Thirty tree species indigenously growing in their natural habitat in subtropical forest of central India were collected and fuelwood properties viz. moisture, silica, ash, density, carbon, nitrogen, volatile matter, calorific value and fuel Value index (FVI) calculated to screen desirable species for potential production of fuelwood in these areas. The present study revealed that Acer oblongum, Betula alonoides, Grevillea robusta, Limonia acidissima, Lyonia ovalifolia, Madhuca indica, Melia azedarch, Morinda tinctoria, Myrica sapida, Prunus cornuta, Pyrus pashia, Quercus langinosa, Rhamnus triqueter and Stereospermum xylocarpum possess excellent fuelwood qualities. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.