Ask Arlene about building a Holzhaufen ©

Ask Arlene about building a Holzhaufen ©

By Arlene Wright-Correll

A recent email question spoke of building a “Holzhaufen” which I know of.

I no longer burn wood even though I did for 25 years.  However, a lot of people do not know what a Holzhaufen is so I am going to write about it.

A Holzhaufen is a very charming way to build a wood pile. I have a very dear friend who builds Holzhaufen on her property and they are individual works of art as far as I am concerned.

The word Holzhaufen means woodpile in German and they range anywhere from 4 foot to 10 foot and the wood is split in lengths from 12 inches to 24 inches.  Be aware that wood shorter than 12 inches tends to bulge and tip the Holzhaufen.  It is very important to split the wood because it not only dries faster, but it also interlocks and that is a very important necessary requisite for sturdy Holzhaufen construction.

This attractive woodpile requires a level piece of ground and one pile can contain as much as two and a half cords and can be built in just one hour.

I like the Holzhaufen because it takes up less space than conventional "wood stacking" -- and shortens drying time, even during the dampest kinds of weather.

When you split your wood and start to build one of these remember that the thinner end goes towards the middle.

Place a center pole which is called the indicator pole into the ground, approximately the height the Holzhaufen is to be. A good height to start with is ten ft. Make sure you indicator pole is placed plumb and it will assure that the pile is vertical.  By keeping the wood placed around it at equal distances, your Holzhaufen should remain in a perfect circle around the indicator pole.

The roof of the Holzhaufen is made by placing several pieces of wood, bark-side-up, in junction at the top of the cone.

A Holzhaufen as high as 10 ft. will stand as long as the wood will hold up, and -- within a period of three months -- will probably shrink to about 8 ft. This shrinkage will continue as moisture is lost from the wood. Thus, the center indicator pole can be used as a measure of dryness. When the Holzhaufen has shrunk between 20 to 25%, the wood is now ready to be brought in and burned.

May the Creative Force be with you as you tread the earth lightly!

Arlene Wright-Correll

Home Farm Herbery LLC