What about Crab Apple?

[sgtmonte]

I usually use apple and cherry chips in my MES but now I've got a new pit that I'll use chunks.  I have a couple crab apple trees on my property that I'm always trimming. 

Has anybody ever used crab apple? 

 

[fire in the hole]

Yup.........I have a whole box of branches that I have trimmed into smaller chunks. It seems to give a mellow smoke flavor......IMO.

 

[food czar]

Did you let the wood dry for any extended period of time or did you just cut it up and use it?

 

[Dutch]

Food Czar-any wood used for smoking should be seasoned before using. Limb trimmings from my apple and maple trees would normally take 4-6 months to season. Large branches can take up to a year and tree trunks can take up to 1 1/2 -2 years to season.  Splitting the larger branches and the trunk sections can speed up the seasoning process by exposing larger sections of the wood to the air. Cutting the wood into fist sized chunks will allow the wood to season even faster.  When I split wood for my smoker, I cut the wood just a little shorter than the length of my firebox and split the wood into about 3X3 / 4X4 sections so my splits are in the neighborhood of 3X3X18.  Your location will also factor in how long your wood will need to season (i.e: living in the Pacific Northwest where it seems to rain all the time vs. living in the South where it is warmer and drier.)

 

[food czar]

Thanks! A neighbour just sawed off a big branch off his crab apple tree and I will be cutting it up and letting it dry in the garage for next summer.