I notice the hams are rubbed down and cured in a wood trough or a wooden table. Does the species of wood matter? Is one type better suited than the others?
I don't think the type of wood matters as long at it's not green. My salt box is made from plywood and the table is made from oak. My grandfather used a hollowed out beech log for a salt box.
Here's another part of a hog killing...cooking off
the lard.