Kirchner Tree Update

As many members may have seen, the Kirchner Tree is now partially down and moved.  This process was slow and deliberate as we needed the skill of our arborists to climb and detach many limbs that presented issues before the bulk of the work could continue.  The rest of the tree will be brought down in the next few weeks.

Many have asked what's to become of this tree and the wood.  The short answer is we don't know.  Some has been cut into firewood.  Other sections are now at the bottom of the hill to see if we can get a portable saw mill in and at least cut it into some form of lumber.   Next that wood would have to be dried and stored to get the moisture content to a point it is workable

We are not woodworkers, but after contacting several tradesmen, the wood of white oaks is good for outdoor use.  Unfortunately most wood workers are not overly fond of this wood as it is very hard on tools and tends to shrink and expand at different rates making it a hard process for machining.  Right now our goal is to remove the tree.  Store pieces large enough to make it feasible for a portable mill to come to the site and reduce the logs to useable pieces.

Once this process is complete then we will leave it to the membership to determine if there are items that would be desirable to be made from this lumber.  We do not know the costs involved in making all the items I have heard mentioned (pens, putters, tables, benches, etc) , we only control the costs of getting the tree on the ground and out of harms way.  Stay tuned for the next step when we attempt to have the tree milled.

As for what will next occupy that spot, nothing can replace that majestic tree, most likely we will let a season pass and see what direction we should take.