Wood Species Guide

hardwood, aspen can be seasoned satisfactorily by air drying or kiln Wood drying. The occurrence of "wet pockets" or "wetwood" in some lumber may require special attention during drying. The wood has low nail-withdrawal resistance species guide but has little tendency to split under the action of nails or screws. Hardwoods–and some softwods–continue to be It's easily worked and fairly easy to one of the prime components in furniture, cabinet, and finish to a smooth surface. Aspen woodwork manufacturing. What follows are general uses glues easily with a variety of glues and working and drying characteristic of the most frequently and under a wide range of gluing conditions. It ranks among the used species, including several tropical hardwoods. best hardwoods in painting properties. BASIC MATERIALS Beech (Fagus grandifolia) Range –The natural range of beech in the U. S. extends from By R. Sidney Boone, Donna grained, stiff, strong, and hard. Maine to northern Florida and Christensen, and Debra Squire White ash is superior to other ash westward from the Atlantic coast species in these qualities. Ash also into Wisconsin, Missouri, and HARDWOODS has good bending properties, high Texas. shock resistance, and it wears Uses –Beech is used in the Ash (Fraxinus) smooth in use. manufacture of furniture, Range –Of the 65 species of Characteristics –White ash especially chairs; veneer, kitchen trees and shrubs called ash, shrinks moderately but can be kiln cabinets; and architectural six-white, pumpkin, blue, black, dried rapidly and satisfactorily. woodwork. Its ability to maintain green, and Oregon ash–are Ash commonly is dried from the curvature after bending has led to commercially important for green condition in the kiln and increasing use for curved chair lumber and other wood products. requires 10-15 days for 1-inch parts. White ash grows throughout lumber. It machines well, is better Characteristics –The wood is almost the entire wooded area of than average in nail- and hard, strong, and machines well. the U. S. east of the Great Plains, screw-holding strength, and is Because its physical and except the Gulf and South intermediate for gluing, Other ash mechanical properties are so Atlantic coasts, and in southern species have lower strength balanced, it rates highly for nearly Ontario and Quebec. Green ash properties than white ash but still all wood-machining processes. It has practically the same compare favorably with other also has no characteristic taste or geographic distribution except that native hardwoods. These species odor, making it suitable for it also grows along the coast, also split easier shrink more, are woodenware, food containers, and follows the tributaries of the average in workability, and novelties. It shrinks substantially Mississippi River westward across perform somewhat less favorable during seasoning and requires the prairies, and extends farther than white ash when exposed to maximum care to avoid checks, northward in Canada. Black ash extreme cycles of moisture warping, and discoloration. It's grows along the Great Lakes and content. typically kiln dried from the green St. Lawrence River from New condition to minimize these England westward to Minnesota Aspen (Populus) problems. This requires 12- 15 days and northeastern Iowa. Range –Aspen grows throughout for 1-inch lumber. Uses –The principal use of ash most of the northeastern and is in furniture, interior parts of western U.S. Commercial stands Birch (Betual) upholstered furniture, kitchen are located principally in the Lake Range –Yellow birch grows in cabinets, and architectural trim States and the Northeast; smaller the Lake States, New England, and cabinetry. Ash is straight amounts are found in the central New York, New Jersey, Rocky Mountain region. Pennsylvania, and along the R. Sidney Boone is a forest products Uses –Once considered a weed Appalachian Mountains into technologist, Donna Christensen a tree, aspen is now used for a wide southern Georgia. It reaches its botanist, and Debra Squire a public variety of exposed furniture parts best development near the affairs specialist with the U.S. and interior parts of upholstered Canadian border. Sweet birch Department of Agriculture Forest furniture. grows in New England, New York, Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Characteristics –A lightweight New Jersey, and Pennsylvania and Madison, WI. FURNITURE DESIGN & MANUFACTURING/DECEMBER 1988 extends southward along the prized furniture wood and brings exception of bigleaf maple, which Appalachian Mountains to high prices in veneer log form. It's grows on the West Coast. The northern Georgia and Alabama. increasingly popular in kitchen wood of maples is often divided Paper birch has a transcontinental cabinets and is often used in into two classes-hardmaple and range extending throughout architectural trim, paneling, and soft maple. Hard maple includes Canada to Alaska. In the U.S., it cabinetry. sugar maple and black maple. Soft occurs eastward from the Lake Characteristics –Black cherry is maple is made up largely of silver States to New York and New relatively easy to dry, requiring maple and red maple with a very England. 