Looking For The Fluff

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Well I wasnt with my gaggle of folks but I was kinda doing the same thing just in the woods with no hamburgers:)

Looking For The Fluff
As I walk thru the woods I am always taking an inventory of what is around me. One of the valuables I look for is fire starting tender because anything that I can save my homemade items for will allow me another day of supplies.
Items that are fluffy in nature often hold a good spark and while we are still very dry and under a burn ban in the grasslands out here I made spark and flame up to show a small demo.
Not all fluffy items are created equal or are even usable and as EX121 pointed out, in a previous and knowledgeable posting, some things don

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Fuzz heads

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Seed Pods a real close second to cattails

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Cattails

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Thistleheads

To get the best igniting make sure to pull this stuff apart and "fluff" it

[EX121]

Great videos Matt. Again my 2 cents. Not all 'flint' strikers are created equal, some throw a hotter spark, so practice with each type.
I've found that cattail is very hard to light when the humidity is high. So even a couple of days after a rain they can still be too wet. Sometimes you can put the cattail fluff in a plastic bag and the sun will dry them out. Remember to leave the top open to let the vapor out. Don't foget you can eat all parts of the cattail, I don't think I'd try to eat the fluff, however.
Even if you don't collect the stuff as you go by, while you are out, make a mental note of where it was so if you need you can go back and get it.

[xdpatriot]

We have 'bunch grass' that grows down here. You can find little patches of it. The roots are shallow so it's easy to pull them up. Just shake off the dirt around the roots, voila, instant tender bundle. We're going on a camping trip this weekend, it's my 9 yr old daughters first time at having the responsibility of starting the fire without matches. I'll post the outcome in another thread. Keep em coming Matt!

[off-trail]

Thanks for the videos, the word I use is seed fluff. It's great tinder and my first go to for starting fires. I also use punk wood and tinder fungus to start fires. About the cattail fluff, i like to call it flash tinder because in a flash it's gone. Loved the videos brother:)

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Thanks for the videos, the word I use is seed fluff. It's great tinder and my first go to for starting fires. I also use punk wood and tinder fungus to start fires. About the cattail fluff, i like to call it flash tinder because in a flash it's gone. Loved the videos brother:)

Thanks
Located some more items while out and about. I love the swamp grass seed heads that everyone puts close to their houses as “d

[Matt In Oklahoma]

[QUOTE=Matt In Oklahoma;49577]Thanks
Located some more items while out and about. I love the swamp grass seed heads that everyone puts close to their houses as “d

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Cottonwood seed the spring and early summer "fluff" just remember to collect alot of it

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Dandelion
It takes ALOT of these to get a fire going and while it is added to my nest it very rarely would be my primary simply due to the flash properties. So add them in if you can get them but don't rely on them as a stand alone

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Thistle, Stinging Nettle or a few other names usually right after getting poked by it LOL



The purple flower has too much moisture in it to light but can be picked and dried but but is not as good as the naturally dried seed pod head when it is white in the middle summer to late fall

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Western Salsify also known as goatsbeard

It burns quick like dandelion but not as good as the thistle so a few might be needed to get the party started

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Mimosa tree flowers do not work. I was trying to find some urban stuff as well