# Does Gingko Make Good Firewood?



## Wood Doctor (Jul 2, 2008)

We recently watched a 150-year-old male gingko tree lose one of its major branches during a huge storm last Friday, and the branch crashed to the ground. This tree is nearly 6' across at the base and 75' tall. It is estimated to have been planted in the late nineteenth century. The branch that broke off was over 3' across at the main Y and over three cords of wood may be salvaged.

I have looked everywhere for information covering gingko to evaluate it as a firewood heat source and found nothing. The annular rings are scarcely 1/16" apart on most of the logs we have cut thus far. The wood seems to have about the same density as elm, but I have no idea if it burns as well as elm. My friends are fearful that it will be only as good as basswood (linden) or cottonwood, but others say it is much harder.

Anyone here know anything about this rare beast? Think TreeCo has anything on it? We may also turn some bowls and spindles with it on the lathe.


----------



## Wood Doctor (Jul 2, 2008)

TreeCo said, "It is heavy when green but my guess is it's similar in weight to sassafras when dry. It is easy to cut.

I would definitely use it for firewood if it was free. I'm not familiar with woodworking uses for ginko but it might be usable."
-----------------
All of the above appear to be true. It is "free", because nobody else wanted to tangle with it. Check my post on the Chainsaw threads.

My saws cut through it surprisingly easy, so I rated its hardness about the same as white elm, silver maple, or less, but the grain seems straight. However, it grows so slowly, it tends to defy the rule of thumb that Slow Growing = Hard, Dense Wood. Lindens behave in a similar fashion, primarily because of the short growing season they have.

If turned into bowls, gingko might be rather ornamental. The rings are very tightly spaced. Wear and tear on lathe chisels should be minimal. Color is slightly darker than soft maple.

This tree is standing tall, even though it lost 30% of its mass. The roots are tight to the ground, holding it like a ship's anchor.

I imagine it will dry rather fast--six months or less if split--so by November, we may be sending it up the chimney. Thanks, TreeCo. We'll try to save it from the landfill.


----------



## osb_mail (Jul 2, 2008)

*ginkgo*

I have always wonder what it would be like to work with . Let us know what you do with it and how it goes .


----------



## ray benson (Jul 2, 2008)

I have only burned 1 Ginko tree about 16" dia. The wood was pretty light after it dried. Not much better than cottonwood, which we have burned quite a bit over the years. Couldn't find any woodheat values on the Ginko then or now.


----------



## Wood Doctor (Jul 7, 2008)

ray benson said:


> I have only burned 1 Gingko tree about 16" dia. The wood was pretty light after it dried. Not much better than cottonwood, which we have burned quite a bit over the years. Couldn't find any woodheat values on the Ginko then or now.


That was what I predicted--about the same as soft maple or between soft maple and linden. Density is still a good judge of firewood heat content, and gingko is about the same density as soft maple, although the annular rings are spaced much more closely together.

It might be beautifiul for turning bowls on the lathe with very little wear on the lathe chisels. But, I decided to stop cutting it for firewood after the fourth truckload of big billets. Time to collect the hard stuff again--oak, ash, locust, hackberry, apple, elm, etc. The gingko might be good for a mixture, and if it dries by November, it will be a huge helper.


----------



## Katy T (Oct 12, 2018)

We are burning a ginkgo right now that we had to cut down this summer. 3 foot diameter. Burns medium, evenly, bright, with great flame. Very lightweight and easy to carry. Quite a bit of popping, but only dried for four months. If it’s free, take it. Oak would burn longer, but not as hot.


----------



## Del_ (Oct 13, 2018)

Wow! Ten years ago. I am TreeCo and my earlier postings were deleted 'accidentally' by a moderator suffering mental difficulties. Welcome to the site Katy.


----------



## unclemoustache (Oct 13, 2018)

Welcome, Katy! I'm just across the river from you.

Here's something from another site:

Ginkgo biloba: Gingko Tree, Maidenhair Tree. It is unlikely that anyone would normally burn this tree, as it is not native to our country. But, it has become a very popular landscape tree and it is used heavily in street plantings in cities due to its compact form and tolerance to pollution. Due to it's popularity in landscapes, wood may occasionally become available to us cut-and-burn folks. DONT DO IT!
Here is why. Ginkgo is a far relative to Poison ivy, poison sumac, and poison oak. It is actually in the Cashew family. Members of this family are called Toxicondenderons, due to the presence of Urushoil oil, a non-toxic but highly allergenic oil that results in the itchy rash commonly associated with the poisons Ivy, sumac, oak, etc. I learned, too late that Ginkgo was in this family, as our nursery has grown them for a number of years and I got "burned" by the fruit several times before realizing the cause. The fruit is about the size of a golf ball and it smells like vomit. The fruit is high in Urushoil oil, so handling it and touching anywhere on your face (especially around the eyes) will result in a poison-ivy like result (swell up like you were hit by Rocky, and itches like poison ivy). Anyway, burning Ginkgo, would volatilize the Urushoil oil, possibly exposing your lung tissues to the oils. Imagine inhaling poison sumac fumes... STAY AWAY.. Beautiful tree, but not one to burn.
Side note: If you ever consider planting a Ginkgo in your yard, be sure it is a grafted male clone variety (examples "Autumn Gold", "Fastigiata", "Halka", "Princeton Sentry", "Magyar", etc.). AVOID plain seedlings, as there is a 50% chance they will be female and they will litter your yard with thousands of vomit balls in the fall. Many cities actually have ordinances restricting the planting of Ginkgos that are not male clones, because the female seeds are such a nuisance. The seeds, once cleaned, can be dried and eaten. The health food people claim it improves memory and mental health.


----------



## Wood Doctor (Oct 13, 2018)

Gingko has one amazing property. The tree will drop all of its leaves in 24 to 48 hours, almost like a snowfall or a shower. Very few species drop them all that fast. Kaboom!

Welcome to the forum, Katy T.


----------



## Del_ (Oct 13, 2018)

unclemoustache said:


> Welcome, Katy! I'm just across the river from you.
> 
> Here's something from another site:
> 
> ...



Well that is interesting. I've not heard of Ginkgo's toxicity. 

I lived in Delaware in the early nineties and we cleaned up some large broken limbs and reduce the weight on other limbs on what is the largest Ginkgo in the state of Delaware(tied with another ginkgo) for the Delaware Housing Authority. Likely the wood was composted on a farm I lived on at the time but some of may have been sold as firewood. It was a female and dropped large amounts of fruit that were problematic. 
Here is a link to the specs on those trees: http://delawaretrees.com/bigtrees/hardwoods/ginkgo/

I've also climbed and cleaned the crown of a much smaller Ginkgo in Laurel DE. It was a pretty good sized tree but not near the size of the state records. It may have been a male but I don't remember. It's been 25 years or more.


----------



## unclemoustache (Oct 14, 2018)

I suspect it's the fruit rather than the wood which has the urishiol oil. I don't know. Worth checking into, but I'm too tired tonight. Maybe pdqdl will find this thread.


----------



## Del_ (Oct 14, 2018)

unclemoustache said:


> I suspect it's the fruit rather than the wood which has the urishiol oil. I don't know. Worth checking into, but I'm too tired tonight. Maybe pdqdl will find this thread.



Let's hope he doesn't! By the way, Ginkgo smells more like dog poo on your shoe than it does vomit.


----------



## unclemoustache (Oct 14, 2018)

There are a few Ginkgos around me, but I've never cut one. Will check out the smell if I ever do. Not that I'm interested in smelling dog vomit or shoe poo.


----------

