Wood Handbook, Wood as an Engineering Material

Species Descriptions

In this chapter, each species or group of species is described

in terms of its principal location, characteristics, and uses.

More detailed information on the properties of these and

other species is given in various tables throughout this

handbook. Information on historical and traditional uses is

provided for some species to illustrate their utility. A low-

magnification micrograph of a representative cross-section

of each species or species group accompanies each descrip-

tion. The slides for these micrographs are from the Forest

Products Laboratory collection. The micrographs are printed

at magnifications of approximately 15×. Their color is a

consequence of the stains used to accentuate anatomical fea-

tures and is not indicative of the actual wood color.

U.S. Hardwoods

Alder, Red

Red alder (Alnus rubra)

grows along the Pacific

coast between Alaska and

California. It is the principal

hardwood for commercial

Drying of Wood 13–

products in Oregon and

Washington and the most

abundant commercial hardwood species in these two

states.

The wood of red alder varies from almost white to pale

pinkish brown, and there is no visible boundary between

heartwood and sapwood. Red alder is moderately light in

weight and intermediate in most strength properties but low

in shock resistance. It has relatively low shrinkage.

The principal use of red alder is for furniture, but it is also

used for sash and door panel stock and other millwork.

Ash (Black Ash Group)

The black ash group includes

black ash (Fraxinus nigra)

and pumpkin ash (F. profun‑

da). Black ash grows in the

Northeast and Midwest, and

pumpkin ash in the South.

The heartwood of black ash

is a darker brown than that of

American white ash; the sapwood is light-colored or nearly

white. The wood of the black ash group is lighter in weight

(basic specific gravity of 0.45 to 0.48) than that of the white

ash group (basic specific gravity greater than 0.50).

Principal uses for the black ash group are decorative veneer,

cabinets, millwork, furniture, cooperage, and crates.

Ash (White Ash Group)

Important species of the

white ash group are Ameri-

can white ash (Fraxinus

americana), green ash

(F. pennsylvanica), blue

ash (F. quadrangulata), and

Oregon ash (F. latifolia).

The first three species grow

in the eastern half of the United States. Oregon ash grows

along the Pacific Coast.

The heartwood of the white ash group is brown, and the

sapwood is light-colored or nearly white. Second-growth

trees are particularly sought after because of the inherent

qualities of the wood from these trees: it is heavy, strong,

hard, and stiff, and it has high resistance to shock. Oregon

ash has somewhat lower strength properties than American

Table 2–1. Major resources of U.S. woods according to
region

Western

Northern
and Appalachian Southern
Hardwoods
Alder, red Ash Ash
Ash, Oregon Aspen Basswood
Aspen Basswood Beech
Birch, paper Beech Butternut
Cottonwood Birch Cottonwood
Maple, bigleaf Buckeye Elm
Oak, California black Butternut Hackberry
Oak, Oregon white Cherry Hickory
Tanoak Cottonwood Honeylocust
Elm Locust, black
Hackberry Magnolia
Hickory Maple, soft
Honeylocust Oak, red and white
Locust, black Sassafras
Maple, hard Sweetgum
Maple, soft Sycamore
Oak, red and white Tupelo
Sycamore Walnut
Walnut Willow
Yellow-poplar Yellow-poplar
Softwoods
Douglas-fir Cedar, northern white Baldcypress
Fir, western Fir, balsam Cedar, Atlantic white
Hemlock, western
and mountain

Hemlock, eastern

Pine, eastern white

Fir, Fraser
Pine, southern
Incense-cedar Pine, Jack Redcedar, eastern
Larch, western Pine, red
Pine, lodgepole Redcedar, eastern
Pine, ponderosa Spruce, eastern
Pine, sugar Tamarack
Pine, western white
Port-Orford-cedar
Redcedar, western
Redwood
Spruce, Engelmann
Spruce, Sitka
Yellow-cedar

Chapter 2 Characteristics and Availability of Commercially Important Woods