Firewood Types in Southeast Ohio: A Complete Guide

Southeast Ohio sits in one of the most diverse hardwood regions in the eastern United States. The ODNR classifies roughly 63% of Ohio's forests as oak-hickory, and that concentration is densest in the Appalachian foothills that define Hocking County and its neighbors. If you burn firewood here — whether at home or at a cabin — here's what's growing in the hills around you.

The Hardwoods

White Oak

White oak is the gold standard of Ohio firewood. It produces approximately 26.5 million BTUs per cord, generates a deep coal bed, and burns steadily for hours. The wood is dense and heavy, which is why it takes 18 to 24 months to season properly. White oak is also valued for lumber and historically for barrel-making — its cellular structure includes tyloses that make it impervious to liquid, which is why bourbon barrels are always white oak.

Red Oak

Red oak (also called northern red oak) comes in slightly behind white oak at about 24 million BTUs per cord. It's abundant throughout the Hocking Hills region and is the most commonly available oak firewood. Red oak splits reasonably well and produces good coals, though it doesn't burn quite as long as white oak. Seasoning time is similar — 18 to 24 months for optimal performance.

Shagbark Hickory

Hickory produces the most heat of any commonly available hardwood in Ohio, at roughly 27.7 million BTUs per cord. Shagbark hickory — named for its distinctive peeling bark that curls away from the trunk — is the most common hickory species in southeast Ohio. It burns hot and long, producing excellent coals. The downside: hickory is notoriously difficult to split, especially if it's knotty. It needs 12 to 18 months of seasoning. Hickory is also one of the best cooking woods, lending a strong smoky flavor to grilled and smoked meats.

White Ash

White ash was once one of the most abundant trees in Ohio — approximately one in ten trees in the state was an ash. The emerald ash borer has devastated ash populations since arriving in Ohio in 2003, and the beetle has now been confirmed in all 88 counties. As a result, there's a large supply of standing dead ash available as firewood. White ash produces about 23.6 million BTUs per cord, splits easily, and seasons faster than almost any other hardwood — it can be burned within months of cutting. It was long considered the benchmark firewood for ease of use.

Sugar Maple

Sugar maple (also called hard maple) produces about 24 million BTUs per cord — on par with red oak. It burns with a steady, even flame and leaves clean ash. Sugar maple is common in the mixed hardwood forests of Hocking County, though it's typically a smaller component of the stand than oak and hickory. It seasons in 12 to 18 months and splits cleanly.

Black Cherry

Cherry is a lighter hardwood at roughly 20 million BTUs per cord, but it earns its place on the firewood pile through aroma. Burning cherry produces a sweet, pleasant scent that fills a cabin or campsite. It also ignites easily and burns cleanly with minimal sparking — a nice quality for open fireplaces. Cherry seasons quickly (6 to 12 months) and is widely available in southeast Ohio.

Black Locust

The sleeper of the firewood world. Black locust produces an astonishing 29.3 million BTUs per cord — more than any other species commonly found in Ohio. It burns hot and long, producing a dense coal bed. Black locust was historically favored by Amish communities in Ohio for home heating. The wood is extremely hard and can be difficult to split, but it grows fast and is common along roadsides, fence rows, and field edges throughout the Hocking Hills region. It's a pioneer species — one of the first trees to colonize abandoned farmland.

Beech

American beech produces about 24 million BTUs per cord and burns with a steady, hot flame. It's common in the higher elevations of the Appalachian foothills and throughout the mixed hardwood forests of Hocking County. Beech is easy to recognize by its smooth, silver-gray bark. It splits reasonably well and seasons in 12 to 18 months. Beech is also valued for cooking — it adds a mild, clean smoke flavor.

The Softwoods

Eastern White Pine

Pine is abundant in southeast Ohio but makes poor firewood for heating. At about 14.3 million BTUs per cord, it's roughly half the heat output of oak. Pine burns fast, produces more smoke, and leaves behind sticky creosote deposits in chimneys and flues. However, pine makes excellent kindling — it ignites quickly and burns hot enough to get hardwood logs going. A few small pine splits in your fire-starting kit are useful; a full load of pine in your fireplace is not.

Eastern Hemlock

Hemlock is present in the deep gorges and north-facing slopes of Hocking Hills — it's one of the signature trees of places like Conkle's Hollow and Cantwell Cliffs. However, hemlock should never be harvested for firewood. The hemlock woolly adelgid, an invasive insect discovered in the Hocking Hills area around 2013, is threatening the region's hemlock population. Conservation efforts are underway to protect these trees, and cutting them for firewood would undermine that work.

* Abundant due to emerald ash borer mortality creating large supply of standing dead ash.