold night. Certain types of firewood can add an extra layer of ambiance to your home interior by infusing it with fragrance. Following are seven types of firewood that will fill your home with pleasant scents while they're being burned.
Cedar
Burning cedar in your fireplace will infuse your home with an earthy fragrance reminiscent of deep woods. However, keep in mind that because cedar is an exceptionally oily wood, precautions must be taken while it's burning. Always keep the screen on your fireplace closed when burning cedar -- the wood contains pockets of flammable resin that can explode and cause serious sparks. Cedar is extremely plentiful in the western portion of Canada, so it's often burned in fireplaces as well as in wood stoves To get the advantages of burning cedar without the potential dangers, use cedar for kindling rather than as the main fuel for your fire.
Apple
A fireplace full of burning apple wood will make your home smell a little like a walk in an orchard and a lot like an old-school bakery where apple pies are the main event, especially if you toss a couple of cinnamon sticks into the fire. Because apple wood can be difficult to find as well as expensive, you should save apple wood fires for special occasions.
Maple
Burning maple in your fireplace will result in a sweet aroma not unlike that of maple syrup. Like cedar, maple wood also contains a great deal of resin, or sap, and the same precautions apply as when burning cedar. However, unlike cedar, maple is a hardwood, and this means that it will burn for a longer period of time due to its density. This makes it an excellent choice for blazing fires during the daytime, but try not to throw a fresh log on the fire after the sun goes down if you're burning maple.
Oak
Oak has a crisp, woodsy fragrance that will remind you of walking through an oak grove in late autumn when you burn it in your fireplace. Like maple, it's a hard, dense wood that will burn for a far longer period of time than softwoods such as cedar or pine. If you have oak trees on your property, you can get a classic oak wood fragrance by burning fallen branches or leaves -- just make sure that you use dried material only and that you shake it free from moss and other vegetative debris before placing in the fireplace.
Pecan
Pecan wood has a mild, nutty aroma when burned. Like apple wood, it's can be difficult to find outside of a few specialty markets, so use it sparingly and for special occasions when you're lucky enough to have some. Tossing a few pecan shells onto the top of the fire will add to nutty scent.
Birch
Most people don't realize that birch syrup is a staple in some parts of the country. A birch fire has an aroma somewhat like that of maple but is slightly less sweet. Like maple and cedar, birch wood contains plenty of flammable sap, so be sure to keep your fireplace screen in place while enjoying a blazing wood fire.
Mesquite
Burned as incense by indigenous tribes in the American Southwest, mesquite has a smoky scent that's often prized for use in barbecues, but it's also excellent for burning in the fireplace. Because mesquite is a very hot-burning wood, it's best used for starting the first fire of the day because it can quickly take the chill out of cold morning air. Many people like to blend mesquite with oak firewood for a classic woodsy fragrance.
Share