Anybody ever work with hemlock?
I've been in Tennessee for the last couple of months handling my mother's estate. It is very apparent there has been a major decline in the hemlock trees in the last year. The 'hemlock wooly adelgid' is killing trees like mad. I have a couple dozen hemlocks ranging from 18 inches to 30 inches at chest height. One tree is well over three feet in diameter. About a third have died, and the rest will be dead by this time next year. There is no cure to the bugs, and various forestry agencies are predicting the hemlock will disappear (at least in the southern areas) in the next decade.
I am going to have to cut the trees to make sure they don't fall on power lines or one of the buildings. Has anyone ever worked with hemlock? A Google search suggests it is mostly used for framing or siding. But my mom and dad put many years of their lives into this place, and I would like to make something for the property out of their trees. Maybe a Tennessee version of Jummywood?
Please let me know if you have worked with it and whether it is worth the effort to salvage it for furniture.