One Mans Trash, Is another Mans Treasure!

It is unfortunate but true that trees have to be removed in the urban environment.

The reasons for removing trees include, natural dieback, becoming damaged by storms, growing in a poor location, not being liked anymore, blocking views, and becoming a hazard are but a few examples. Many of the species of trees removed are desirable for woodworking. Ash, Maple, Walnut, Oak, Linden and Locust are some of the more sought-after species that have to be removed from people's property.

When I cracked the Log Open A long time ago I found myself splitting black walnut for firewood. Inside was a beautiful black core of wood. "What a waste", I thought to myself. This lumber costs a premium at the lumber yard! Having a liking for woodworking I began researching portable saw mills. After I found the one I liked I started sawing logs into boards. Being in the "tree care business" I have a pretty steady supply of logs. 

The more I started paying attention to the wood being brought back from jobs the more I started seeing occasional burls. Burls are lumps of wood tissue that contain thousands of epicormic or dormant buds. For some reason, the normal growth patterns of wood get mixed up and these strange-looking burls begin to grow. Burls are also a survival mechanism for trees. If something happens to the tree, burls start to sprout shoots and the tree continues to live.

Each Burl is like a Geode... To a Geologist!

I started cutting off and collecting burls as I found them. 

Now that I had these burls Urban Waste Wood Bowl Image something needed to be done with them. I purchased a wood lathe and have been making sawdust ever since. Each burl is like a geode to a geologist. You never know what's inside until you open it up.

So, from a tree that was destined to be turned into firewood... I have found a way for the beauty of these urban trees to live on in the form of furniture, and as functional works of art. Each piece is unique to the world and... cannot be exactly duplicated.

I hope that you enjoy looking at them.

Kevin "Sawdust" Jones