Wood-heater Fires 101: Proper Kindling/Tinder Prep

...Welcome to 2015, Everyone! Today, I've discovered two things: A, Why Gum tree wood is not normally used for wood-fires nowadays, and B: Why you shouldn't split it with a hatchet on the ground. 

First of all, gum trees, more commonly known as Black gum in my region of the USA, becomes more flammable than most trees when it's properly dried. While it won't go up like cedar, pine, spruce, or other resinous trees, it will still burn very quickly, producing a high flame in the process. Personally, I like to think that it's the higher proportion of fibrous tissues to sap that contributes to this. Thus, they make excellent kindling, provided that they are well-dried, and split/chopped into more manageable sized pieces. 

However, the wood doesn't splinter much. By this, I mean that rather than biting into the wood, a hatchet or axe is more prone to rebounding when used on gum wood than on harder woods like oak or even pine. So, while I was finishing splitting up a modest-sized length of gum wood, a piece a little longer than my hand rebounded off the ground and struck me in the head. I'm sporting a nice 'goose-egg', but other than that, I'm just fine. I learned some practical information in the process, and hopefully, you, my reader(s), won't make the same mistake!