On Thu, 12 Feb 2004 07:31:35 GMT, "George E. Cawthon" wrote:



Bob Flint wrote:

I have a big red maple tree that has a horizontal branch that is threatening to rip the tree in half, so this spring
after the sap runs I'm going to cut it off. It is over 1 foot in diameter at the tree, and extends straight out for
about 20 feet before bending up a bit and going another 20 or 30 feet. I cut its twin off last year, and just an 8 foot
piece is too much weight for me to carry!

Shame to just cut it up and burn it, can it be used somehow for useful maple wood?

Then the question - how do I process it?

Why would you wait for the sap to run? Better off cutting it when it
is dormant.

As I said in another post, I've cut big branches off of maples in both winter and summer, and the winter cut caused more
sap to be lost in the spring. The summer cut lost almost no sap. It's also been my experiance that maples are F&^%$&
hard to kill!! At least the seedlings growing in the flowers are.... I once sprayed one with laundry bleach I was so
frustrated with it... the damn leaves turned white but it just kept on growing!! Had to dig down 4 feet to extract it...

If you don't want to do much processing, then cut it in blocks and cut
the blocks for various uses, e.g., bird houses, bird feeders, walkway
lights, rustic furniture, etc.

Hey another good idea!! I could even make little speakers....