Why hardwood cut in winter is better ?

It is generally believed that hardwood cut in winter is better than that felled in the spring and summer. People usually think winter-cut hardwood is more durable, tough and has less splits and more beautiful wood grains.

It is thought that "winter-cut hardwood have less sap which may affect the good properties of wood, in spring and summer some substances in trees are dissolved out for plant growth and will be restored in autumn".

Experimental data shows that sapwood has only slight differences between winter and other seasons while the dead heartwood has not changes in the whole year. Moreover, winter-cut hardwood is not drier.

Why hardwood cut in winter are better ?

In winter, temperature is low, all parts of wood can be seasoned slowly and uniformly so the wood won’t split and check. In spring or summer, the temperature is high, the some (outer) parts of wood drys rapidly while the other (central) parts drys slowly, then the wood may split and check . In spring or summer, fungus is likely attack lumber which may cause damages and stains .