Fifteen perfect woods for fires

Each type of wood is made up of certain building blocks, which includes compounds like lignin and cellulose.

The difference is the space between wood fibers and how much moisture and air the wood contains. The woods known as hardwoods don't have a lot of space between their fibres.

They're extremely dense and heavy, which means that a fire built with hardwoods has a lot of fuel to burn through. As a result, hardwoods burn slowly and produce substantial amounts of heat than their counterparts, softwoods.

Softwoods are less dense and won't burn, as long as, hardwoods. However, because they burn so quickly, they're often considered great for starting a fire. Here’s our pick on what wood is best suited for you in what way.

• Red Cedar : Produced very low heat for the amount of wood it burns, but makes a great choice for kindling. Releases a fragrant aroma when burning.
• Apple: This wood burns slow when dry and has a fragrant scent.
• Sugar maple: Generates high amount of heat with very little smoke. However it’s quite hard to split these woods
• Ash: One of the best woods for a steady fire and good heat. Although ash will burn when green, it burns better when seasoned.
• Birch: This wood smells great and has good heat, but it burns quickly. While it will burn unseasoned, it can cause gum deposits in chimneys over time. So, avoid frequent use of non-seasoned birch.
• Black Cherry : Burns slowly with low heat. Hard to split these woods.
• Blackthorn: Considered one of the best, blackthorn firewood burns well with a low-smoke profile.
• Cherry: Season this wood well and you'll have a slow-burning wood that smells wonderful.
• Hawthorn: This wood will burn slow and hot, great for wintery fires.
• Maple: Found in different regions, this is a popular hardwood for fire burning.
• Oak: When seasoned well, oak burns slowly and steadily for a long time.
• Pine: This softwood burns well and smells festive. Try it for kindling or for outdoor fires.
• Sycamore: You'll be rewarded with a good flame and moderate heat if you season this wood well.
• Walnut: This hardwood burns long and hot with limited smoke. Walnut works well in wood-burning stoves.
• Yew: A pleasant smell comes from this slow-burning wood that gives off plenty of heat.