A neighbor cuts down a tree, posts “free firewood” online, and suddenly you can picture a winter’s worth of backyard fires without spending a dime. Before loading your truck, however, there’s one question worth asking: Where did that wood come from? The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service warns that invasive insects and diseases can travel inside firewood, sometimes without obvious signs on the outside. Some of those hitchhikers can emerge after you bring the logs home and threaten healthy trees in your yard or neighborhood. Practicing safe firewood movement may mean passing up a free load of wood when you can’t determine where it originated.
