Woods to Burn at Night
First, to be clear, I am speaking about firewood that we best use at night (or for any long periods when a fire is left unattended), when certain characteristics would be favorable—characteristics such as:
From Top: Black Cherry, Black Locust, Maple, Black Walnut, Red Oak
Long burn (wood that might burn or give off heat over a period of several hours)
Max heat (Since the fire will be left alone for hours, we seek the most heat possible, from a stove filled to capacity)
Coals in the morning (Having live coals in the morning, to help rekindle a new fire, is nothing short of a pleasure to someone burning wood for heat)
Maple (Hard Maple, Sugar Maple)
This is one of my favorite woods to burn
Very hot
Perhaps the best at leaving coals for the morning
Oak
There are numerous varieties of Oak, all very hot wood to burn —If fully dried—which means allowing the wood to dry for a minimum of one full year, and more if possible, up to two years.
Black Locust
This is a heavy, dense wood that can burn very hot. One challenge is that it can be difficult to keep burning if you are going for a slow burn. To help with this, mix Locust with other woods that are more comfortable burning long and slow, like the Maple, of faster burning woods like Cherry or Ash
or use Locust in hot, faster burn fires. It will give a great deal of heat.
Other “night-time woods might include Hickory, Apple, Ironwood, Beech …
Day-time woods:
These are what I call the woods that can burn hot, but burn quickly. These are good to use when a fast heat-up is wanted, or when one can attend to a fire more regularly (such as when one is around during the daytime), and keep it at a moderate burning rate, when not as much heat is needed. These woods can make it possible to regulate temperatures more easily.
Ash - One of the very best woods to burn when there is not much drying time available. The time needed to “season” (which means for the cells within the wood to dry) is the shortest, and it is one of the most forgiving to burn when it is not fully seasoned.
Other “daytime” woods might be Cherry, Walnut, Birch, Butternut …
below is one source of information about firewoods…
https://www.thespruce.com/best-firewood-for-fireplace-heat-stove-1908011