A little bit of log lore

A keen firestarter of my aquaintance, Uncle Colin of Sussex, pointed me in the direction of this nice little piece which sums up some basic log burning rules.

Oaken logs if dry and old,
Keep away the winter's cold;
Poplar gives a bitter smoke
Fills your eyes and makes you choke;
Elm wood burns like graveyard mould
Even the very flames are cold;
Apple wood will scent the room
Pear wood smells as flowers in bloom;
But ash wood wet and ash wood dry
A King to warm his slippers by.

Beech wood fires burn bright and clear
If the logs be kept for a year;
Chestnut's only good they say,
If for years, 'tis stored away.
Birch and firwoods burn too fast
Blaze too bright and do not last;
But ash wood green and ash wood brown
Are fit for a Queen with a golden crown!

Author unknown but found at this useful site

This site also contains a very useful Building a Better Fire article; although I believe this may well restart a heated debate about scrumpling or rolling of paper between my family of fire starters