Lumber in Pokemon Pokopia comes from handing Small Logs to a Pokemon with the Chop specialty. The rate is excellent: 1 Small Log becomes 5 Lumber, and you can hand over up to 10 logs at once for 50 Lumber. There is no machine involved.
Get the Cut Move First
Small Logs come from using Cut on trees and wood piles, and Cut is taught by Scyther.
To befriend Scyther, build a Tree-shaded Tall Grass habitat: four tall grass tiles placed near a tree. Then bring Scyther 2 Sturdy Sticks. Once Cut is yours, every tree in the world is a lumber source.
Water the Tree Before You Cut It
This is the part most players never learn. A tree that has been watered with Water Gun is flourishing rather than withered, and a flourishing tree drops more Small Logs.
It costs a few seconds, and it meaningfully changes your return on each tree. Given that a cut-down tree does not regrow, squeezing maximum logs out of each one matters more here than in most building games.
Plan accordingly: do not clear-cut an area you intend to keep looking green.
Who Can Chop
Scyther and Scizor are the obvious pair, alongside Pinsir, Heracross, Pidgeot and Victreebel, plus a couple of dozen others. You only need one living in town to start converting.
Other Sources
Small amounts of Lumber can be picked up directly near wooden debris, though it rarely respawns, so treat it as a bonus rather than a supply line.
For a passive trickle, Haxorus drops Small Logs through its Litter specialty. Pair a Litter Pokemon with a Gather specialty Pokemon assigned to a Community Box and the collection happens without you, which is the same principle our best Pokemon guide applies to every resource.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much lumber does one log make?
Five. You can also hand over ten Small Logs at once for fifty Lumber.
How do I get Small Logs?
Use Cut on trees and wood piles. Cut is learned from Scyther after you build a Tree-shaded Tall Grass habitat and bring it 2 Sturdy Sticks.
Do trees grow back after cutting?
No. Cut trees do not regrow, so water them first to get the most logs from each one.
Which Pokemon have the Chop specialty?
Scyther, Scizor, Pinsir, Heracross, Pidgeot and Victreebel among many others.