When choosing firewood, one of the most common assumptions is that hardwood is always better than softwood.
While hardwoods such as oak, ash, and beech have long been prized as excellent firewood timbers, some softwoods perform far better than their reputation suggests.
Larch is one such species. Although technically a softwood, larch offers a combination of strong heat output, good burn performance, and ease of ignition that makes it a popular choice for many wood burners and stoves.
Softwood vs hardwood firewood
The distinction between hardwood and softwood relates to how trees grow rather than how they burn.
Hardwoods generally produce denser timber, which often results in longer burn times and sustained heat output. Species such as oak, ash, and beech are therefore commonly regarded as premium firewoods.
Softwoods are often criticised for burning too quickly or producing excess smoke. While this can be true of some species, it is far from universal. The performance of any firewood depends on a range of factors, including density, moisture content, and how the timber has been processed and dried.
Why larch performs differently
Larch is unusual amongst softwoods because it combines relatively high density with excellent calorific value. In practical terms, this means it can produce substantial heat while still offering the quick ignition and lively flame often associated with softwoods.
For many users, this balance is particularly useful. Larch is easy to light, establishes a fire quickly, and produces strong heat output once burning.
When assessing firewood, it is easy to focus solely on whether a species is classed as a hardwood or softwood. In reality, the amount of usable heat produced depends on several factors, including moisture content, density, and burning characteristics. Larch performs well across all three, offering an effective balance of performance, convenience, and value.
Properly dried larch compares favourably with many traditional firewood species and has become a popular choice throughout Scotland, particularly where locally grown timber is readily available.
The importance of kiln drying
Regardless of the species, moisture content is one of the most important factors affecting firewood performance.
Wet or poorly seasoned logs use a significant amount of their energy simply driving off moisture before they can burn efficiently. This results in lower heat output, increased smoke, and greater build-up of deposits within flues and chimneys.
Kiln drying reduces the moisture content to a level suitable for efficient burning, helping to produce a cleaner, hotter, and more reliable fire.
At Scottish Wood, all our firewood is kiln dried to ensure it is ready to burn immediately and performs consistently.
How we produce firewood at Scottish Wood
Scottish Wood is a hardwood sawmill that also processes a significant volume of larch. As a result, larch features prominently in our firewood mixes alongside a changing blend of Scottish hardwoods, which may include oak, elm, ash, beech, and sycamore.
The exact blend varies throughout the year depending on the timber being processed at the mill, but every load is kiln dried to ensure consistent burning performance.
Making full use of local timber
At Scottish Wood, we’re passionate about making sure that homegrown trees are used to their fullest potential.
As logs arrive at the sawmill, the highest-quality material is selected and processed into boards for furniture making, cladding, decking, joinery, and other timber products.
Our firewood is produced from a mixture of lower-grade logs that are unsuitable for sawn boards, together with sawmill offcuts produced during milling, including the slabs removed from the outer faces of logs.
This approach helps maximise the value obtained from locally grown timber while reducing waste. It is also beneficial from an environmental perspective. By turning high-quality logs into long-lasting timber products, we help retain the carbon absorbed by the tree throughout its lifetime. Because our firewood is produced from sawmill co-products and lower-grade material, we are also able to make use of timber that might otherwise be underutilised, without harvesting trees solely for firewood production.
So, is larch a good firewood?
In our experience, yes – larch is an excellent firewood.
While hardwoods remain a highly regarded choice, larch demonstrates that not all softwoods should be regarded equally.
Ultimately, the quality of firewood depends on more than whether it is a hardwood or softwood. Species, moisture content, and processing all play important roles in determining burn performance. Properly kiln-dried larch compares well with many traditional firewood species and continues to be an important part of the firewood we produce at Scottish Wood.
Looking for local firewood?
Our kiln dried firewood is produced from Scottish grown timber processed through our sawmill. We offer bulk firewood loads for collection from our site at Inzievar Woods, Dunfermline, as well as local delivery across Fife and the surrounding area.
Availability varies throughout the year and demand is often highest during the colder months, so we recommend stocking up before winter arrives. For current availability and collection information, visit our firewood page.
This article was updated in June 2026 as part of the migration to the new Scottish Wood website.
