Cleaving black poplar questions

[stuckinthemud]

I am attempting to rough out some 1m long slabs of black poplar from a wind blown tree, but even crosscutting my little 32cc chainsaw is struggling. I have cleaved 4 and 6 inch diameter timber but this log is 20 inches across and very wet. Does black pop cleave easily and would I be better cleaving than ripping it down with my little saw?

 

[Inspector]

When I was a kid my father chopped down with an axe a few Cottonwood trees about a metre in diameter. He spit them down the length with wood wedges and a sledge. First in half, then quarters, and finally eights. Then he cut them shorter into 8' lengths for temporary fence posts. So if he could do those you should have no problem splitting yours.

Pete