The Natural Forest
A natural forest is another phenomenon which is important to the origin of the trees. Everywhere in the world Mother Nature had a particular combination of trees in mind which perfectly suited the location and harmonized with the soil. This forest family was best suited to the climate zone and grew abundantly.
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The finer and more interwoven a fiber structure is, the more elastic, smoother, tighter and longer lasting is the fabric. The very fast-growing spruce in lower altitudes compare to the fine fibers of high-altitude spruce trees like jute does to silk.
For this reason, we only work with very fine fibred wood grown in the Alps (approximately 3,000 - 4,000 feet, 915-1220 meters above sea level) particularly when building projects with glass facades where the wood must not move or shrink. The same type of tree grown in higher altitudes produces a spacing of just a millimeter or even less between the yearly growth rings. This much finer structure has many advantages for building quality homes and furniture
(When looking at the distance of the growth rings, you can see if a tree has grown fast or slowly) We will take a closer look at influences such as the right location in the forest and stress-free growth in the next chapter. The most important type of tree for building wood in Europe is the spruce. You find this fast-growing tree in lower-lying areas in nutrient-rich soil with growth rings that have up to 3cm spacing between them.
Dense Fiber Grows at High Altitudes
The correct choice of tree (according to what is going to be used for later) and the right timing of the harvest are the two main criteria when working with wood in a natural way. Both measures are basic requirements for straight, stable and long-lasting wood. <Finely grown trees with little space between the growth rings (e.g. pine, 1mm and less) usually are less prone to cracks and tension, more durable and therefore higher quality building wood.> One can compare the consistency of wood with textures and fabrics one uses for garments. The finer the weave and tighter the stitches, the more valuable and precious is the fabric.
If you count those rings, you find out how old the tree is. A specialist can tell more about the quality of the tree by looking at the distance between the rings and how evenly they have grown. Finely grown trees with little space between the growth rings (e.g. pine, 1mm and less) usually are less prone to cracks and tension, more durable and therefore higher quality building wood.
With a 2,000-year-old olive tree, only the innermost part is really 2,000 years old. The outermost and visible part has grown in the more recent years. We can see the growth rings when looking at a cross section of a cut tree. Every ring shows another year of growth.
How Does Wood Come into Existence?
Which part of a 2000-year-old olive tree has already existed at the time Jesus walked the earth? The development of a tree begins with the sprouting of a seedling. Every year, the young tree is being covered by a new thin layer of wood cells. The growth is happening on the outer skin, right under the bark of the tree. You can find out the age of the tree by counting the growth rings. You didn't hear anything and later the stacked logs were absolutely quiet too. By the time they were piled up, dried and transported to the saw mill, a few cracks did appear - however, just a tiny fraction of what would have been normal. At the sawmill we were elated. We knew that if we now stack and dry this wood properly, the wood would be calm. We actually were able to quiet tension loaded beech with simple measures and we were rewarded wonderfully calm wood for our projects.
We haven't done anything different but not one log has cracked yet!" With his broad hand he wiped the sweat and sawdust of his forehead and looked over to his colleague who agreed, nicking his head. The forester was skeptical when he heard that I was planning by the moon phases, but now he was puzzled too. He sold many beech batches, but never was it so quiet.
Our beeches were cut by two older wood loggers; both of whom have worked in this particular mixed deciduous forest for many years. The older one was shaking his head when he greeted me at the location: "I have been harvesting beech trees here for 30 years now and never experienced anything like this.
On those 'best wood days', my wife and children don't seen much of me. I spend them in the forest and mountains and see how the selected trees are doing. I make sure the harvest dates are being adhered to and help out where needed. Naturally, I was present when the time for harvest came for the said beech trees in the foothills.
Here, one sometimes thinks a thunder storm is closing in. It happens all the time that the tension-loaded tree trunk cracks and splits the stem's lengths. Freshly cut and stacked, beech wood will crack and groan long after the workers have left the site. Particularly when the sun heats up moist logs, you can hear them crack and splinter with a sound reminiscent of loud thunder.
For the forester and loggers, this was new and he was present for most of the time. He never encountered a customer who insisted the trees be cut a specific time. There is a marked difference between beech and spruce trees. When cutting the long logs of spruce to the desired length, one only gets to hear the sound of the chainsaw, but this is different with beech logs.
Old trees had to give way by falling down after centuries of growth or by being harvested. The forest, the location and the trees suited my plans and I bought the trees. The time of harvest was worked out exactly and noted down. A few months later, just after Christmas when the moon was favorable, my trees were logged.
I remember this anecdote of the time when we logged the first beeches. I chose the trees in the northern foothills of the Austrian Alps. The forest floor was already covered with young descendants of beech, ash and maple trees standing in the shade of tall, old trees. These youngsters needed more space and were waiting their turn to grow into the light.
It happens again and again that carpenters jump out of their seats when I show photos of beech floors in my PowerPoint presentations. They cannot believe a solid floor made with local beech would ever lie steady and not move. It's only when I invite them to look at the floors that those skeptics are transformed into believers.
We trusted the tried and true methods we have used for most of the other native wood: we choose trees which had grown steadily (stress-free) on humus-rich forest floor. The time of logging would be right and the stacking and drying process would be naturally slow. Nevertheless, our floors made of beech gave us the biggest challenge and triggered countless discussions in coming years.
Sometimes, I have the impression the energetic beech has given its wood too much power and tension. These were the thoughts I was pondering when I was thinking about using local beech for solid wood flooring and furniture. It was the same temptation or impulse that excites the mountain climber to climb the highest mountain tops which spurred me on to tackle the vigorous, hard and extremely robust wood of beech trees.
The wood is a light-reddish color, visually evenly and calm/quiet and because it is hard wood it is hard-wearing. However, there is one characteristic which makes it difficult to work with. Solid, untreated Beech wood is in constant movement like no other wood. It swells and warps more than all the other native Austrian Wood species.
Beech trees are the ones foresters love seeing most. In mixed forests, beech leaves make particularly good mulch and the trees' roots macerate the ground more than others do. Their roots go deeper than the surface roots of spruce trees and the magnificent mighty crown protects younger trees. This nurturing character trait of the beech tree gave it the nickname: 'Mother of the Forest'.
"Who was looking after you and cooking?" My son asked. Granddad's eyes sparkled in his weathered face: "I was the cook. I cooked the same 'Muasl' (simple meal made of lard, flour and water) every day in the same pan. It seemed the others were happy with it, otherwise they would have taken over from me."
Everyone usually recovered very well; some carpenters did end up with a limp though." "Yes, yes," Granddad continued. "To build a wooden house took about a whole year. Larger buildings took us longer obviously. Every beam and every board was handled countless times, chosen, scrutinized, examined and sorted... Our love, joy and pride accompanied our work every day."
When asked if he was ever injured, Granddad answered: "No. I don't really know why, but I have never seriously injured myself in my whole life. It did happen that someone hit his leg with an axe once in a while, particularly when we were hacking for days and weeks. Those injuries were treated on site with tree resin, sulfur and lard, Arnica and other herbs.
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