Wood Shavings Disposal

If you know someone who makes 'raku' (sp?) pottery, they would be able to use it in the firing process.

Depends on your location, and the type of wood you're turning ***. Some stables use shavings as bedding, so do some vets and dog breeders. I "donate" a few bags to the local shade-tree mechanic to keep the auto fluids in check, and a friend with a metal shop can always use a couple of bucketloads for his cleanups.

Most of it just gets dumped into the mulch pile for composting and landfill in what will become a raised bed garden next year.

*** NO WALNUT. For some reason I cannot remember it is not good for animal bedding, mulching, or much of anything else so on the rare lucky time I can get walnut to turn, the castoff gets a second but short life when mixed with equal amount of other shavings and made into fire- starter blocks for the Scouts.

Oh- and as long as you're sorting out the shavings, fruit woods can always go into/onto the grill or smoker.

I have a 4x4x8 box trailer that I fill once a week when in production-mode. Our town has a grass dumping area and I just dump it there. Recently, one of our turning group members has been taking my trailer and dumping the shavings on his property for mulch. Saves me ALOT of work shoveling it out every week!

Peter Teubel Milford, MA

Fortunately my local trash guys take bags of chips/sawdust.

If they didn't, I'd be able to take the bags to a municipal yard where refuse of all kinds is collected. Old funiture, mattresses, tires, ect.

Black walnut disagrees with some plants due to its natural herbicide, but other plants get along well with it. I've posted a list here several times over the years. It's also very bad for horses, and possibly other animals, but definitely horses. I'd be careful about that and also any tropical exotics. Otherwise, mulch works, animal bedding works. People in need of same may happily come and get it from you - I happily go get used horse bedding because my garden needs it.

Oh, where's that list....here it is, as you can see, there are many places in the garden where black walnut is just fine (it will help keep down weeds that cannot tolerate it, if the desired plants can tolerate it).

Hi Ec. I'm surprised that you couldn't post the list from memory. Best, Arch

Fortiter,

Walnut has too high a tannin content and can cause the animals feet to become infected - especially horses!

Ray

I put mine in paperbags and toss them in the fire place (I don't turn green wood, yet...). Any suggestions how to turn them into the blocks you mentioned? Bart.

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Bart, it's a simple formula that the Scouts do at a meeting or three each year, depending on interest and the collection of materials. We collect cardboard egg cartons (not plastics or stytrene), lots of candle ends, and the shavings.

Fill each little cup with shavings to what will appear to be the "natural fill line" - where if it were an ice cube tray the water would spill into the next cup. Tamp down the shavings/sawdust until it's firm but not solid. While you're filling the cartons, melt the wax and skim off any leftover wicks or other crud.

Place the egg cartons on newspaper covered trays, and fill with wax until it comes just over that "fill line". Pick up the entire tray to about 6" and drop to settle the wax, top-off as needed.

Let it all cool, the wax will absorb into the carton, which becomes the wick. Cut apart into individual servings for backpacking. You can also leave the carton lid on, after the starters are made, put a few bits of tinder and some wax-coated matches in the carton, close the lid and stash in your fire making kit.

ObTurning: three of the older Scouts in the troop are also turners and we regularly bring back a log or three for turning stock after a campout. It adds to the collection of wood species we turn, and makes for a nice remembrance of the campout- "Yeah, this pen is from some wood we got when we camped at the dunes".

I mulch with all my wood - maple, pine, cherry, apple, birch, sycamore. Helps hold the moisture since we only get about a 1/2" of rain or less in three summer months. Gave some to my parents and their peas bore much longer by keeping the moisture better and lowering soil temperature. Saves on weeding.

Don't have any walnut, so I haven't had that problem.

Derek

Bruce, some of the waste goes to (Organic) textile dyers and Raku potters, the rest into the dump.

Regards, Peter Charles Fagg Freshwater, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom.

Each can do but little! But if each DID that little, ALL would be done!

This is for walnut, what about butternut? I have a source for some 5/4 stock that I planed on doing some segmented bowls.

James

Ecnerwal wrote:

Many towns and cities have implemented a yard waste recycling/mulching program. Too, there are private businesses that cook compost and might be interested. Have you let your fingers do the walking on these ideas?

Mulch is good, but note that the subsequent decomposition of the shavings will require the addition of some nitrogen either in a powdered or organically bound form. Foliage plants, and crops like corn (maize) which have high nitrogen demand may suffer. One of the reasons why you can mulch under your electric fence to control the weeds that short it.

As noted, walnut, and to a lesser extent, its juglone-secreting cousin butternut, are said to cause problems with hooves, cherry smells too attractive not to eat for many horses, and one I hear from one of my chicken farmers, chickens will eat sawdust (clean shavings only), thinking it is their mash, and become malnourished , though presumably quite regular. Whatever your manure provider believes, try to accommodate him, for the returns after the livestock are through with the shavings, are great when composted.

Presumably similar - as far as I undersatand, it has the same substance, but somewhat less of it.

Bruce, I use mine to cover a path in my yard. This works great to keep the weeds down and with the amount of material I have it always seems to look fresh IMHO

unless I hide

Doesn't it belong in a garbage bag anyway since you know it is household/hobby waste?

John