10-14 days to kiln dry I-inch small proportion of boxelder. Uses –Yellow birch is one of lumber from green to 6 percent Bigleaf maple is used as such in the principal furniture woods in moisture content. It stays in place the regions where it grows. the U.S. because of its good well after seasoning and is Uses –Maple is a consistently machining and finishing comparatively free from checking popular wood for furniture and properties, hardness, pleasing and warping. It's easily machined, cabinetry. As much as 90 percent figure. and attractive color. Sweet can be sawed cleanly, turns well, of the maple lumber produced is birch lumber and veneer also are and planes excellently with further manufactured into a used in furniture. Both species are standard cutting angles. variety of products such as also used in kitchen cabinets and Screw-holding ability is good. furniture, kitchen cabinets, architectural trim, paneling, and Gluing also is good except when architectural woodwork, and cabinetry. Much paper birch is gum streaks are present. The wood flooring. used for specialty veneer products has sufficient hardness to allow it Characteristics –Maple is heavy, such as toothpicks and tongue to take hard use and withstand strong, stiff, and hard; has a high depressors. knocks without marring. resistance to shock; and ranks high Characteristics –The wood of in nail-holding ability. The wood yellow and sweet birch is relatively Black walnut (Juglans nigra) turns well on a lathe and is heavy, hard, and strong and has Range –Black walnut grows markedly resistant to abrasive wear. high shock resistance. Although naturally over a large area It takes stain satisfactorily and is the wood is difficult to work with extending from Vermont westward capable of a high polish. In ease of handtools, it can be readily shaped to Nebraska and southward to gluing, it has an intermediate rank. by machine and ranks high in southern Georgia and southern The wood of soft maples is not as nail-withdrawal resistance. Sweet Texas. The area of greatest heavy, as hard, or as strong as that birch ranks slightly above yellow commercial production is limited of the hard maples. Kiln drying birch in most strength properties. to the central part of this natural 1-inch soft maple lumber from The wood of paper birch is range. green to 6 percent moisture considerably lighter than the other Uses –Furniture is the content requires 7- 13 days and two birches and ranks below them outstanding use of black walnut, 11 - 15 days for hard maple. in hardness, strength, and stiffness. with gunstocks, kitchen cabinets, All birches shrink considerably and architectural woodwork also Oak (Quercus) during drying. Yellow birch must using large amounts. Range –Oak species are found be seasoned carefully to prevent Characteristics –The wood is throughout the U.S. Commercial checking and warping. Eleven to hard, strong, and stiff and has stands generally grow east of the 15 days are required to dry 1-inch good shock resistance. Black Great Plains. Oaks are grouped as lumber from the green condition walnut works easily with handtools white oaks or red oaks. to 6 percent moisture content. and has excellent machining Uses –Both red and white oak Because yellow and sweet birch are properties. It finishes beautifully are used extensively for furniture difficult to glue, special veneer and with a handsome grain pattern. It and flooring. Oak is the most adhesive treatments are usually takes and holds paints and stains popular wood for kitchen cabinets required to obtain the best results. exceptionally well, can be readily and is widely used in architectural They're glued more easily with polished, and can be satisfactorily trim, paneling, and cabinetry. synthetic-resin glues than with glued. The wood can be Characteristics –Oak is hard, natural glues. satisfactorily kilndried or air-dried stiff, strong, and shock resistant. and holds its shape well after It’s above average in all machining Black cherry (Prunus serotina) seasoning. Kiln drying 1-inch properties except shaping. The Range –Black cherry is found lumber from green to 6 percent wood undergoes large shrinkage principally throughout the eastern moisture content requires 10-16 while drying: seasoning must be half of the U. S. but grows in days. done carefully to avoid checking significant commercial quantities and warping. Historically, oak only in the northern Allegheny Maple (Acer) lumber is air dried for 60-90 days, Mountains. Range –Commercial maples then dried in a kiln for 5-10 days. Uses –Cherry wood is reddish grow throughout the eastern U. S. A more recent trend is to use and takes a lustrous finish. It’s a and southeastern Canada, with the predryers–large, low-temperature, warehouse-type dryers-to dry for furniture have resulted in screw-holding ability.

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