What's New
Caring for your Forest Workshop series: Chainsaw Safety, Firewood from your Woodlot, Tree Id, Selling Timber
Storm-damage Assessment and Cleanup Information
Landowners whose woodlots and yard trees were damaged in the recent storm, as well as logging contractors, foresters and other advisers working with them, will find comprehensive information resources available on our Storm Damage Information page.
July 24 Tornado up close
The home and property of Laureen and Brian Howard of Barnstead.
3rd Natural Resource Business Institute Accepting Applications
Details...
Core Training for Community Tree Stewards, Earth Team, and Wonders of Wildlife Volunteers - Program combines volunteer training for five organizations
Details...
Plan to Burn Wood this Winter (or next)? Begin Looking for your Firewood Now!
If you're intending to burn wood to heat your home this winter, you'd better make your first priority finding the wood to feed it.
Firewood supplies are already scarce. Many firewood dealers are delivering seasoned wood to long-term customers only. Some, but not all, will deliver green wood, but many dealers have a backlog until fall.
The truth about green wood
The moisture content of green wood averages 60 percent to more than 80 percent by weight, depending on when it was cut.
It takes about six months to air-dry a cord of cut-and-split wood to 30 percent moisture content, and a year or more to reach the 20 percent moisture desirable for the safest, most efficient burn.
If you try to burn green wood, evaporating all that water from your fuel will use as much as 15 percent of its potential heat. Allowing green wood to smolder also promotes a buildup of creosote in the chimney, increasing the risk of a dangerous chimney fire.
New! Heating with Wood
Thinking of installing a woodstove to beat the high cost of other fuels? Wondering if you can crank up a once-in-a-while woodstove to serve as your home's primary heating source?
If so, you'll want to check out our new Heating With Wood Web pages.
If you're just starting to investigate wood heat, you'll find there's a lot to learn. Even if you've burned wood for years, you'll want to keep up with changes in wood heating technology and firewood markets.
Heating with Wood offers information on these and other topics:
- Assessing your home for wood heat.
- Cutting your own firewood.
- Buying and storing firewood.
- Sizing, locating, installing and maintaining your wood stove.
- Burning wood safely and efficiently.
- The health effects of woodsmoke.
- Outdoor wood boilers.
- Managing the ashes.
UNH Cooperative Extension's Geospatial Technologies Training Center Receives National Award
ESRI award recognizes innovation and leadership in geospatial technology outreach
Environmental Systems Research Institute, of Redlands, California, has honored UNH Cooperative Extension's Geospatial Technologies Training Center with its 2008 Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) Award.
The Center "has demonstrated vision and leadership using ESRI's geographic information system (GIS) technology to better serve the world," said ESRI in announcing the award.
"We're very excited to be recognized by ESRI for our geospatial outreach and training efforts," said Extension's Geospatial Technologies Specialist Shane Bradt, who directs the Center.
"We were one of only four university-based programs to receive the Special Achievement in GIS award in 2008, highlighting the importance of our programs on a national, even international, level.
We very much appreciate the acknowledgement of our work in such a public forum and look forward to expanding and enhance our training center in the future. Our program is especially strong because of our extensive collaborative efforts with other agencies and departments," Bradt said.
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