We have about an acre in the corner of the hay field that gets too muddy to drive on frequently enough that we just haven't been using it. I would like to plant it in trees and coppice them, mostly for firewood but maybe the occasional pole or fence post. I don't really know where to start though so I have a lot of questions :)
We are in zone 5, midwest USA
1. What trees should I plant? To avoid a monoculture I've read that ideally you should avoid having more than 10% of any one plant, so I'm looking for a list of 10 ish trees. My dad hates how many twigs etc willow trees drop and he owns the land, so that one is out. Trees that sucker aggressively like black locust are unfortunately out for a similar reason.
2. How many trees will I need and how far apart should they be planted? I heat our 2,500 square foot house with an old outdoor furnace and I would like to grow enough trees to supply all our own wood. Probably 4-5 cords per year at least, I'm not sure exactly.
3. How should we protect the saplings from deer? We have very heavy deer activity in the area in question. Just walking around out there I can see deer droppings everywhere. I read that Beech and Birch are comparatively immune to deer browse, is that true and are there others that are as well?
4. Is there a nursery that sells large numbers of firewood trees for cheap? Most of the nurseries that I'm familiar with only sell fruit trees.
Most of our wood has been coming from a guy who owns a tree service, so I'm used to burning trash wood lol. It doesn't have to be beautiful firewood as long as it burns longer than pine and there is a lot of it. They also doesn't have to be a multifunction tree like Mulberry but if they are that would be neato.
Here is a list of some trees I've been looking at, any comments or anecdotes are welcome.
Poplar, Alder, Cottonwood, Box Elder, Mulberry, Paulownia, Black Cherry, Chestnut, Sycamore
Ash has been highly praised for coppiced firewood, but there is the ash borer beetle to worry about. I have heard that the beetle only goes after mature trunks, so if I coppice it on a short schedule will the beetles leave it alone?