I'm facing a tough situation here in Ireland with ash dieback affecting our ash trees. My garden has one that needs to come down soon, and it's about a foot wide in the trunk and 30 feet tall. I'm wondering if there's a way I can saw it into pieces for turning bowls and try to promote spalting. The area is damp, being by a lake, and I have some dry sheds for storage. Does anyone have tips on how to achieve spalting with this wood?
3 Answers
There's quite a bit of info on inducing spalting in wood. I remember Fine Woodworking had an article on it a few years back and there are also some helpful videos on YouTube. Just a heads up though, this process usually takes several months, not just a week.
Definitely, the fungus is what causes the wood to spalt. Once the tree is down, debark it, cut it into sections, and make sure to store it off the ground. This will prevent any beetles or bacteria from invading it!
Just let the wood sit on the ground for a week before you cut it up. Since you're in Ireland, the humidity should help with spalting! You might want to prep it outside as well.
Thanks! Just a week for prep? What kind of cutting do you recommend?
Much obliged! Cheers for the info!